Raastad 252NR10115 continues his reign as the top bull with a TMI of 26. His consistent ranking and consistent evaluations are a testament to the Geno breeding program where newly proven bulls have very large daughter groups resulting in highly stable and accurate proofs. Raastad is truly and outstanding bull in every respect. He is positive for all the production traits including protein yield, protein percentage, fat yield and fat percentage. He is also outstanding for daughter fertility, udder index and diseases other than mastitis.
Raastad daughters will milk out very quickly with very good mastitis resistance and their udder conformation will be very suitable for the milking parlor. Raastad is a very unique bull and will continue to be in high demand all over the world. Raastad can be used on cows of any breed with confidence that the resulting offspring will be outstanding, profitable dairy cows.
Hjulstad 252NR10245 continues as the second highest NRF bull for TMI. Hjulstad is very unique because of his daughters’ outstanding udders. Hjulstad is likely the best NRF bull of all time for udder conformation as he is almost 4 standard deviations above the current population mean for udder index. His sire Ulsaker 252NR5277 produced daughters with great udders as well, but Hjulstad daughters have remarkable udders by any scale.
Hjulstad daughters are also outstanding for daughter fertility and mastitis resistance. Hjulstad is a great bull to use in herds producing milk for a cheese market as his daughters are excellent in protein percentage. Hjulstad can be used on heifers or cows with no concerns over calving difficulty and Hjulstad is an excellent choice for cows with poor udder conformation.
Haugset 252NR10032 and Haga 252NR10039 are tied for 3rd in TMI for the September 2009 proofs. Both bulls are excellent for the production traits and Haga 252NR10039 is especially outstanding for daughter fertility and udder conformation. Haga 252NR10039 daughters have very attractive udders with very close teat placement. In many ways Haga 252NR10039 can be used like Hjulstad 252NR10245.
Haugset 252NR10032 is very good in almost every trait and can be especially good for improving mastitis resistance and diseases other than mastitis. He is also great on temperament with very quiet daughters.
Although the top 4 NRF bulls remain the same, 3 new bulls will be added to the available lineup in various Geno markets. These 3 bulls are Bosnes 252NR10402 with a TMI of 21, Hjelmset 252NR10372 with a TMI of 16 and Vibeasen 252NR10412 with a TMI of 14.
Bosnes 252NR10402 is sired by the Finnish Ayrshire bull Lusi-Kottilan Luiro and has an extremely well balanced list of breeding values. He is especially outstanding for daughter production, stillbirths, and diseases other than mastitis. His daughters will have high udders with a strong median suspensory ligament and very close rear teat placement.
Bosnes 252NR10402 can be used on heifers but should likely be avoided for use on cows with short teats and close rear teat placement especially in herds that rely on robotic milking. Bosnes daughters will be moderate sized cows that are very healthy and very productive.
Hjelmset 252NR10372 is the second new bull to be added to the lineup after the September 2009 proof release. Hjelmset 252NR10372 is another great udder bull with daughters that have well attached udders with close teat placement. Hjelmset is one of the best NRF bulls for maternal calving ease and maternal stillbirth. His daughters will be great at calving and give birth to lively, vigorous calves.
Vibeasen 252NR10412 is the third new bull added after the September 2009 proofs. Vibeasen 252NR10412 daughters are outstanding for all the production traits with a milk index that indicates his daughters are in the top 4% of the breed for overall production. His daughters will be smallish in size but well above average for both fat and protein percentage while producing a high volume of milk. In addition, his daughters will be very fertile with very good udders.
Vibeasen 252NR10412 can be used without hesitation on heifers from any breed or breed cross. Vibeasen should not be used on cows with close rear teats in herds that rely on robotic milking systems.