The GenOvis website has updated the Canadian Performance tested Top Ram and Improver Ram lists for February 2013.
Top Ram Lists
The Top ram lists allow purebred producers to easily find the best evaluated rams in the GenOvis program. To appear on these lists, maternal rams must be in the top 10% for Growth Maternal Index and paternal rams must be in the top 10% for the Growth Index.
The Top Rams List can be found here.
These rams aren’t recommended for commercial producers: the purchase cost compared to expected profits isn’t as advantageous as for improver rams.
Improver Rams Lists
The Improver Rams lists allow producers to find animals performance tested in the GenOvis program which are improvers for their breed. An improver animal is an animal that performs better than its breed’s average. As stated above, improver rams are more advantageous for commercial producers to purchase
For paternal breeds, improver animals must have a Growth Index higher than the breed average (50% or more). Maternal rams must have a Growth Maternal Index higher than 75% to appear on this list. A more severe selection on maternal rams is done for two reasons. First, maternal ram demand is lower than paternal rams. Second, growth traits are transferred more directly to the next generation of animals than reproduction traits.
