Genetic parameters for calving difficulty using complex genetic models in five beef breeds in Australia

Abstract

Data on Angus (ANG), Charolais (CHA), Hereford (HER), Limousin (LIM) and Simmental (SIM) cattle were used to estimate genetic parameters for calving difficulty (CD), birthweight (BWT) and gestation length (GL) using threshold-linear models and to examine the effect of inclusion of random effect of sire x herd interaction (SxH) in the models. ... Genetic parameters obtained for BWT, GL and CD, by fitting SxH as an additional random effect, are more appropriate to use in the genetic evaluation of calving ease in BREEDPLAN.