 Prolific – number of animals born at one time.  Mothering ability – ability to produce enough milk for the offspring.  Soundness – strength of feet & legs.  Weaning Weight – size of calf at weaning time.  Longevity – life span of the animal

 Lean Ratio – Amount of fat compared to the amount of meat.  Muscling – Quality of meat on the animal.  Carcass Quality – Quality of meat in terms of marbling.  Rate of gain – pounds gained per day.  Feed Efficiency – pounds of feed needed to put on one pound of weight.

 1 – Production traits - breeding / market (from previous slides)  2 – Cost of the breed – bulls / semen straws may cost more for certain breeds.  3 – Environmental Conditions – certain breeds do better in warmer environments – look up Brahma cattle in GOOGLE.  4 – Personal Preference- some people like black hair on cattle – some people like white. Example:Blake Eisenbeisz vs. Calvin & Gary Sandmeier  5 – Purpose of the animal – Is this animal for pleasure, work, breeding, etc.?