Vol. 55: 509-524, 1984 Comparison between Ayrshire, Friesian and Finnish cattle dairy cows on home - produced feeds ELSI ETTALA The Agricultural Research Centre North Savo Experimental Station, SF-71750 Maaninka, Finland Abstract. An experiment with Ayrshire (Ay), Friesian (Fr) and Finnish cattle (Fc) animals on home- produced feeds under same kind of conditions is conducted at North Savo Experimental Station in the years 1979-87. The test animals (40 Ay, 40 Fr, 16 Fc) was taken by random sampling when they were calves. One half of the animals of each race receives silage-grain feeding, the other half hay-grain-urea feeding. The growth rate of the calves was equal in the beginning but later on the Friesian animals grew fastest and the Finnish cattle animals most slowly. The average milk yield of the first lactation year was at the same level in the Friesian groups and in the Ayrshire hay-group. The first milk yield of the Ayrshire silage-group was a little lower than of those mentioned before and clearly lower in the Finnish cattle groups. The milk yields were a consequence of the feed consumptions of the animals. In the second lactation year the feed consumptions and the milk yields have increased distinctly. There are not to be found differences in the conception rates depending on races. Aim of the research The aim of this long-term experiment (8 years) is to find out characteristic features of the dairy cattle races in Finland under same kind of conditions fed by home-produced feeds. The most important objects to be cleared up are: milk yield of the cows consumption of roughages at the different stages of lactation feed conversion fertility diseases economic result Experimental procedures The test animals. The animals were taken for this study by random sampling so that heifers were inseminated by young bulls in 1978 in different parts of 3 509 Maataloustieteellinen Aikakauskirja JOURNAL OF THE SCIENTIFIC AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY OF FINLAND https://www.c-info.fi/en/info/?token=B-tzBbgHurbFmxY-.JgYfJ9PGmCo2GJAYwCEirQ.yR72DEPVGaKbJBpv9kEZvcfhqYxKD97Yldn7sctmuB3nexbpGpTXqhZH8G7mkAcgPSIbI3wK6e7P06lfiub5R6cldZFc7MzgyDT3veA_PEOq0oOfEiAhPJRaA28oOlW39eCNf7IkuZ030FYtTqoDNnX8Z1V4fATfEg Finland. 96 cows (40 Ayrshire, 40 Friesian and 16 Finnish cattle) had 84 different fathers. Because some of the bulls had two daughters they were put into different feeding groups. Also spare calves were taken in the study, altogether 50 Ayrshire, 50 Friesian and 20 Finnish cattle calves started the experiment. The calves were brought to the experimental station from 25 th of May to 18 th of July, 1979. The average ages and live weights of the calves when arriving were: The test calves were rather heterogenic in size and to their condition. Other procedures. The animals are to be fed all their lives individually. All feeds and residues are weighed daily. Samples of different feeds are taken continuously. The milk yield is weighed individually at each milking time. The composition of the milk is analysed once a week. A veterinarian is presently conducting a fertility study and the information about diseases will be filed up. The growing animals are weighed twice a month and the cows once a month, on two successive days. Feeding The races are devided into two feeding groups. Both groups are fed with domestic feeds. One group eats ad libitum unwilted, flail-harvested grass silage preserved with AIV 2-solution (formic acid 83 % plus orthophos- phoric acid 2 %), and grain, and one kilo of hay since prelactational feeding of heifers. The other group eats hay ad libitum, and grain added with 2 percent of urea as protein supplement as well as extra vitamins. Both groups receive vitamins in the mineral mixtures. The grain consists of 2A barley and Vs oats. By the amount of grain for the growing animals the average live weight gain is tried to get to be 600-700 g per day. The hay group eats grain 1,5 kilos per day, the grain ration of the silage group is reduced (1,5-1,0-0,6-0,0 kg) when the consumption of silage increases. The amount of the grain ration of the cows depends on the milk yield as follows: Milk yield Grain f.u./kg of milk (4 percent fat) (4 percent fat) Silage Hay kg/day per cow group group - 15 0,24 0.32 20 0,26 0,34 25 0,28 0,36 30 - 0,30 0,38 510 Ayrshire Friesian Finnish cattle Age, days 51 53 50 Live weight, kg 54 57 48 511 The grain ration is programmed into a computer and it changes stepless according to the milk yield, also taking into account the amount of milk the previous days. Before the experimental diet there was a transition period of two weeks after the calves were 3,5 months of age, now in 1983 after the age of 3 months. Before that the calves received skimmilk powder, grain and hay or silage. Growth results The feeding on the experimental station made quite rapidly the growth of the animals arriving from different conditions fairly equal. The mean growth rate of different races in the first weeks was the same: Live weight Weeks 1 St 2 nd 3 rd 4 th Ayrshire, kg 54 58 63 67 Friesian, kg 57 61 66 70 Finnish cattle, kg 48 52 57 61 When the test feeding started the ages and the live weights of the groups were as follows: No. of calves Age, days Live weight, kg Ayrshire group Silage 25 121 96,9 Hay-urea 25 121 95,7 Friesian group Silage 25 111 93,5 Hay-urea 25 111 93,2 Finnish cattle group Silage 10 115 88,0 Hay-urea 10 116 90,0 A clear difference in the live weight gain between different races began at the age of about 9 months (Fig. 1, Table 1). The animals in the silage group grew faster than the animals in the hay group (Table 2). The Friesian heifers ate particularly much silage. The growth in this group was also clearly greater than in the other groups. The consumption of hay of the Finnish cattle cows was clearly lower than that of the other groups and also the growth rate of this group was poorer than the growth of the others. Heat and conception rates of heifers The Ayrshire and Friesian heifers had their first heat on an average at the same weight (abt. 260 kg). The difference in the age between these races was 512 Table 1. Average liveweights and growth rates of different races at different ages. Age, months" 6 9 12 15 18 Live weight, kg Ay 151 212 282 332 390 Fr 149 217 293 350 414 Fc 140 199 261 307 358 Growth rate, g per day Ay 783 748 734 699 698 Fr 797 800 793 763 763 Fc 723 716 683 648 641 Age in months is an approximate value, the animals are weighed at two weeks intervals and there is a difference of five to ten days between the races. Observations: Ay = Ayrshire Fr = Friesian Fc = Finnish cattle Fig. 1. Live weight gain of calves of different races on the North Savo Experimental Station, 513 Table 2. Average live weight and growth rates of different races by the age of two years. Silage group Hay-urea group Live weight, kg Ay 511 483 Fr 558 506 Fc 466 414 Growth rate g per day Ay 686 644 Fr 771 685 Fc 628 537 Table 3. Age and live weight of heifers during their first heat. No. of Age, months Live weight, kg Daily gain, g heifers mean range mean range Ayrshire group Silage 24 10.9 9,0-13,6 261 215-323 779 Hay-urea 25 11,8 10,3-13,3 262 221-329 705 Friesian group Silage 25 10,1 8,3-11,8 264 229-346 877 Hay-urea 25 11,1 9,8-13,0 259 204-300 736 Finnish cattle group Silage 10 10,0 8,3-11,6 233 193-282 774 Hay-urea 10 10,4 8,9-12,3 215 180-243 634 thereby under one month (Table 3). When the Finnish cattle heifers had their first heat they were younger and smaller than Ayrshire and Friesian heifers. The heifers in the silage groups had their heat earlier than the slowlier grown heifers in the hay groups. All races and both feeding groups had silent and strong heats. The length of the heat cycle (average 20,8 days, range from 18 to 26 days) was not found to be dependent on races or feeding. The duration of heat in Ayrshire heifers was a bit shorter (average 2,8 days) than the heat of other races (average 3,4 days). The heifers were inseminated at the mean age of 16 months (Table 4). The bigger ones were inseminated at the first heat after the age of 15 months and the smaller ones at their first heat after the age of 16 months. The limits for live weights were: Ayrshire heifers 320 kg, Friesian heifers 340 kg and Finnish cattle heifers 300 kg. Most of the heifers weighed considerably more (Table 4). The conception rate was good. After the first insemination on an average 75,6 percent of the heifers conceived, and 90,8 percent after the second insemination (Table 5). One Friesian heifer did not conceive at all. 514 Table 4. Age and live weight of heifers during inseminations followed by gestation. Age, months Live weight, kg mean range mean range Ayrshire group Silage 15,9 15 months 13 days- 363 317-492 18 " 23 " Hay-urea 16,1 15 12 " - 17 " 24 " 350 308-416 Friesian group Silage 16,1 15 " 6 " - 397 345-450 17 " 22 " Hay-urea 16,0 15 " 3 " - 367 332-399 17 " 22 " Finnish cattle group Silage 15,9 15 0 " - 340 294-411 16 " 29 " Hay-urea 16,5 15 14 " - 327 287-386 18 " 10 " Table 5. Conception rate of heifers in 1980. Conception rate, % Insemination 1. 2. 3. 4. or more total Ayrshire group Silage 75,0 20,8 4,2 100,0 Hay-urea 92,0 4,0 4,0 100,0 Friesian group Silage 68,0 16,0 4,0 12,0 100,0 Hay-urea 72,0 20,0 4,0 96,0 Finnish cattle group Silage 70,0 20,0 10,0 100,0 Hay-urea 70,0 10,0 20,0 100,0 Average 75,6 15,1 5,0 3,4 99,2 Ayrshire 83,7 12,2 2,0 2,0 100,0 Friesian 70,0 18,0 4,0 6,0 98,0 Finnish cattle 70,0 15,0 15,0 - 100,0 Calving The heifers calved at the age of a little over 25 months (Table 6). There were no differences depending on the races in the length of the gestation (range from 8 months 21 days to 9 months 13 days). The Friesian heifers of the silage group had difficult calvings and dead calves distinctly more than the others had (Tables 7 and 8). The reason was evidently the obesity caused by abundant consumption of silage; the difficul- ties of Friesian heifers on hay feeding were minor. The size of the calves of all races had remarkable variation (Table 9). Differences between races or feeding groups in retention of afterbirth (Table 8) were not be seen. 515 Table 6. Calving age and average live weight of heifers before and after the calving in 1981. No. of Age, months Live weight, kg animals mean range before after calving calving Ayrshire group Silage 20 25 months 5 days 24 months 12 days - 523 462 26 " 17 " Hay-urea 20 25 " 10 " 24 " 16 " - 509 449 27 " 5 " Friesian group Silage 20 25 " 10 " 24 " 2 " - 583 512 27 " 25 " Hay-urea 20 25 " 5 " 24 " 6 " - 528 462 26 " 23 " Finnish cattle group Silage 8 25 " 5 " 24 " 8 " - 469 416 26 " 5 " Hay-urea 8 25 " 26 " 24 " 23 " - 446 406 27 * 18 " Table 7. Difficulties during the first and the second calving in 1981 and 1982. No. of First calving 1981 No. of Second calving 1982 animals % of calvings animals % of calvings easy normal difficult easy normal difficult Ay 48 33,3 60,4 6,3 39 33,3 64,1 2.6 Fr 48 35,5 39,6 25,0 40 22,5 70,0 7,5 Fc 20 55,0 45,0 16 25,0 62,5 12,5 Total Total Average 116 37,9 49,1 12,9 95 27,4 66,3 6,4 Silage groups 57 31,6 47,4 21,1 47 25,5 70,2 4,3 Hay-urea groups 59 44,1 50,8 5,1 48 29,2 62,5 8,3 Easy = easy, guick and painless, goes without helping Normal = normal, during two hours, without helping or with one - two persons help Difficult = difficult, takes time, many helpers. Table 8. Dead calves and retention of afterbirth during the first and the second calving in 1981 and 1982. No. of First calving 1981 No. of _ Second calving 1982 animals Dead Retention of animals Dead Retention of calves afterbirth calves afterbirth no. % no. % no. % no. % Ay 48 2 4,2 4 8,3 39 - - 4 10,3 Fr 48 9 18,8 3 6,3 40 - - 3 7,5 Fc 20 1 5,0 1 5,0 16 - - 2 12,5 Total Total Average 116 12 10,3 8 6,9 95 9 9,5 Silage groups 57 9 15,8 3 5,3 47 - - 3 6,4 Hay-urea groups 59 3 5,1 5 8,5 48 - 6 12,5 Table 9. Birth weight of calves of the first and the second calving in 1981 and 1982. Birth weight, kg First calving Second calving mean range mean range Ayrshire group Silage 37,5 32-47 36,0 27-45 Hay-urea 37,8 26-47 33,3 21-44 Friesian group Silage 38,5 31-46 41,4 35-49 Hay-urea 39,6 25-43 38,3 30-49 Finnish cattle Silage 26,5 20-32 32,5 23-37 Hay-urea 27,2 23-35 29,4 25-34 Average 36,4 20-47 36,2 21-49 Ay 37,7 26-47 34,6 21-45 Fr 39,1 39,9 30-49 Fc 26,9 20-35 31,0 23-37 Silage 36,0 20-47 37,7 23-49 Hay-urea 36,7 23-47 34,7 21-49 Milk yield The first lactation year The milk yields of Ayrshire and Friesian cows in the peak of their first lactation were practically the same in the hay-grain-urea groups (Table 10). The milk production also continued to be the same during the whole lactation period (Fig. 2). On the other hand, Ayrshire cows in their first lactation on silage-grain feeding produced less than the Friesian cows. The peak of the first lactation of all races was higher in hay-grain-urea feeding Table 10. Peaks of the first lactation in 1981. No. of Milk yield, kg/day per cow animals mean range Ayrshire group Silage 20 18,5 15,0-23,6 Hay-urea 20 21,6 17,7-27.5 Friesian group Silage 20 19,9 12,8-26,2 Hay-urea 20 21,7 17,4-26,7 Finnish cattle group Silage 8 15,2 11,0-23,8 Hay-urea 8 17,1 11,4-21,9 516 517 than in silage-grain but the production decreased faster. The grain ration had evidently an effect on the shape of the lactation curve. The average milk yields of 4 percent fat-corrected milk (FCM) in the first lactation were quantitatively very much the same in both the Friesian groups and in the hay group of Ayrshire (Table 11). The milk yield of the Ayrshire cows in the silage group was slightly lower than of those mentioned above. The milk yields of the Finnish cattle were lower than others. They produced more with silage than with hay feeding. Table 11. Fat corrected (4 per cent) milk yield of the first lactation year. Milk yield, 4 per cent No. of FCM kg/year per cow animals mean range Ayrshire group Silage 20 3888 3285-4802 Hay-urea 20 4065 3412^840 Friesian group Silage 20 3993 2888-5363 Hay-urea 20 3948 3344-5002 Finnish cattle group Silage 8 3387 2284--t742 Hay-urea 8 3182 2112^*153 Fig, 2. Milk yield of the first lactation year in 1981. The attention is drawn to the great variation (Tables 10 and 11) in the milk yields of the first lactation. Among the test animals taken by random sampling there were really poor and good individuals but most of them were, however, on the average level. The second lactation year The sescond lactation year of some of the cows is not yet finished and so the results of the whole year are not so far available. The peaks of lactation in the second production year were distinctly higher than those of the first year (Table 12). The best ones produced 30 kg or more. Both Ayrshire and Friesian cows, both on silage and with hay feeding, altogether 16,8 percent of the cows, produced 30 kg or more. A part of the cows have already calved for the third time. The peaks of the milk production have still increased (Table 13). The results look very good when taking into account that the feeds are home-produced and the test animals were taken by random sampling. Table 12. Peaks of the second lactation in 1982. No. of Milk yield, kg/day per cow animals mean range Ayrshire group Silage 19 25,2 19,2 -30,6 Hay-urea 20 25,6 22,4 ,)-32,3 Friesian group Silage 20 26,3 20,3 -33,1 Hay-urea 20 27,1 22,9 1)-32,4 Finnish cattle group Silage 8 18,3 16,7 -26,8 Hay-urea 8 20,3 15,6 -24,1 '' Two cows calved before the set time (at 7-8 months) and produced only 11,3 and 13,6 kg/day. Table 13. Peaks of the third lactation in 1983. No. of Milk yield, kg/day per cow animals mean ran^c Ayrshire group Silage 18 26,5 21,0-31,0 Hay-urea 20 27,8 20,0-34,4 Friesian group Silage 17 27,5 17,7-35,2 Hay-urea 17 30,2 20,3-38,0 Finnish cattle group Silage 8 24,4 18,7-29,7 Hay-urea 7 24,1 17,6-29,2 518 519 Composition of the milk The fat content of the milk of all the races was surprisingly high (Table 14). The milk protein content on the contrary was below the average value (3,30 percent) in the milk of the first lactation. In the beginning of the second lactation year the protein content of the milk, however, began to raise. The Friesian cows had both the fat and the protein contents slightly lower than others. Feed consumption The feed consumption in the first lactation year explains the differences in the milk yield. The Ayrshire and the Friesian cows ate hay equally much during the first lactation year, but the Ayrshire cows ate distinctly less silage at that time (Table 15). The cows of the Finnish cattle ate in the first lactation year silage relatively more than hay. Table 14. Composition of the milk in the first lactation in 1981. No. of Fat Protein animals mean % kg mean % kg Ayrshire group Silage 20 4,83 138-199 3,18 91-146 Hay-urea 20 4,85 147-204 3,20 91-140 Friesian group Silage 20 4,60 123-232 3,08 86-146 Hay-urea 20 4,44 133-211 3,09 95-140 Finnish cattle group Silage 8 4,72 93-196 3,15 69-130 Hay-urea 8 4,89 93-187 3,30 63-113 Table 15. Average feed consumption during 10 month’s time in the first lactation in 1981-82. No. of Silage Hay Grain Total animals kg kg kg DM kg Ayrshire group Silage 20 27,8 0,9 3,3 9,5 Hay-urea 20 - 9,1 4,7 12,1 Friesian group Silage 20 32,2 0,9 3,6 10,6 Hay-urea 20 - 9,1 4,6 12,1 Finnish cattle group Silage 8 25,2 0,7 3,0 8,5 Hay-urea 8 - 7,2 3,8 9,7 1) Grain is supplemented with minerals and with 2 per cent urea and 0,5 per cent DEB-Karjavitan (vitamins) on hay feeding. 520 The consumption increased remarkably during the second lactation year (Table 16). So far we have, however, the results of the feed consumption of the first seven months of the second lactation year only. The trend is quite the same as it was during the first year. The Ayrshire and the Friesian cows have been eating hay the same quantity but the Ayrshire cows have been eating silage less than the Friesian cows. The difference in the consumption of silage between the Ayrshire and the Friesian cows is bigger than between the Ayrshire and the Finnish cattle cows. The Finnish cattle cows have increased the consumption of hay during the second year more than the cows of the bigger races. Nutrient supply When the study was planned the aim was to have quantitatively the same amount of nutrient in both the silage and the hay groups. Therefore the hay group received more grain supplemented with urea as an extra protein source. The nutrient balance of Friesian and Finnish cattle groups in the first year was surprisingly good (Table 17). The hay group of Ayrshire cows was an exception, which after eating hay as much as the Friesian cows obtained also feed units equally much as the Friesian cows and passed the silage group of the Ayrshire cows. Therefore the milk yield of Ayrshire cows during the first lactation year was less on silage than on hay. The same trend in supply of nutrients continued during the second lactation year (Table 18). All other races but not the Ayrshire had the same average consumption of feed units and digestible crude protein in different feeds. Especially at the peak of the lactation the Ayrshire cows of the silage group did not obtain as much feed units and digestible crude protein as the cows in the hay group (Figs. 3 and 4). Table 16. Average feed consumption during the first 7 month’s time in the second lactation in 1982. No. of Silage Hay Grain Total animals kg kg kg DM kkg kg DM kg Ayrshire group Silage 19 37,0 0,9 5,4 13,2 Hay-urea 20 - 10,4 7,1 15,4 Friesian group Silage 20 41,3 0,9 5,6 14,4 Hay-urea 20 - 10,5 7,0 15,6 Finnish cattle group Silage 8 32,6 0,8 4,5 11,6 Hay-urea 8 - 9,0 5,5 12,8 1) Same observation as in Table 15. 521 Table 17. Average daily nutrient supply during 10 month’s time in the first lactation of 1981-82. Silage Ha- Grain Total f.u DCP,g f.u. DCP,g f.u. DCP,g f.u. DCP,g Ayrshire group Silage 3,9 692 0,4 52 3,1 270 7,4 1014 Hay-urea - - 4,1 541 4,3 525 8,4 1066 Friesian group Silage 4,5 795 0,4 52 3,3 292 8,3 1138 Hay-urea - 4,1 542 4,3 516 8,3 1058 Finnish cattle group Silage 3,6 625 0,3 43 2,8 244 6,7 911 Hay-urea 3,2 429 3,5 425 6,7 854 f.u. = feed units DCP = digestible crude protein Table 18. Average daily nutrient supply during the first seven month’s time in the second lactation year in 1982. Silage Hay Grain Total f.u. DCP.g f.u. DCP,g f.u. DCP,g f.u. DCP,g Ayrshire group Silage 5,8 970 0,5 60 5,0 423 11,2 1452 Hay-urea 5,6 694 6,5 800 12,1 1494 Friesian group Silage 6,5 1077 0,5 62 5,1 435 12,1 1574 Hay-urea - 5,7 704 6,5 796 12,2 1500 Finnish cattle group Silage 5,2 848 0,4 55 4,2 354 9,8 1257 Hay-urea - - 4,8 597 5,0 619 9,8 1216 Fertility Possible differences in fertility will come out when the years pass. Until now the differences have been considerably great between the years and variable between the races (Table 19). The reasons for this will be glarified later on by computer from an extensive material. The most important reason of the first lactation year 1981 has been cleared up. When after the first insemination already 69,8 per cent of the cows were conceived there began to appear abortions at an early stage of gestation. The reason was Zearalenoni (S 2), toxin of Fusarium mold in hay of the very rainy summer. Now after the third calving the conception rates look good, but so the summer 1983 was also excellent. Table 19. Conception rates in 1980-82. Conception rate % No. of after the after the Times of animals first first and inseminations incemi- second per cow per nation insemination gestation Heifers Ay 49 83,7 95,9 1,22 Fr 49 70,0 88,0 1,47 Fc 20 70,0 85,0 1,45 First lactation Ay 39 62,5 72,5 1,90 Fr 40 60,0 80,0 1,78 Fc 16 37,5 62,5 2,44 After first lactation Ay 38 47,4 84,2 2,00 Fr 39 48,7 74,3 1,85 Fc 16 56,3 75,1 1,81 522 Fig. 3. Daily intake of feed units in 1982. Diseases and removals of animals Mastitis has been the most difficult of the diseases but only three removals have occurred because of it (Table 20). The greatest reason for removals has been leg weakness. Here the Friesian cows have been weaker than the others. Of the cows altogether 16,7 percent have been removed during the two and half years. The endurance of the cows will come out very Table 20. Removals of cows during two and half years in 1981-83. Reasons Ay Fr Fc Total Leg weakness 14-5 Mastitis - 2 1 3 Prolapsus of vagina 12-3 Infertility 1 - - 1 Other reasons 2 2 - 4 5 10 ~~\ 16 Fig. 4. Daily intake of digestible crude protein in 1982. 523 524 clearly, because the experiment is going to be continued until the end of the year 1987. Then also the final economic result can be figured out. Ms received December 13, 1983. SELOSTUS Ayrshire-, friisiläis- ja suomenkarjalehmien vertailu kotoisilla rehuilla Elsi Ettala Pohjois-Savon koeasema, SF 71750 Maaninka Pohjois-Savon koeasemalla on meneillään pitkäaikainen (8 v) lypsykarjakoe. Kokeessa vertaillaan ayrshire - (ay), friisiläis- (fr) ja suomenkarja - (sk) rotuja samanlaisissa olosuhteissa. Eläinaines otettiin otannalla ja tuotiin koeasemalle v. 1979 vasikoiden ollessa keskimäärin 52 vrk:n ikäisiä. Kokeessa on 40 ay-, 40 fr- ja 16 sk-lehmää. Aluksi oli varaeläimiä, jolloin lukumäärä oli 50 ay-, 50 fr- ja 20 sk-vasikkaa. Koelehmät (96) olivat peräisin 84;stä eri isästä. Vertailu tapahtuu kotoisilla rehuilla. Jokainen rotu on jaettu kahtia. Toinen puoli saa säilörehu-viljaruokinnan sekä lehmänä kilon heinää, toinen puoli heinä-vilja-urearuokinnan. Ureaa viljaseoksessa on 2 %. Viljaa on heinäryhmällä enemmän (0,32-0,38 ry/kg 4 %-maitoa ) kuin säilörehuryhmällä (0,24-0,30 ry/kg 4 %-maitoa). Seoksessa on 2/3 ohraa ja 1/3 kauraa. Säilörehua tai heinää eläimet saavat ruokahalun mukaan, jolloin voidaan tutkia niiden kar- kearehun syöntikyky. Alussa erirotuisten vasikoiden kasvunopeus oli samaa tasoa, mutta myöhemmin fr-rotuiset kasvoivat nopeimmin ja sk-rotuiset hitaimmin. Hiehot tiinehtyivät hyvin (1. siemennyksestä 75,6 %) ja poikivat keskimäärin n. 25 kk:n iässä. Poikimisvaikeuksia oli fr-säilörehuryhmän eläimillä. Ne olivat muita lihavampia runsaan säilörehunsyönnin ansiosta. 1. vuoden maitotuotos oli molempien ruokintaryhmien fr-ensikoilla ja ay-heinäryhmän ensikoilla samaa tasoa (ryhmien keskiarvo 3948—4065 kg 4 %-maitoa/tuotantokausi). Ay- säilörehuryhmän ensikoiden tuotos (3888 kg) oli jonkinverran ja sk-ensikoiden (3182-3387 kg) selvästi edellisiä pienempi. Hajonta saman rodun sisällä oli erittäin suuri. Maidon rasvapitoisuus oli ay- ja sk-lehmillä korkea (ryhmien keskiarvot 4,72-4,89 %) ja fr-ensikoilla- kin hyvä (4,44—4,60 %). Maidon valkuaispitoisuus eri ryhmillä vaihteli 3,08 %:sta 3,30 %:iin. Toisen tuotantovuoden tuotosta ei ole vielä tiedossa, mutta herumishuiput olivat hyviä (ryhmien keskiarvot aydlä ja fr-llä 25,2-27,1 kg maitoa ja sk:11a 18,3-20,3 kg). Kolmantena tuotantovuotena tulokset ovat edelleen nousussa. Ay-eläimet söivät vähemmän säilörehua, mutta heinää yhtä paljon kuin friisiläiset. Sk- eläimet söivät vähiten, mutta suhteellisesti enemmän säilörehua kuin heinää. Toisena tuotan- tovuotena syöntimäärät olivat huomattavasti suurempia kuin ensikkovuonna. Säilörehu- ja heinäryhmillä oli keskimääräinen ravinnonsaanti varsin yhtäläinen muilla paitsi ay-rodulla, jonka heinäryhmä saavutti ravinnonsaannissa friisiläisten tason. Ensimmäisen ja toisen poikimisen jälkeen tiinehtyminen ei ollut yhtä hyvä kuin hiehoilla. Selvää rodullista eroa ei ilmennyt. Lehmistä on 2,5 vuoden kuluessa poistettu 16,7 %.