PLAIN CITY, Ohio — Select Sires Inc. has temporarily suspended sales of semen from offspring of a Jersey bull/dam line that has been found to contain Holstein genetics.
As reported earlier by Farm and Dairy, the American Jersey Cattle Association learned that Oomsdale Gordo Goldie Gratitude (111224922), bred by Michael Ooms of Valatie, N.Y., is not of pure Jersey descent.
Affects semen sales
As a result of this announcement, Select Sires has chosen suspend sales of the following descendants of Gratitude: 7JE1013 Oomsdale Jac Casey COWELL-ET and 7JE1031 Cal-Mart Dale SPIKE 3951-ET.
Additional descendants that were distributed and sampled include, 7JE768 OomsDALE Jace Gratit Garden-ET, 7JE779 Oomsdale Morgan Gratitude MIKE, 7JE884 Bohnerts Garden AUNDRY, and 7JE955 Oomsdale Brazo Grat GOOFEY-ET.
Select Sires staff is cooperating with the American Jersey Cattle Association and Animal Improvement Programs Laboratory geneticists who have begun the process to discover the percentage and source of nonJersey DNA in the genomics of these animals.
About the dam
The investigation has centered on the dam, Oomsdale Gordo Goldie Gratitude because the identity and Jersey breed-specific SNP profiles of the sires of the above-listed progeny are not in question.
The cow, Gratitude, was DNA-typed by ImmGen Inc. in 2002. Her dam, Oomsdale Alf Gloria Goldie, and maternal grandam, Oomsdale Herm Groovy Gloria, had been previously blood typed as ET donor dams, and were DNA-typed in 2002 in conjunction with parentage verification request for Gratitude.
The sire of record for Gratitude, Bold D Gem Gordo, was not alive and had not been previously blood typed.
New technology
The recent discovery that the ancestry of Gratitude was not pure Jersey was made using genomic SNP technology. This new technology was implemented by the Jersey association for Jersey genomic evaluations in 2009.
Gratitude is dead and not available for genotyping. However, Animal Improvement Programs Laboratory geneticists have examined the DNA of the 15 genomically tested progeny in addition to DNA obtained from the cow’s maternal grandam, Oomsdale Herm Groovy Gloria, and Oomsdale Grant-ET, a maternal brother of Gratitude.
What they know
Their conclusions are:
1. Oomsdale Alf Gloria Goldie has been confirmed as the dam of Oomsdale Gordo Goldie Gratitude.
2. No conflicts were found in the breed check of the genotypes for Oomsdale Herm Groovy Gloria and Oomsdale Grant-ET. 3.
Based on the Holstein DNA identified in the genomes of the 15 progeny, the Holstein inheritance of Gratitude has been imputed as 22.3 percent and is paternal in source. The most likely source is a red-carrier Holstein bull.
Geneticists are now examining available bull genotypes in an effort to identify the source.
On March 13 and 14, the Jersey association board will meet to determine a course of action.
