All Holsteins Are Eligible To Be Registered

In October, 1997 the Holstein Association introduced a single, fully disclosed herdbook that replaces the Purebred Herdbook, Qualified Herdbook and Identified Holstein Female (IHF) program. It also created a system by which each animal in the herdbook will have calculated, recorded and reported a percentage “Registered Holstein Ancestry” or “RHA.” This percentage will be calculated by averaging the % RHA of the parents and then rounding down to the nearest whole number.

The new herdbook will contain the following four categories of Registered Holstein Ancestry:

100% RHA-NA: The “NA” stands for North American. These are animals whose entire ancestry can be traced to the origin of the U.S. or Canadian herdbook.

100% RHA-I: The “I” stands for International. These are animals whose entire ancestry can be traced to the origin of an approved foreign herdbook, or whose ancestry contains a combination of North American and foreign lineage.

0-99% RHA-NA: These are animals of entirely North American lineage whose ancestry cannot be traced to the origin of the U.S. or Canadian herdbook.

0-99% RHA-I: These are animals of entirely or partly foreign lineage whose ancestry cannot be traced to the origin of the respective herdbook(s).

  Programs Affected

Classification: A herd owner can select a base level of percentage RHA for animals to be included in a herd classification. This level will determine the required animals for all programs. All animals with equal or greater percentage RHA must be included. The default level, if a breeder does not choose one, will be 87%.

When a herd is classified under the Classic or Standard program, the BAA will be calculated using the scores of all animals that are included in the producer's predesignated RHA level. Animals below the designated level will not be included in the calculation.

All percentage RHA animals classified Excellent are eligible for multiple E designation.

Note: Classification scores on optional cows are not used in genetic indexes for type or cow Type Production Indexes (TPI).

TriStar Production Records: Services available are dependent on the service option the herd is enrolled in. Animals of all RHA levels are eligible for the following service-oriented features of TriStar:

• 305-day records available on pedigrees (updated 4x/year)
• Monthly update of records (305-day, 365-day, complete/extended)
• Herd Reports
• Record Maintenance
• Cow Lactation Profiles
• Lactation Update Pedigrees
• Records Verification Program

The following Recognition Programs will require a minimum of 87% RHA:

• Gold Medal Dam
• Gold Medal Sire
• Dam of Merit
• Locator List
• Progressive Breeders Registry
• Progressive Genetics Herd Award
• State and National Production Leaders
• A-Value Herd Recognition
• 200,000 Pound Lifetime Production Certificates
• Having official averages presented on herd reports

A-Value Program: A-Values will be calculated and appear on pedigrees for cows with RHAs of 87% and higher.

National Shows: Animals of 87% RHA or higher will be eligible for national shows and this will be recommended to other state-level shows.

  Registration Fees

Start-Up Program: Using the Start-Up program, any Holstein animal with an unregistered parent, including one whose lineage traces to a registered ancestor, can be registered with the highest possible %RHA. This fulfills the program's objective of creating a true RHA herdbook that reflects an animal's lineage to the extent possible without compromising the integrity of the registry records.

When an application for registration of a calf (subject animal) from an unregistered dam is submitted and the dam's USDA eartag or American ID number is provided, an automatic computer search of the industry database is performed. This search will identify and register any ancestors found and calculate the appropriate %RHA of the subject animal and its ancestors. If the subject animal's lineage traces to 100%RHA ancestors, the subject animal and its ancestors will be registered at 100%RHA.

It is important to note that the fee to register an animal using the Start-Up program includes the registration of all ancestors found by the Start-Up search. Certificates of registration will not be issued for ancestors; ancestors also will not:

• have performance information printed on an Official Holstein Pedigree™ or similar lineage document;
• be eligible for herd classification, TriStar, recognition programs, shows, etc., regardless of the %RHA;
• or have Genetic Values published.

To elevate the status of a registered ancestor, thus permitting full program eligibility and addition of performance information to a pedigree, a standard application for registration must be submitted. The fee per animal is $10 for a national member and $20 for a non-member. If an application for transfer is required, the regular fee schedule will apply.

No guarantee can be provided regarding the number of generations that will be linked as a result of the Start-Up search. If, after registering an animal, the owner has reason to believe the %RHA should be higher, he or she should contact the Holstein Association to identify the conflict and decide on the best course of action for its resolution.

The Start-Up fee schedule is as follows:

Certificates: Certificates of Registration and Official Holstein Pedigrees^TM will contain the % RHA. However, all certifcates that have been issued will be honored, and producers are not required to obtain a new one unless they would like the % RHA displayed.