Every time someone bad-mouths the replacement index, a star falls from the sky – that’s where they get them.

“What stars has she?”

“Feck the stars.She’s a good animal!”

Spot the key word in the next sentence…

“The decision to associate suckler support payments with the genetic potential of cattle has been a less-than-popular one in many circles.”

Got it?

Bookworm or not;Bounce: The Myth of Talent and the Power of Practice is a must read. The author documents many of the sporting greats in history, showing without fail how every single one was brought up in an environment that nurtured their skills as sportsmen and women. Be it a coach in school or a pushy parent, the book dismantles the idea of god-given talent – proposing a concrete argument that circumstance rules all.

Now, what does this have to do with the replacement index?

It’s coming. The obvious sport in which genetics would play a major role is basketball – height is king. Theoretically, every 6’6” person in the world would be given 5 stars on the ICBF’s basketball index. They have the potential to be effective, industrious NBA superstars.

There’s our key word again. Spotted it yet?

Potential...

Genetic make-up

The genetic make-up of an animal gives us a clue of how they will perform. The fact is that the index values are affected by traits which are heavily reliant on management.

Should an animal with a low calving difficulty figure always calve easier than a compatriot with high index value?All things being equal, yes.But are all things ever equal? Can a bull with five stars for carcass weight die lighter than a one star bull? Yes of course he can, if environmental factors influence his performance.

How many external factors can affect my cow's fertility?

Poor body condition, disease, adverse weather, a sub fertile bull, poor heat detection, poor AI execution - the list goes on.

Jigsaw

The index value of an animal is one piece of a two piece jigsaw. On the other piece, there is a picture of a farmer.

The unfortunate thing is that a poor quality heifer will now change hands for prices based primarily on a genetic value. Had she got a fair run from birth to mart,performance would have reflected her genetic potential(index value). But,for various reasons she didn’t and performance may now suffer.

Those who can solely question the ICBF are the farmers who are putting every one of the necessary measures in place to hit production targets and ultimately prime their farms to make money.

They needn’t book a bus down to Cork for their protest, a couple of 7-seaters will probably do.

Thankfully, the revamped replacement index will help to reward proper management practices– focusing on the performance per lactation of the cow herself.

I wonder what my index value is for basketball?