Summary
The problem of the use of progeny testing in conjunction with artificial insemination in dairy-cattle breeding has been considered from the viewpoint of statistical genetics.
The maximum rate of genetic improvement in a unit of 2000 cows is of the order of 1·5% of the average yield per annum, i.e. under present conditions at about 10 gal. per year. Efficient use of progeny testing must include the breeding of young bulls from the selected progeny-tested sires. Each sire progeny tested for milk yield would also have been tested for deleterious recessives by mating to twenty of his daughters. The optimum structure depends little on the assumed heritability of milk yield. The rate of advance increases with the size of the unit.
The general problem of the effective use of progeny testing in dairy-cattle breeding is discussed.
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Robertson, A., Rendel, J.M. The use of progeny testing with artificial insemination in dairy cattle. Journ. of Genetics 50, 21–31 (1950). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02986791
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02986791