Page 46 - Earnscleugh 2021 Catalogue eBook

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$ Indexes: Though EPDs allow for the comparison of genetic levels for many economically important traits, they only
provide a piece of the economic puzzle. That’s where $ indexes come in. Through wellconceived, rigorous mathematical
computation, $ indexes blend EPDs and economics to estimate an animal’s overall impact on your bottom line. The same
technology that led to the dramatic progress in swine, poultry and dairy genetics over the last several decades was used to
develop the following $ indexes:

All-Purpose Index (API): Evaluates sires for use on the entire cow herd (bred to both Angus first-calf heifers and mature
cows) with the portion of their daughters required to maintain herd size retained and the remaining heifers and steers put on
feed and sold grade and yield.

Terminal Index (TI): Evaluates sire for use on mature Angus cows with all offspring put on feed and sold grade and yield.
Using API and TI: First, determine which index to use; if you’re keeping replacements use API, if not, TI. Then, just as
with EPDs, zero in on the unit difference between bulls. (As described above, index units are in dollars per cow exposed.)
The difference can be used to determine how much a bull is worth compared to another. Or, put another way, how much
you can pay for one bull compared to another. For example, when buying an all-purpose-type sire, you can quickly figure
a bull scoring +100 for API is worth an extra $6,000 over a +50 bull if both are exposed to 30 cows over 4 years ($50 diff.
x 30 hd. x 4 yr. = $6,000). A percentile-ranking chart is required to determine where a bull’s index value ranks him relative
to other bulls in the breed. For percentile rankings or more detailed information about EPDs and $ indexes visit www.
simmental.org.
COMPOSITE 44 Earnscleugh 36th Annual Sale