Reaching Master Breeder status was never really a goal that Phillip and Lori, at Sunny Point Farms Ltd., had set but achieving it certainly is an honor!
Farm Operation Stats:
Total # of animals – milking, and total: 250 milking 520 total
Herd Classification : 2 Mul. EX, 4 EX, 63 VG, 177 GP, 44 G
Herd production: 12,900 kgs
# Acres – forage and grains grown? 450 Alfalfa grass, 425 corn silage and corn grain
Type of feed fed? Alfalfa, corn silage, canola meal, roasted beans, dry corn
Do you buy feed or make all your own? Buy all of our proteins
Name people involved in the farm?
Phillip Vroegh (owner), Tony Mumford (herdsman) Shanna MacDonald (heifer manager), Larry, Tim, Charlie (farm workers)
Was achieving your Master Breeder shield a goal you set when you 1st started breeding cattle? No (although it is an honour)
Most influential cow family(s) that helped earn the Master Breeder Shield? Was she or they purchased or bred?
We don’t as a rule focus on cow families; we cull cows based on BCA Components, classification and LPI
Sire that worked well and you feel had the most impact on your herd? Baxter has given us the kind of cows we like, high production cows that classify well and last long.
What bulls are you using now? What do you look for in a sire? Would you say you are type, genomic, production focused or a combination of these? We are currently using 80% genomic sires that have a minimum 2.5 on type, mammery and feet+legs with minimum 1000 lbs milk. With No more than 30 doses of any genomic bull used.
Have you changed your breeding philosophy over the years at all? Why? We have always tried to use balanced bulls with positive deviations and with positive milk kgs.
Before achieving your Master Breeder Shield what would you consider your greatest accomplishment as a Dairy Farmer and Holstein Breeder?
In the past I have been elected for milk producer and milk processer boards which I have learned a lot of information on how our industry works.
Future Goals? Expansion and utilizing current and upcoming technology
Name an animal (cow or bull) in the breed you admire the most and give reason why?
Any cow in the breed that gives 100,000 kgs+ and classifies 83 or greater, a cow like this is profitable and long lived!!