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Chronological summary of USDA-DHIA evaluation changes (1989–2013)


2013  |  2012  |  2011  |  2010   |  2009  |  2008  |  2007  |  2006  |  2005  |  2004  |  2003  |  2002  |  2001  |  2000  |  1999  |  1998  |  1997  |  1996  |  1995  |  1994  |  1993  |  1992  |  1991  |  1990  |  1989 |  Earlier history | Changes by topic


Evaluation date Changes in genetic evaluations and editing systems
August 2013 Evaluation system
  • New fertility and stillbirth haplotypes and changes in haplotype status
  • Version 2 of GeneSeek Genomic Profiler chip
  • Foreign and genomic information in parent averages
  • Six digit cow control numbers
May 2013 Evaluation system
  • Release rule changes
  • Additional variables added to XML files
  • Information on GP2 chip
April 2013 Evaluation system
  • Distribution and access to genomic evaluations
  • Use of a new chip with 76,867 markers
  • Ayrshire genomic evaluations
  • Weights used in genomic evaluations
  • Calving-ease format change

December 2012 Evaluation system
  • Correction and adjustment of health trait evaluations and reliabilities
  • PTA for days from calving to first insemination
  • Changes in HH1, HH3, and JH1 status
  • New reproductive status and culling annual reports
  • Automated processing of genotypes
August 2012 Evaluation system
  • Revisions to heifer and cow conception rates
  • Specific cow adjustments by country of evaluation for Holsteins
  • Genomic and pedigree inbreeding match better
  • Mobility for Brown Swiss and additional traits for Milking Shorthorns
  • Additional Brown Swiss genotypes from Interbull
  • Updated Chromosomal PTA Query
April 2012 Evaluation system
  • Adjustments to genomic evaluations and reliabilities
  • Data cutoff date for sire conception rate
  • Productive life field format
  • Sire-dam multitrait across-country evaluation (MACE)

December 2011 Evaluation system
  • Genomic evaluations using 6,909 markers
  • Maternal grandsire detection and discovery
August 2011 Evaluation system
  • Inclusion of British and Italian Holstein genotypes
  • Reporting of haplotypes that affect fertility
  • Changes in marker edits
 April 2011 Evaluation system
  • Adjustment of yield evaluations for all cows
  • Improved imputation
  • Chip type and genomic inbreeding in formats 38 and 105
  • Multitrait heifer and cow conception rates
  • Genomic reliability discount

December 2010 Evaluation system
  • Evaluations using 2,900 markers
  • Data sources for sire conception rate evaluations
November 2010 Estimated 2010 Genetic Base Changes for Goats–Production and Type Traits
[AIPL Supplemental Report (07-10)]
August 2010 Evaluation system
  • Mexican cow records
  • Validation of genomic evaluations
  • Improvements to imputed dam genotypes
  • Preliminary evaluations using 3,000 markers
  • Conception rate evaluations for males and females
April 2010 Evaluation system
  • Cow adjustments in genomic evaluation of yield traits
  • Haplotypes used for imputing genotypes
  • Breed-specific markers
  • Fertility data
  • Genotypes from Switzerland
  • Improved reliability for genomic evaluations
January 2010 Evaluation system
  • Base change
  • Net merit revision
  • Heifer and cow conception rates
  • Revised genomic evaluation methods
  • Web query to track genotypes
  • AIPL e-mail addresses
Net merit (2010 revision)

August 2009 Evaluation system
  • Brown Swiss genomic evaluations
  • Revised marker set used in genomic predictions
  • Blending of genomic and current Interbull evaluations
Base change documentation for January 2010
April 2009 Evaluation system
  • Revisions to genomic calculations
January 2009 Evaluation system
  • Genomic evaluations become official
  • Multitrait best prediction
  • Cow and heifer conception rates

August 2008 Evaluation system
  • Service sire conception rate
  • Genetic evaluations for clones
  • More traits of foreign sires used in cow evaluations
  • Reporting genetic recessive codes
April 2008 Evaluation system
  • Genomic prediction
January 2008 Evaluation system
  • New evaluation schedule
  • Interbull fertility evaluations for breeds other than Holstein
  • Interbull evaluations on Milking Shorthorn base
  • Jersey, Brown Swiss, and Guernsey conformation composites

August 2007 Evaluation system
  • Breed composition file for crossbreds
  • Adjustments to all-breed model
  • Parent averages for young bulls
  • Revised definition of Interbull type-of-proof code
Editing system
  • Correction of bull identification (ID) numbers with more than nine digits
May 2007 Evaluation system
  • All-breed animal model
  • Genetic trend for daughter pregnancy rate
  • Genetic trends for calving ease and stillbirth
  • Revisions to herd variance adjustment
  • Sample population for expected future inbreeding
February 2007 Evaluation system
  • Fertility evaluations from Interbull
  • Elimination of duplicate evaluations for Red-and-White bulls and related format-38 changes
Editing system
  • Consistency in reporting abortions
  • Designation of breedings with sexed semen

November 2006 Evaluation system
  • Holstein stillbirth and Brown Swiss calving ease (CE) from Interbull
  • Ayrshire and Red Dairy Cattle breed codes
  • Series-840 animal ID numbers
  • Additional release of yield evaluations for dairy goats
Editing system
  • Eliminating milk-component values when all cows have the same value
August 2006 Evaluation system
  • Productive life (PL) credits revised
  • Stillbirth and calving ability
  • Lifetime net merit revised
  • CE edits
May 2006 Evaluation system
  • Bull fertility evaluation transferred to AIPL
  • Milking speed evaluations for Brown Swiss
  • Rear legs/rear view evaluations for Brown Swiss and Guernseys
February 2006 Evaluation system
  • Daughter pregnancy rate (DPR) for foreign bulls

November 2005 Editing system
August 2005 Editing system
May 2005 Evaluation system
  • CE edits
  • Interbull daughter CE
  • Herd-by-sire interaction variance
Evaluation correction
February 2005 Evaluation correction
Base change (general documentation)
  • Genetic and phenotypic progress
  • DPR and somatic cell score (SCS) genetic bases
  • CE and PL evaluations
  • Model changes
  • Genetic trend validation
Base changes CE evaluation changes
Herd-by-sire interaction in evaluation models

November 2004 Evaluation system
  • Interbull longevity evaluations
Editing system
August 2004 No changes
May 2004 Evaluation system
  • New variances for Jersey and and Brown Swiss type
  • Jersey Interbull type evaluations
Editing system
February 2004 Evaluation system
  • Pregnancy rate excludes embryo donors
  • Release of Interbull type evaluations for Ayrshire bulls

November 2003 Evaluation system
  • Earlier evaluation of DPR
  • Fertility and CE in prediction of PL
  • Measure of pedigree completeness
August 2003 Evaluation system
  • Fertility and CE in net merit
  • New variances for Ayrshire type traits
Editing system
Delivery system
May 2003 Evaluation system
  • New variances for type traits
  • Parent averages for net merit and DPR
Editing system
February 2003 Evaluation system
  • DPR evaluations introduced
  • Changes in type evaluations for non-Holsteins

November 2002 Evaluation system
  • Release of Interbull type evaluations for Guernsey and Brown Swiss bulls
August 2002 Evaluation system
  • Correlations between PL and yield reduced
  • Sire-maternal grandsire threshold model for CE
  • Adjustment for heterogeneous variance in genetic evaluation of type traits
Editing system
Delivery system
May 2002 No changes
February 2002 Evaluation system
  • PL for embryo donors

November 2001 Evaluation system
  • PL in discontinued herds
Editing system
August 2001 Evaluation system
  • Release of Interbull type evaluations for Jersey bulls
  • Early release of bull ID information
  • Early release of official Interbull evaluations
Editing system
May 2001 Evaluation system
  • Interbull SCS evaluations
  • Variance adjustments for Jersey type traits
  • Interbull conformation evaluations
  • Officiality rules changed
Editing system
February 2001 Evaluation system
  • Delayed release of Interbull files
  • Development of comparison tables
  • Development of new e-mail notification list
Editing system

November 2000
  • Effective number of daughters used in Interbull reliabilities
  • Revised correlations in multitrait PL
  • Heritability increase for Jersey and Brown Swiss
  • 3-character error codes
  • Canadian and American ID checking
August 2000
  • Base change for production traits
  • Base change for non-Holstein type traits
  • Multitrait PL
  • Lifetime net merit
  • True protein replaced crude protein
  • Foreign bull pedigree added
  • Cross-references generated from cow control number
May 2000
  • High ranking grade designation corrected
  • First-herd designation corrected
  • Usable-herd designation corrected
  • Reporting of test-day errors
  • Cross-references derived from cow control number
February 2000
  • Foreign evaluations requested for more cow dams
  • Inbreeding sample included more complete pedigrees
  • Editing improved for test-day data
  • Error detection improved for country codes in ID numbers

November 1999
  • Foreign evaluations of parents included in cow evaluations
  • Different tests included when cows change herds
  • Foreign ID may be preferred over U.S. ID
August 1999
  • Net merit calculated from Interbull evaluations that include SCS and PL evaluations based on 1 to 9 daughters; parent average previously used for those bulls
  • Evaluation start moved 1 week later, allowing an additional week of data to be included
May 1999
  • Fluid and cheese merit indexes and expected inbreeding available for cows
  • Cows required to be tested in first 90 instead of 75 days of lactation
  • Maternal grandsire and birth date supplied for international bulls
  • Foreign evaluations of bull dams from more countries used in parent averages
February 1999
  • Lactation records computed from test-day data by best prediction
  • Factors to adjust for 3 milkings per day updated
  • Fluid merit and cheese merit indexes introduced
  • New test-day edits and new programs to accommodate American ID installed
  • Use of Canadian dam data extended to other nations
  • New sampling procedures used for expected inbreeding
  • Bull rankings provided on web and automatically by e-mail

November 1998
  • Cows in owner-sampler plans received predicted transmitting abilities (PTAs)
  • Registry status and recessive codes provided
August 1998 No changes
May 1998
  • Interbull evaluations official for a larger number of bulls
February 1998
  • Formats displayed international ID numbers and 4-digit years
  • Expected inbreeding of future progeny provided to help identify outcross bulls
  • Reliabilities of milk, fat, and protein combined into yield reliability
  • Type data for breeds other than Holstein evaluated with a multitrait animal model

November 1997 No changes
August 1997
  • Heritability increased to 30%, herd-sire interaction decreased to 10%, and permanent environment decreased to 15%
  • Deviations from management group mean limited to 4 standard deviations
  • Five Netherlands bulls received U.S. PTAs
May 1997
  • Frequency of evaluations increased to 4 times per year
February 1997
  • Owner-sampler and other records with type-of-test 40 to 77 used
  • Future milk prices forecast with a relative protein:fat ratio of 2:1
  • National and international evaluations released together
  • Interbull evaluations preferred when reliability is 5% higher than U.S. reliability except when U.S. reliability reaches 80%
  • Public access to cow and bull PTAs provided at AIPL web site

July 1996
  • Lactation weights computed from record standards variables instead of days in milk
January 1996
  • Missing PL and SCS added to make net merit available for all cows
  • Reliabilities for foreign bulls account for imperfect genetic correlation

July 1995
  • Net merit, PL, and SCS provided for cows with records
  • For bulls with Canadian dams, converted Canadian data used for parent averages
January 1995
  • Genetic base changed to cows born in 1990
  • New adjustment factors for age, parity, season, and previous days open
  • Residual age-parity effects included in model
  • New multiplicative SCS age adjustment factors
  • Conversions for European bulls replaced with Interbull multitrait across-country evaluations (MACE)

July 1994
  • Direct and indirect measures of PL combined by Holstein Association
  • Missing PL and SCS added to provide net merit for all bulls
  • Percentiles changed from milk-fat-protein dollars (MFP$) to net merit (bulls only)
  • Reliability of net merit added
January 1994
  • PL, SCS, and net merit introduced
  • Inbreeding calculated and used in relationship matrix inverse

July 1993
  • Converted Canadian data provided on same day and in same format as U.S. data
January 1993
  • Improved editing system installed
  • Animal model computations moved from Cornell to AIPL
  • Canadian evaluations converted and combined with U.S. PTAs

July 1992 No changes
January 1992 No changes

July 1991
  • Heterogeneous variance adjustment began
January 1991
  • New lactation weights and expansion of partial records began (RIP dip adjustment)

July 1990 No changes
January 1990
  • Records from later herds included in animal model

July 1989
  • Animal model implemented
  • Genetic base changed to cows born in 1985
  • Missing protein PTAs estimated
  • Percentiles changed from milk-fat dollars (MF$) to MFP$
  • Red-and-White breed data combined with Holstein data

Earlier history History of USDA dairy evaluations (1862–2013)