History of the Holstein Breed

When migrant European tribes settled the Netherlands close to 2,000 years ago, they wanted animals that would make the best use of the land. The black cattle of the Bata ians and white cows of !riesians were bred and strictly culled to produce animals that were the most efficient, producing the most milk with limited feed resources. These animals genetically e ol ed into the efficient, high producing black"and"white dairy cow, known as the #olstein"!riesian.

Imports to America
$merican breeders began to become interested in #olstein"!riesian cattle around the %&'0s. Black and white cattle were introduced into the () from %*2% to %**+. The eastern part of New ,ork was the -utch colony of New Netherlands, where many -utch farmers settled along the #udson and .ohawk /i er alleys. They probably brought cattle with them from their nati e land and crossed them with cattle purchased in the colony. !or many years afterwards, the cattle here were called -utch cattle and were renowned for their milking 0ualities. The first permanent introduction of this breed was due to the perse erance of #on. Winthrop W. 1henery, of Belmont, .assachusetts. The animals of his first two importations, and their offspring, were destroyed by the go ernment in .assachusetts because of a contagious disease. #e made a third importation in %&*%. This was followed in %&*2 by an importation for the #on. 3errit ). .iller, of 4eterboro, New ,ork, made by his brother, -udley .iller, who had been attending the noted agricultural school at Eldena 5 the latter today a locality of the former6, 4russia, where this breed was highly regarded. These two importations, by #on. William $. /ussell, of 7awrence, .ass., and three animals from East !riesland, imported by 3en. William ). Tilton of the National .ilitary $sylum, Togus, .aine, formed the nucleus of the #olstein #erd Book. 4erhaps the most famous #olstein of those times was 4auline Wayne, which ser ed from %8%0 to %8%' as the official presidential pet to the 22th 4resident of the (nited )tates, William #oward Taft. 4auline Wayne li ed and gra9ed on the White #ouse lawn and pro ided milk for the first family. 4auline Wayne was the last presidential pet cow.

E arly Recognition For Holsteins

:n .ay %&&2, a noteworthy e ent in the history of the #olstein breed in $merica took place. :t was the .adison )0uare 3arden dairy cattle show where the four leading dairy breeds " $yrshire, ;ersey, 3uernsey, and #olstein"!riesian " met for the first time to see which was the greatest producer of milk and butter. 4ri9es of <200 were offered for both 2+"hour milk production as well as butter production. .ost obser ers conceded that a #olstein would win a milk production pri9e, but the ;ersey breeders were certain that they would take the butter pri9e " so certain that they offered a handsome sil er cup, with a beautiful ;ersey cow engra ed on the side, to the winner. #owe er, that cup is now sitting in the #olstein $ssociation ()$ office in Brattleboro, =T. When the butter samples were weighed, 1lothilde, a #olstein owned by )miths > 4owell of )yracuse, had won the <200 and the sil er cup. This decisi e ictory in a public butter test, which followed on the heels of the triumph in %&&' by Thomas Wales? imported cow, .ercedes, o er the famous ;ersey cow, .ary $nn of )t. 7amberts, caught the attention of dairymen across the nation at a time when butter production was important and all dairy breeds were fighting for recognition. #olstein breeders were 0uick to follow up on these trail"bla9ing successes, and the consistent ictories in competition played a big part, especially in the .idwest, in the rapid e@pansion and populari9ing of the #olstein breed.

Genetic Improvements
The artificial insemination A$:6 industry has had a tremendous impact on genetic impro ement of the breed. )ince perfection of the semen free9ing process in the late %8+0?s, $: has allowed the use of superior, pro en bulls by #olstein breeders across the country. Today, $: accounts for &B percent of #olstein births. $: made the de elopment of reliable, unbiased methods to e aluate #olstein genetics possible. With $:, a single #olstein bull can sire as many as B0,000 daughters. Type and production information on all these females makes it easier to predict performance of future offspring and e aluate the 0uality of genetics transmitted from sire to offspring. :n the late %8*0?s, the $: industry, the -airy #erd :mpro ement $ssociation A-#:$6 and breed organi9ations, including the #olstein $ssociation, worked together to de elop genetic tools that dairy producers could use to breed their cattle for impro ement. They used type and production information and research data from uni ersities to de elop measures #olstein breeders now use to e aluate bulls and select sires according to their needs. Today, dairy producers ha e the ability to utili9e genomic technology to disco er the genetic potential of their animals at an earlier age than e er before. 3enomic testing analy9es the -N$ of an animal to determine what genes they actually possess, information that can be used to estimate future performance more reliably than simply taking an a erage of the parents? genetic alues. The maCority of bulls that enter $: are genomic tested, and many breeders are genomic testing their females to make more educated breeding decisions, particularly on heifers. Dne thing is for certain " technology is constantly e ol ing, with more tools being added to breeders? arsenal of options to consider in their Courney to breed a better cow.

Holstein Breed Characteristics

Physical Characteristics
#olsteins are large, stylish animals with color patterns of black and white or red and white. $ healthy #olstein calf weighs 80 pounds or more at birth. $ mature #olstein cow weighs about %,B00 pounds and stands B& inches tall at the shoulder. #olstein heifers can be bred at %' months of age, when they weigh about &00 pounds. :t is desirable to ha e #olstein females cal e for the first time between 2' and 2* months of age. #olstein gestation is appro@imately nine months. While some cows may li e considerably longer, the a erage producti e life of a #olstein is appro@imately four years.

Milk Prod ction

The 20%% a erage actual production for all (.). #olstein herds that were enrolled in production"testing programs and eligible for genetic e aluations was 2','&B pounds of milk, &B& pounds of butterfat and 2%8 pounds of protein per year. Top producing #olsteins milked three times a day ha e been known to

produce o er 22,000 pounds of milk in '*B days.

Historical !eaders for Milk Prod ction

Ever-Green-View My 1326-ET EX-92 Bred and Dwned by Thomas ;. Eestell, Waldo, W: /ecord completed in !ebruary 20%0 'F '*B days 22,%20 lbs

Muranda Oscar Lucinda-ET VG-86 Bred by Thomas and Nancy .urray, Waterloo, N, Dwned by !loyd > 7loyd Baumann > !red 7ang, .arathon, W: /ecord completed in No ember %882 2F '*B days *2,8%+ lbs

Twin-B-Dairy Aer s!a Lynn VG-8" Bred and Dwned by !loyd > 7loyd Baumann, .arathon, W: /ecord completed in $ugust %88* 2F '*B days *',+++ lbs

#ai$ Mar% &in' EX-91 Bred and Dwned by /aims -airy, 1edaredge, 1D /ecord completed in .ay %88B 'F '*B days *0,++0 lbs

Be((-&r # sa)e(-ET VG-8* Bred > Dwned by Bell";r 3roup, 1alhan, 1D /ecord completed in ;anuary %88B 'F '*B days *0,'&0 lbs

# )!+ $ ,u-e! .addy EX-9* Bred > Dwned by /obert .. Thomson ;r., )pringfield, .D /ecord completed in $ugust %88' 2F '*B days B8,'00 lbs

Tu((and # ya(!y Ma'i$a G.-83 Bred by Nancy !leming, Drford, N# Dwned by Tullando !arm, :nc., Drford, N# /ecord completed in -ecember %882 'F '*B days B&,8B2 lbs

Beec+er Ar(inda E((en EX-91 Bred > Dwned by Beecher #olsteins, /ochester, :N /ecord completed in Dctober %82B 2F '*B days BB,**% lbs

M wry .rince / rinne EX-92 Bred > Dwned by 1larence > Eenneth .owry, /oaring )pring, 4$ /ecord completed in -ecember %82+ 2F '*B days B0,2B8 lbs

Bree-ew d .a!sy Bar . n!iac EX-93 Bred > Dwned by 3elbke Brothers, =ienna, D# /ecord completed in .ay %82+ 2F '*B days +B,220 lbs

,%a0va(e Grace1u( 2a!!ie VG-8" Bred > Dwned by Tenneson Bros., )edro Woolley, W$ /ecord completed in Dctober %82% 2F '*B days ++,0%8 lbs

" perior Performance

#olstein dairy cattle dominate this country?s milk production industry. The reason for their popularity is clearG une@celled production, greater income o er feed costs, une0ualed genetic merit, and adaptability to a wide range of en ironmental conditions. $dded up, this means more profit for the dairy producer who milks #olsteins. This point becomes e en clearer when you consider that nine of e ery %0 dairy producers currently milk #olsteins.