Leading Olympian is bred and tested in the UK
In this Jubilee and Olympic year, a Holstein bull has been launched for the UK dairy cattle breeders which will be named Woodmarsh Olympian.
It ranks as the number two UK-bred and tested Goldwyn son in the country.
Ranking fifth on Profitable Lifetime Index (PLI) against all UK and international bulls that have an index based on real UK daughters’ performance, Olympian is becoming a keenly demanded commodity across a wide range of UK producers’ herds.
Originating in one of the most highly respected herds in the country - the Gould family’s Woodmarsh herd in Shropshire - Olympian has a remarkably complete index featuring high type (Type Merit 2.04), exceptional milk and fat production (PTA milk 685kg and 31.4kg fat at +0.05%), as well as great performance for management and fitness. These traits include an impressive -13 for somatic cell count index, +0.2 for daughter lifespan index and +2.48 for locomotion.
Olympian’s linear profile shows his daughters to be deep-bodied and dairylike with exceptionally well-supported udders and outstanding legs and feet.
His pedigree confirms his true-breeding credentials as he descends from at least six generations of high production VG or EX cows, with his Jolt-sired dam and Prelude-sired grandam having classified EX92 (3) and EX95 (5) respectively.
"I’ve been incredibly impressed by the daughters I have seen," says Cogent’s Andy Smith who has inspected over 20 of this bull’s 50 milking daughters.
"They are clean-boned and very consistent, with hard top lines, outstanding legs and feet and super udders, and they’re also mainly black.
"Their owners - who have taken part in Visions, the Cogent progeny testing programme - tell me they’re a pleasure to have in their herds and they are very natural milkers."
Suggesting the bull could scarcely have been more fittingly named for his launch in 2012, he adds: "I read that one definition of Olympian is ’superior to all others’ and I can’t think of a better description of this bull whose genetic index is so well-balanced and complete."
