Advantages of Jerseys History
of the Jersey
Jersey Breed Facts |  |
Advantages of Jerseys
LOWER AGE AT FIRST CALVING
This is important as the earlier your heifers mature and
calve then the quicker returns start coming in from the
ensuing lactation. Ages at cullings
and survival
rates largely determine average productive life of cows in a herd.
| Mean age at calvings by breed and parity,
by month. |
| Parity |
Ayrshire |
Brown-Swiss |
Guernsey |
Holstein |
Jersey |
| 1 |
29.4 |
28.7 |
28.3 |
28.2 |
26.8 |
| 2 |
42.4 |
41.8 |
41.5 |
41.2 |
39.5 |
| 3 |
55.3 |
54.9 |
54.4 |
54.1 |
52.2 |
| 4 |
68.2 |
68.1 |
67.4 |
66.9 |
64.9 |
| 5 |
81.0 |
81.3 |
80.4 |
79.8 |
77.6 |
| 6 |
94.0 |
94.4 |
93.4 |
92.7 |
90.2 |
| 7 |
107.0 |
107.5 |
106.2 |
105.5 |
102.8 |
LENGTH OF CALVING INTERVAL
Calving, interval measures the amount of time in days between
each parity in the dairy cow. The ultimate calving interval
is 365 days, but this is very rarely reached. Esselmont and
Peeler, (1993) calculated that in a typical dairy herd producing
5500 litres of milk a day the cow produces an average daily
yield of 18l a day throughout the lactation. It is this amount
that is lost per day when, due to the present calving interval
being greater than a year in length, the next lactation is
delayed.
CALVING EASE
Jerseys are well known for their ease of calving, whether
the calf is a pure-bred or a cross-bred with a large beef
breed such as a Belgian Blue.
MASTITIS
Results from several investigations lead to the conclusion
that Jerseys are less susceptible to mastitis, e.g., in dairy
herds of Florida, mastitis and udder disorders were more
frequent among Holsteins (51% of cows treated) vs. 22% for
Jerseys.
LAMENESS
Jerseys are well-known to be less susceptible to lameness
because of their black hoof colour which makes their hooves
very hard. Because Jerseys are
a lighter breed this may also give them less problems with
lameness.
LONGEVITY
As a result of lower incidence of calving problems, mastitis
and lameness it is to be expected that the Jersey should
live longer, Increased longevity is a good measure of a cows
overall profitability as long as she is calving regularly.
Better longevity in a herd means lower replacement costs
and higher profitably.
INCREASED ENERGY EFFICIENCY
Jerseys are well-known for their high feed conversion efficiency.
GOOD TEMPERAMENT
Good Temperament is important in a dairy cow. In today's
modern parlours rapid throughput
is of top priority. An animal misbehaving by continually
kicking, off the units will cause unwanted delays and even
damage to the expensive equipment. Jerseys are thought to
have the one of the best temperaments among, the dairy breeds,
although a lot of this depends on the handling the animals
receive.
(data written and/or collated by M Colwell)
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