Selecting Bovine Embryo Donor Cows: What Makes a Good Donor
What makes a female ‘high-quality’ enough to be an embryo donor? This post we will discuss what characteristics we look for in our donor females.
- Good confirmation
- Registered genetics that reflect breed standards
- No genetic diseases
- Docile and easy to handle
- Pass general and reproductive tract exams
Interestingly, temperament is a heritable trait. Thus, we like our donor females to be docile and easy to handle; not only because donor females make a lot of trips to the chute but also because they will pass a bad attitude to their offspring.
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