LA VALUTAZIONE MORFOLOGICA DELLE VACCHE DI RAZZA FRISONA NEGLI ALLEVAMENTI PIEMONTESI

JUDGING OF HOLSTEIN COWS IN FARMS OF PIEMONTE REGION Animal judging describes and measures the appearance of an animal by assigning a score corresponding to its phenotypic value. The information gathered is used for the genetic evaluation of the conformation breeding value. The morphological score and cow breeding values that are obtained are also used for the selection of bull's mothers and for mating plans. So the most valuable animals are put in evidence, and their score contributes to determine the commercial value: the economic value it is certainly higher for those animals in which the correctness of the various characters also leads to a harmonious morphology. An important role in this process is played by the Breed Associations and their inspectors, who evaluate all the females in production enrolled in the Herd Book (so after the first delivery), and males over 18 months of age. For the Italian Holstein morphological description is made using a linear scale from 1 to 50 for each of the 20 considered traits. To each animal is assigned an assessment (on a scale from 65 to 100 points) for four general characteristics: frame, dairy strength, feet and legs, udder. These are then summarized in the final score, based on a comparison between the characteristics of an animal and the true type model of the breed. For simplicity, the scores are grouped into several categories: less than 70 = Poor, 70 to 74 = Fair, from 75 to 79 = Good, 80 to 84 = Good Plus, 85 to 89 = Very Good, 90 to 100 = Excellent. The final report and the training have been devoted to the study of this topic on Holstein cows raised in Piedmont. The work was carried out following the activities of the ANAFI Race Inspector of Torino. 25 farms were chosen from in various provinces: Torino, Asti, Alessandria, Novara and Vercelli. The goals set were: 6 ‐ to learn and to understand the morphological evaluation of Holstein cows performed by a professional, ‐ to assess any differences between farms or provinces with regard to animal morphology, ‐ to understand whether at farm level the animal morphology is taken into account and if there are farms that give more value to animal morphology that milk production. After analyzing the collected data, it was concluded that between farms, even from different provinces, there are no relevant differences in animal morphology: the average score is very similar in all herds, ranging from the title "Good" and "Good Plus". It was also noted that the morphological characteristics are not neglected in breeding, but milk production is preferred, always aiming to improve the breed. In individual farms is so followed and sought after the true type model of the cow, looking for a correct conformation that gives a good longevity and persistence in time of the animal without causing too many problems to the breeder, however, giving priority to productivity in terms of quantity and quality of milk and lower costs that would otherwise occur if you do not control this parameter, even if the Holstein type is constantly evolving, as the functional morphology express the evolution of the breed and its adaptation to new rearing techniques.