Summer always brings an increase in animal related activities such as shows, exhibitions and sales, both public and private. Because these activities increase animal to animal contact, biosecurity for your animals and farm should be addressed. Appropriate animal identification becomes increasingly important as well. A couple of situations involving Belted Galloway breeders were brought to my attention recently that prompted me to write about the importance of becoming familiar with the need for proper identification and an awareness of biosecurity or controlling the importation of diseases to your farm.

Whenever purchasing animals it’s helpful to get as much herd health history as possible, such as diseases they have experienced, feeding and handling regimes, vaccination programs, etc. Johne’s disease is a contagious disease that cannot be vaccinated for in many states and due the slow incubation period, from 18 months up to 10 years, it’s extremely difficult to know if an animal is infected until the late clinical stages of the disease. Blood tests are fairly accurate diagnostic tool to diagnose Johne’s disease if run on adult animals.  If you are not familiar with the herd’s Johne’s disease history, I would recommend a blood test as either part of a prepurchase agreement or done soon after purchase, maintaining the purchased animals in quarantine for at least 2 weeks as part of routine contagious disease control program or longer is the test results are not yet available and  have as a condition of the sale returning any test positive animal.

Our Society requires a legible tattoo to be in the left ear of every animal registered. There is an excellent description of the equipment needed and the application procedure on page II-16 of the Belted Galloway Breeders Manual.  I would recommend using a tooth brush rather than a finger to rub the ink, preferably green, in to the ear skin punctures made by the tattoo applicator.  I believe the required use of the Radio Frequency Identification tags (RFID) is inevitable as exemplified by the State of Michigan now requiring all animals that leave their premise of origin have a RFID tag preferably in their left ear.  If this tag is placed in the recommended location in the ear it will not prevent the application of our required tattoo nor obstruct the visibility of the tattoo. New Belted Galloway registration forms will have a line for a RFID number, however that number will not replace our tattoo requirement.  RFID tags presently do not have a 100 % retention rate, is some situations considerably less that, thus the council feels at this time, that the tag should not be considered the only animal identification on the registration papers.

In the last issue of the U.S. Beltie News we discussed the new techniques for collection and analysis of DNA and the fact that now much more information is available from these analyses to help us manage parentage selection and beef production. In this issue we will go into more depth in understanding marker-assisted selection particularly as it applies to beef tenderness, an area in which the Beltie appears to have a genetic advantage. 

Introduction

The entire genetic makeup, or genome, of cattle is stored in chromosomes of which each cell in the animal has 60 in number; 29 pairs of autosomes and 1 pair of sex chromosomes. Each chromosome is made of  DNA composed of molecules containing nitrogenous bases combined with sugar and phosphate molecules called nucleotides (adenine, cytosine, guanine and thymine – abbreviated A, C, G, and T respectively) linked in sequence to make the DNA molecule. The specific sequence of these nucleotides determines the function of each portion of the DNA molecule. Specific sequences occurring along the DNA strand contain all the instructions necessary for making a protein. These sequences are called genes and their location on the DNA molecule is called a genetic “locus”. It is possible for the DNA sequence at a genetic locus to differ among individuals. The viable DNA code sequences that occur at any genetic locus are called alleles.  An animal’s genotype for a gene is the set of alleles it happens to possess. In a cattle, each cell has two copies of each chromosome, therefore two alleles make up the individual animal’s genotype. Since the sequence of DNA molecules encodes for a specific sequence of amino acids in the resulting protein, differences in genetic sequences can result in an alteration in the amount of protein produced or in the production of proteins with altered function. This can then result in cattle with altered appearance or altered performance (referred to as a phenotype). 

Allelic variation can be recessive, meaning that a calf must inherit the same allele (the same sequence) from the sire and dam before there is an effect on appearance or performance. Additive allelic variation means that an animal inheriting different alleles from each parent has a resultant phenotype intermediate between those found in animals carrying identical copies of the alleles. Dominant alleles mean that the presence of one allele is sufficient to result in the appearance or performance trait of interest. Sites (loci) on the genome that frequently show different alleles in a given population are termed polymorphic sites.

Recently scientists have started to identify regions of DNA that associate with economically relevant production traits in cattle. Several of these regions are significantly polymorphic. Tests have been developed to identify the sequence differences at these sites and therefore identify an animal that is carrying a segment of their DNA that is more or less associated with a desired production trait. The allelic differences at these sites are referred to as genetic markers and the ability to select animals with desired genetic markers for breeding is referred to as marker-assisted selection. In the last issue of the U.S. Beltie News we discussed two types of genetic markers microsatellites and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs – pronounced “snips”). In the instance of microsatellites stretches of DNA will contain simple repeated sequence (eg.CACACACACACA …). These short tandem repeats vary in the length of the repeated segment so individuals can vary in the length of these repeats at any locus. Single nucleotide polymorphisms are variation at a site of a single nucleotide base between the two strands of DNA. 

The term genotyping is used to describe the process of using laboratory methods to determine which genetic markers an individual animal carries. If the animal gets identical marker alleles from each parent the animal is said to have a homozygous genotype at that locus. If the alleles differ, the animal is said to be heterozygous at that locus. 

As discussed in the previous issue of the newsletter, genotyping using microsatellites and SNPs can be used for parentage determination and for the identification of animals carrying desired phenotypic traits. The commonly evaluated economically relevant traits for cattle production include birth weight, weaning weight, ADG, reproduction, milk production, and carcass quality traits such as tenderness, marbling, back fat thickness, and rib eye area. Most of these traits are complex and are controlled by many genes as well as the animals environment; nutrition, stress, disease, etc.

EPD Based Selection vs. DNA Based Selection 

Expected progeny differences (EPDs) are useful for breeding decisions since they provide estimates of the genetic value of an animal as a parent. Differences in EPDs between two individuals of the same breed predict differences in performance between their future offspring when each individual animal is mated to animals of the same average genetic merit. EPDs are commonly calculated for birth, growth, maternal, and carcass traits and are reported in the same units of measurement as the trait (normally pounds). EPD values may be directly compared only between animals of the same breed. (see: http://www.ext.vt.edu/pubs/beef/400-804/400-804.html) It is thought that when an animal has an EPD above average for a given trait, the animal has inherited a higher proportion of alleles for genes that favorably affect the trait. Thus selection based on EPD is designed to increase the number of favorable alleles and animal has without actually knowing which specific genes are involved. 

With DNA based selection of breeding animals there is exact knowledge of which chromosomal locations are associated with improvement in a given trait and this knowledge forms the basis of genetic tests. Selection then becomes focused on known genetic marker alleles at specific loci to make genetic improvement in the trait of interest (see: http://animalscience.ucdavis.edu/animalbiotech/My_Laboratory/Publications/NBCEC-SireSelectionManualChapter.pdf)

Marker-assisted selection is the process of using genotyping to assist in the selection of breeding stock to produce the next generation of a genetic improvement program. Thus instead of using only a traditional or EPD selection program to increase the incidence of favorable alleles for desired traits in the offspring, genotyping is used to assist in the selection of those favorable alleles. 

It is important to recognize that currently available markers for many complex traits are associated with only one of the many genes that contribute to the trait. As mentioned above, other genes and the production environment will influence whether the offspring actually display the desired trait. As a consequence, marker-assisted selection should be seen as an adjunct to, and not a replacement for, observational data and EPD.

The potential benefits from the use of marker-assisted selection are the greatest for traits where (1):

Observational data are poor predictors of the heritability of the trait.

The trait is difficult or expensive to measure (e.g., Disease resistance).

The trait cannot be measured until the animal has already contributed to the next generation (e.g., Carcass analysis).

The traits are not routinely measured (e.g., Tenderness).

Observational data cannot segregate the trait of interest from an undesired trait (e.g., Genetic markers that can segregate marbling from an increase in back fat thickness).

Using Marker-Assisted Selection for Carcass Traits

Traditional carcass quality traits including marbling, tenderness and carcass yield have been measured at slaughter, thus obviating the use of the involved animal in the breeding program. Means to predict these traits in live animals have been one of the major goals of beef cattle breeders. Although ultrasound assessment has added greatly to the assessment of an individual live animal, it does not necessarily predict the ability of the animal to pass those traits on to the next generation. Consequently, extensive research has led to the identification of genetic markers that associate with carcass quality traits. 

Several markers for carcass quality traits are now commercially available.

The remainder of this article will focus on markers that select for beef tenderness. 

Eating satisfaction from beef results from the interaction of tenderness, juiciness and flavor. Of these beef tenderness is the most sought after and least consistent attribute available to consumers. Beef tenderness can be based on; species (Bos Taurus – European cattle - are thought to produce more tender meat than Bos indicus cattle-zebu or “humped” cattle); pre-mortem nutrition, handling and slaughter technique; and animal genetics. The genetically controlled variation in beef tenderness can be expressed pre-mortem or post-mortem and is currently thought to be due to variations in three genes. These are myostatin, calpain and calpastatin. The genetic effects of myostatin are expressed pre-mortem. The genetic variant that produces a non-functional myostatin gene, has the largest pre-mortem effect on beef tenderness of any single genetic feature investigated to date. Polymorphisms in the gene myostatin are responsible for “double muscling” which has been noted to be associated with increased tenderness particularly in Piedmontese and Belgian Blue cattle. This increase in tenderness is thought to be related to a decrease in connective tissue in the muscle. The other two genes shown to be related to beef tenderness are active in the post-mortem events associated with aging of beef. These post-mortem events are thought to be responsible for 90% of the changes responsible for the development of tender beef. The mechanism of increasing tenderness associated with beef storage at refrigerated temperatures has been shown to be related to two proteins; the m-calpain protease and to its inhibitor calpastatin. The m-calpain protease is an enzyme that catalyzes the degradation of key myofibrillar and associated proteins. These are structural proteins in the beef muscle. More post-mortem activity of this enzyme leads to increased breakdown of muscle structural protein and therefore increase beef tenderness. Calpastatin is an inhibitor of the m-calpain protease and regulates 60% of the tenderness effect of aging. Increased activity of this inhibitor protein blocks the action of the m-calpain protease, thus less muscle breakdown occurs during the aging process and the beef is less tender. (Figure 1)

Genotyping for two genetic variants in the gene coding for the m-calpain protease and one in the gene coding for calpastatin has become commercially available. The presence of these genetic variants has been correlated with Warner-Bratzler shear force (WBSF) measurements which are currently the best objective measurements of beef tenderness. The more the WBSF is reduced the more tender the beef. The variants in the gene coding for the m-calpain protease correlating with increased tenderness result in a more active enzyme. The variants in the gene coding for calpastatin that correlate with increased tenderness result in a less active inhibitor.  This relationship is shown in Table 1. 

This table gives the genotype and estimated change in W-B shear force measurement from the NBCI trials of the Merial Igenity product. A similar product with slightly different genotypes is available from Bovigen. An Igenity tenderness score has been designated to facilitate an understanding of the relationship between genotype and shear force. Studies of the Igenity tenderness genotypes from 171 Belted Galloway cattle showed that these cattle score better for tenderness than other cattle breeds. These data show that 71.1% of Belted Galloway cattle score 6 or above on the Igenity tenderness scale (10 is the most tender) versus 41.1% of the 1600 reference cattle tested. ( Figure 2) This difference is primarily due to the fact that 99% of the Belted Galloway cattle tested had a genetic variant of the gene coding for calpastatin that resulted in markedly decreased activity of this inhibitor of the m-calpain protease. This is an extremely unusual finding among breeds of cattle and bodes well for the marketability of our breed.
-- Michael Caldwell

It’s that time of year! We are profiling members of the BGS who have volunteered to run for Council or be re-elected. The Nomination Committee takes their task very seriously by choosing candidates that are dedicated to our breed and have the willingness to serve the Society. Speaking from past experience, being a Council person isn’t for those who are not industrious.  It involves many hours of planning and communication to ensure that the Society is moving forward.  The Nominating Committee asked the Newsletter Office to print the nominations in two consecutive newsletters.  We cannot stress enough how essential your vote is!

Regular and Lifetime members are eligible to vote either by mail prior to the deadline set forth on the ballot or in person at the Annual General Meeting. Each membership number is allowed one  (1) vote. A ballot is provided in the printed newsletter.

Gayle Cerullo (WA) and her husband, Joe, own an eighty acre working ranch in Oak Harbor. The Cerullos have owned Belted Galloways for over ten years and their Sunny “C” Ranch promotes their Belties as a beef breed, not just as strikingly beautiful animals. Gayle has been a member of Council for the past two years most recently serving as Chair of the Beltie Youth Group. Gayle has also served the regional Western Belted Galloway Association as secretary/treasurer. Gayle enjoys exhibiting her cattle and her love for the breed makes her an excellent spokesperson for Belted Galloways.

Ann Furr DVM (NC) has admired Belted Galloway cattle since her aunt and uncle, Wilma and Bill Craig (NC), first purchased their animals in 1969.  In 1994 she obtained her first Belted Galloway as a present from the Craigs when she graduated from the North Carolina University School of Veterinary Medicine. Her farm Rockwater Farm is located in Salisbury, North Carolina where she lives with her husband and son. Her son, Chris, has been a junior Society member who enjoyed showing Belties and participating in Beltie Youth Group activities. Ann is very involved in artificial insemination, embryo transfer and carcass evaluations and has always been very interested in knowing exactly where her meat comes from.  

Loren Olson, MD (IA) has been involved with Belties since 1995, with Malabar Farm’s current herd exceeding over 60 head grazing on 500 acres. He is a regular contributor to the Beltie Forum and strong proponent for “grassfed Beltie Beef.” Loren served as President of the Great Plains Belted Galloway Association and has served as the editor of that regional group’s newsletter. He was the driving force behind the first Belted Galloway Bull Performance Test held at Guthrie Center, IA in 2000, and conducted his second forage-based bull test utilizing forage based feeding programs. Loren has previously served on Council for four years serving as Chairman of the Newsletter and Marketing Committees and continues to conduct studies with the Rose Herd focusing on the identification of bloodlines most suitable for the production of quality, grass-fed beef. 

John Rozelle (AZ) grew up on a small ranch in southern California providing him with deep appreciation for animals and the outdoors. He enjoys working on his ranch located outside of Flagstaff, Arizona, where his family rides horses and manage a small herd of Belties.  At an elevation of 7,400 feet, just 80 miles from the Grand Canyon, they experience all the diverse seasons that occur in their part of the country.  From snow and frozen stock ponds during the winter to the hot, dry days of summer, they spend hands-on time with their Belties virtually every day.  John purchased his herd of Belties in January 2000 and still owns many of their original animals today.  Holding a degree in electrical engineering with a minor emphasis in business, John’s professional career has included work in the aerospace, medical, and construction industries.  John has held the position of President in the Western Belted Galloway Association for the past two years, and enjoys promoting his unique breed of cattle.

Steven Silberberg (NH) has been actively engaged in raising Belted Galloways on Holbrook Hill Farm at Bedford, NH since 1990. He has been a member of Council since 2005 currently serving as the Chairman of the Advertising and Promotion Committee. He coordinated the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy genetic pool creating reserve Beltie genetics and has contributed articles to the U.S. Beltie News on AI matters. Steven plans to continue the promotion of our breed to family farms and first-time cattle producers and developing marketing materials.

Great Lakes Belted Galloway Association’s Spring Field Day 2007, held in Columbus, IN was a grand time for all. The weather was perfect for the first Beltie show ever held during the annual event. The Mark Romine family of Hope, IN hosted the very successful event and held it at the Bartholomew County Fairgrounds. The facility was perfect, very accessible, and the showring was in an air-conditioned building!

In the morning, the GLBGA held their annual meeting. Speakers covered the national identification program and organic farm production.

After a delicious lunch of Beltie burgers, everyone enjoyed the cattle show with the BYG show and open show occurring at the same time.

Exhibitors, Antietam Farm (IL), Oak Valley Farm (IL), Red Barn Farm (IN), O’Connor Family Farm (IN), Romine Tree Farm (IN), Sunnybrook Farm (IL).

Juniors, Doug Abney (IN), Allie Abney (IN), Angela Abney (IN), Caitlin Fogle (IN), Jake Keller (IL), Noah Keller (IL), Sam O’Connor (IN), Mary Ellen O’Connor (IN), Amy Romine (IN), John Romine (IN), Chris Willis (IL).

Winter Heifer Calf, Sunnybrook Cortney. Senior Heifer Calf, Wayside Valley Polka Dot owned by Sunnybrook Farm. Late Summer Yearling, Red Barn Stockings. Early Summer Yearling, Sunnybrook Tequilla. Late Junior Yearling, Red Barn Lucky Lady. Late Senior Heifer, Stonesthrow Reality owned by Antietam Farm. Late 2 Year Old Heifer, Sunnybrook Elaine. 

Grand Champion Female, Sunnybrook Elaine. Reserve, Ridgeview Rosanna owned by Oak Valley Farm.

Senior Bull Calf, Sunnybrook Camelot. Late 2 Year Old Bull, Antietam Porsche.

Grand Champion Bull, Antietam Porsche, Reserve, Sunnybrook Camelot.

Prospect Steer, Red Barn Hercules. Feeder Steers, Sunnybrook Salsa. Finished Steer, Red Barn Socrates. 

Grand Champion Steer, Red Barn Socrates, Reserve Champion Steer, Driftwood 085 owned by Oak Valley Farm.

Junior Showmanship, Allie Abney (IN). Senior Showmanship, Chris Willis (IL).

We hope to see many members at the Annual General Meeting in October. You'll find your invitation to this Lyndonville, VT event in your printed copy of the August U.S. Beltie News.

To assist with your travel plans, the following airports serve the Lyndonville area.

Buying or selling a Belted Galloway used to require dozens of interstate phone contacts and many miles of travel. Our population has grown, we've broadened our base. We now can advertise offerings on our website's Hotline and in the newsletter. The free classified ad listings are a great convenience, a "members only" service. 

Advertised animals must be registered in the Herd Book or recorded in the Appendix (except steers, of course). Lately an unfortunate trend has been noted, that is, some people are selling Belties and calling them "registerable," inferring that the buyer can do the registrations. It doesn't work that way. 

Section II, Rule 1 B states: "The first owner of a calf is the owner of record of its dam on the date of birth of the calf ... . The first owner must apply for registration of the calf."

This is a reminder that the seller should apply for registrations and transfers. Handing the newbie buyer a wad of forms and sticking him with the fees is not only a shabby practice but if the calves have not been properly identified and tattooed the word "registerable" may be fiction.

The purchaser who later learns his new animals may not be registerable becomes disenchanted rather quickly. "Truth in advertising" is not an empty term. On Appendix animal sales explain the progression toward registered Herd Book status. Saying only "Sure, she has papers" is misleading. Please don't give our breed a black eye. 

While talking about advertising, we note that "good belt" is an insufficient description. We should properly identify the animal's bloodlines, date of birth, and include any known statistics -- birth weight, weaning and/or yearling weight. If mature, perhaps mention a little about breeding history. We now require registration numbers of males advertised as potential herd sires. Why? For the good of the breed we need to encourage selection for excellence as opposed to wholesaling out everything with testicles. 

This may be a good place to mention pricing. Why no prices in ads? We used to include them, but regrettably some advertisers of bargain-basement animals were giving new buyers a distorted view of values. A decent registered Belted Galloway is generally priced in the same range as a decent registered Angus or Hereford. How would a newbie know that $300 bull calves are probably culls that should have been steered? 

Finally, please include proper contact information in your ad. We need your name, farm name, city, state, phone and/or Email address. 

What are the current fees for registrations and transfers? 
Current fees for transactions can be found online or by contacting the office for an Order Form. If changes to fees occur they will be posted in the newsletter and on our web site at www.beltie.org.

What is the difference between purebred and appendix? 
The Appendix designation is reserved for all percentage females sired by a purebred bull registered in the Herd Book of the Belted Galloway Society or the herd book of another society, association or organization recognized by the Belted Galloway Society. The dam must be either a base cow described as a polled, solid colored or belted beef type breed with no extraneous white or a percentage blood Belted Galloway cow sired by a registered Belted Galloway bull. The Appendix designation is also used to identify mismarked purebred cows. A purebred designation is reserved for those animals that meet the criteria specified in your Rules under Section I. Purebred animals can be found in the Belted Galloway Society’s Herd Books.

What are tattoos and does the Society require them? 
Tattoos are an easy way to identify cattle. They are permanent and accurate when correctly applied. The Society requires that every animal be properly tattooed in order to be eligible for registration. The tattoo shall contain the following:  1) a letter designating the year of birth (as prescribed by the Society) appearing as the first or last character in the tattoo; 2) up to three standard Arabic numerals; and, 3) a farm/ranch designation of up to three alpha characters approved by the Society prior to use, and appearing in a position opposite of the year code and separated by the animal’s unique numerical designation.

Is the seller or the buyer responsible for sending in transfer of ownership applications? 
It is the responsibility of the seller to apply for transfer and to pay the transfer fee unless it is otherwise specifically agreed between buyer and seller.

Does a new buyer have to be a member of the Society in order to have animals transferred into their name? 
No, however they will not be able to register any offspring with the Society until they become members of the Society.  The Society hopes all members when selling animals to non-members will encourage the non-member to join.

As you see, most questions can be answered through the Society’s By-Laws and Rules.  

If you have any additional questions, please feel free to contact the Secretary’s Office at (717) 677-9655 or through email at beltiecows@aol.com.

A new vaccine developed by scientists with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Service (ARS), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and a U.S. biopharmaceutical company holds promise for protection against foot-and-mouth disease which strikes cattle and swine, as well as sheep, goats and deer. 

The new vaccine works quickly, demonstrating effectiveness within seven days. Tests thus far have shown that vaccinated cattle retain immunity for at least 21 days, but scientists expect that future studies will show that the new vaccine at least matches the six months of immunity provided by current vaccines. The new vaccine has been tested on cattle and swine, and is equally effective in both species.

"This signals tremendous promise," said ARS Administrator Edward B. Knipling. "Although this is still an experimental vaccine, it has made significant developmental progress, and we are optimistic about its prospects."

Although rarely transmissible to humans, foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is devastating to livestock and has critical economic consequences with potentially severe losses in the production and marketing of meat and milk. Although the United States has not had an FMD outbreak since 1929, the disease is still considered a serious threat to the nation's economy and food supply. 

Significantly, as this is the first FMD vaccine produced in the United States, the federal government can plan adequate supplies for the veterinary strategic stockpile. The vaccine is the first molecular-based FMD vaccine for cattle, developed by scientists with ARS, the Department of Homeland Security's Targeted Advanced Development unit (TAD) and GenVec, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company based in Gaithersburg, Md. Additional testing is examining the vaccine's commercial viability and effectiveness against the various serotypes of FMD virus.

The new vaccine has many benefits. It is administered in a nonreplicating adenovirus. It does not require expensive, high-containment production facilities, and it can be produced safely in the United States because it can be made without using infectious FMD materials. 

In addition, the vaccine also makes it possible for scientists to determine whether an animal found to have FMD antibodies acquired them through vaccination or from infection—an important piece of information because of the trade restrictions associated with using current vaccines.
____________
ARS, Washington, DC

Use the letter T as the official Year Code when tattooing animals born in 2007. The letter S applies to animals born in 2006. 

Union Fair/Maine Wild Blueberry Festival
August 19-25 2007, Union, ME.
Contact Loraine Prock (207) 832-4715 or prockfrm@midcoast.com.

Windsor Fair 
August 26-September 3, 2007, Windsor, ME. 
Contact Curtis Prime (207) 621-4167.

The Big E (Eastern States Exposition)
September 14-30, 2007, Springfield, MA. 
Contact Michelle Ogle (908) 781-5576 or mobcurly@aol.com.

World Beef Expo
September 28-30, 2007 Milwaukee, WI.
Contact Mark Keller (815) 248-4687 or oakvalley@stateline.isp.com.

Fryeburg Fair
September 30-October 7, Fryeburg, ME. 
Contact Fair Office (207) 935-3268.

Western Belted Galloway Association 2007 annual meeting
October 5-6, Reno, Nevada.
Contact John Rozelle (928) 779-5704 or SARbelties@aol.com.

Annual General Meeting & New England Fall Classic Sale
October 19-21 at  Meadow View Farm, Lyndonville, VT. 
Contact Laura Glassmann (717) 677-9655 or beltiecows@aol.com. 

Secretarial Office Phone Hours ...
Phone hours are Monday through Thursday from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. (EST). A detailed message may be left at any time. 
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