With August 2026 proofs come some big changes in the genetic traits that measure female fertility. Following in-depth research and testing by the Council on Dairy Cattle Breeding (CDCB), the result is a brand-new fertility trait, plus some big changes to the fertility traits you may already be using in your genetic selection.
The key takeaways for progressive dairy farms related to the new and updated fertility traits are outlined here:
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DPR and CCR values will look a lot different for all bulls across the industry.
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There’s a brand-new female fertility trait.
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The accuracy of these fertility traits has greatly improved.
The improved calculations for the female fertility traits mean that you can expect the average DPR (Daughter Pregnancy Rate) value for genomic bulls across the industry to increase by about 1.25 points. Rather than an average of -0.60, we’ll now see an average DPR of about +0.67.
For CCR (Cow Conception Rate), that average will increase by nearly 1.5 points, from +0.25 up to an average of +1.65 across the industry’s genomic-proven sires.
Since these changes are due to a calculation improvement, not all bulls will change by the same amount like we see with a genetic base change. But the average increase will be big.
There are also updates to improve the accuracy of calculations for heifer fertility traits – Heifer Conception Rate (HCR) and Early First Calving (EFC). However, those changes will not result in a major shift for the trait values.
FSC, or First Service to Conception, is the newest way to measure and select for genetic improvement of female fertility in cows. As the name implies, FSC measures the number of days from when an animal is first inseminated until the insemination that results in a pregnancy. If she conceives on her first service, her days from first service to conception is zero.
With this trait, CDCB has chosen to present it so that higher values are a positive thing. That means if you see a bull that is +5.0 for FSC, you can expect that his daughters will become pregnant five days sooner than daughters of a bull with an FSC of 0.0.
It’s important to note that this trait is completely independent of voluntary wait period, and the trait is in comparison to the base value of the breed in the US. Currently, the average number of days from first service to conception in US Holstein cows is 55.6 days, which represents a PTA of 0.0 for FSC.
The Council on Dairy Cattle Breeding has spent years doing intense research on why the genetic trend of traits like DPR and CCR did not match up with the actual performance that we see on dairy farms today. That research led to the calculation updates for these traits, which now separate genetics and management in a better way, by removing the effect of a farm’s chosen voluntary wait period. This is important, because we know that not all farms use the same VWP. In addition, the improved calculations account for days in milk at first insemination,
To see how these fertility trait updates affect your genetic plan and sire selection criteria, reach out to your Alta advisor for a conversation and more information. For more details on each trait and these updates, visit the PDF links below from the CDCB.
See details about DPR | See details about CCR | See details about FSC
