Annually, the American Gelbvieh Association honors females in their Herdbook that exhibit consistent maternal efficiency and stayability through the Dam of Merit and Dam of Distinction program. The AGA credits its members who continue to place selection emphasis on the maternal traits of the breed by being owners or breeders of these outstanding Gelbvieh and Balancer® females.

Of the 39,516 active cows in the AGA Herdbook, only 3.6 percent qualify for Dam of Merit. Only 0.8 percent of all active cows qualify for the Dam of Distinction honors.

“The Gelbvieh breed has long earned the reputation of possessing functional, hard-working females with the ability to breed at a young age, rebreed for the second calf and wean one in that would push down hard on the scale,” comments the American Gelbvieh Association’s Frank Padilla. “The females that qualified for the Dam of Merit and Dam of Distinction program did not achieve such a level of productivity by happenstance. Breeders placed selection pressure on these traits in the development of females that would perform at a level that surpasses others.”

The following is the top ten ranking of states for the combined total of Dams of Merit and Dams of Distinction:

1.       Kansas
2.       South Dakota
3.       Nebraska
4.       North Dakota
5.       Missouri
6.       Montana
7.       Arizona
8.       Iowa
9.       Colorado
10.     Minnesota

The Dam of Merit and Dam of Distinction recognition program was started in 1991 to honor the top-notch cows in the breed. The program recognizes two levels of productivity based on data submitted to the American Gelbvieh Association office. A Dam of Merit must have produced at least three calves, while a Dam of Distinction must have produced a minimum of eight calves. Both levels must still meet the strict qualifications requiring breeders to place selection pressure on early puberty and conception, regular calving intervals, and above-average weaning weights.

Gelbvieh and Balancer® females offer maternal superiority and continue to be a wise choice for commercial cow-calf producers. Beef cow stayability is an indication of a bull’s daughters’ ability to enter the breeding herd and remain productive at least until six years of age. Stayability is an economically relevant trait and has a large influence on herd profitability. The costs associated with development or purchase of replacement females is substantial.

A study conducted at Colorado State University evaluated the economic variability of average cow herd stayability. Essentially the study determined that a one unit increase in overall herd stayability resulted in an increase in profit of $2,500 for herds with 40 percent of the cows remaining in the herd to six years of age.

The following lists the top ten breeders of Dams of Merit and Dams of Distinction:

1.       Bar T Bar Ranch, Inc., Winslow, Ariz.
2.       Judd Ranch, Inc., Pomona, Kan.
3.       Lazy TV Ranch, Selby, S.D.
4.       Schroeder, Inc., Sioux Falls, S.D.
5.       Knoll Crest Farms, Red House, Va.
6.       Wehri Gelbvieh, Hebron, N.D.
7.       Middle Creek Farms, Bozeman, Mont.
8.       Flying H Genetics, Arapahoe, Neb.
9.       Post Rock Cattle Co., Barnard, Kan.
10.     MLM Gelbvieh, Superior, Neb.

The listing of the top 10 owners of Dams of Merit and Dams of Distinction is as follows:

1.       Bar T Bar Ranch, Inc., Winslow, Ariz.
2.       Judd Ranch, Inc., Pomona, Kan.
3.       Lazy TV Ranch, Selby, S.D.
4.       Flying H Genetics, Arapahoe, Neb.
5.       Schroeder, Inc., Sioux Falls, S.D.
6.       Schafer Farms, Inc., Goodhue, Minn.
7.       Middle Creek Farms, Bozeman, Mont.
8.       Wehri Gelbvieh, Hebron, N.D.
9.       MLM Gelbvieh, Superior, Neb.
10.   Knoll Crest Farms, Red House, Va.

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