PRESS RELEASE
20 May 2014
Fabulous foursome bring top proven bloodlines to UK farms
Young genomic bulls may be stealing the limelight in the Holstein breeding industry, but
Cogent has just launched a pack of daughter-proven sires that’s giving the youngsters a
run for their money.
Amongst them are:

Rich-Banks He-Man and Cookiecutter Henry: the first proven sons of Man-OMan;

Trione Colb Tesser: a complete outcross sire whose pedigree will inject new
vigour into the bloodlines in common use on UK farms; and

Springhill-OH Iron J Pirate: a top-10 type sire which blends Planet and Boss
Iron in what’s been described as a ‘perfectly complementary sire stack’.
All originating from World Wide Sires in either the USA or Italy, the four bulls are about
to make their presence felt on UK farms.
The two Man-O-Man sons, He-Man and Henry both originate in the same US cow
family, being sons of two sisters: Cookiecutter Gold Harbour and Cookiecutter Gld Holler
– both daughters of Goldwyn.
Earning a Type Merit (TM) of 2.66 and a Profitable Lifetime Index (PLI) of £177, He-Man
transmits dairylike and balanced frames to his daughters, with extremely high and wide
rear udders and a near-ideal set to the rear legs. With plenty of milk production and
good health and fitness traits, daughters are known for their calving ease, as both calves
(direct) and as dams (maternal).
Henry’s breeding profile is similar to He-Man’s, with a Type Merit of 2.73 and a PLI of
£165. Although daughters are more moderate in stature, they have a similar blend of
health, fertility and production, with exceptional udder conformation and very correct
legs. Henry also transmits ease of calving, both direct and maternal.
“He-Man and Henry are the first proven sons of Man-O-Man to be offered for sale and we
hope that at a realistic price and with the availability of sexed semen from He-Man, we
can get these world-leading bloodlines into UK herds,” says Bryan Challenor from
Cogent. “Many breeders missed out on Man-O-Man himself as he was in such limited
availability due to his huge world-wide demand and the widespread view that he was
Oman’s best son.”
Tesser will also have an important place on UK farms, as a son of Colby and out of the
Italian-bred cow, Trione FBI Milene, herself a daughter of Gillette Brilea FBI.
“These bloodlines aren’t particularly familiar to all UK breeders, and they will inject some
hybrid vigour into UK herds,” continues Mr Challenor. “He’s a high production outcross
sire that gets away from Oman, Shottle, Goldwyn and Planet, and when you look at his
daughters and his breeding pattern you can see why he will appeal.
“The heifers I have recently seen in Italy were medium in stature with good chest width
– they look the type whose frames will develop as they mature and their outstanding
udders also looked built to stand the test of time.
“His sire, Colby, produced similar cows that worked well in large scale commercial
environments, although Tesser will breed better udders. I’d suggest he’d work well on
End Story daughters.”
Tesser offers a TM of 2.89, a PLI of £143 and improves all health and fitness traits.
The last bull of the quartet is the Planet son, Pirate, which, out of a Boss Iron dam,
brings strength and dairyness together.
“Boss Iron was a great bull who made great mature cows that went on and on,” says Mr
Challenor. “So - blended with the dairyness of Planet - this is one of those matings that
makes a lot of sense.”
The result is a sky-high Type Merit which at 3.78, ranks Pirate in the UK and
international top 10. A leading udder specialist, transmitting high and wide rear udders
with strong central support, Pirate also transmits tremendous frames with deep bodies
and open rib. His PLI is £174.
For more information about the Cogent stud, please call Cogent on 0800 783 7258.
Ends
Notes to editors
Attached is a photo of Tesser daughter, Sinuosa GP81.
- Cogent is the pioneering business behind sexed semen technology and supply and is
the UK market leader. It is wholly owned by the Grosvenor Estate, and from its
headquarters on the Grosvenor Estate in Cheshire, has established a market-leading
reputation for its world-class UK breeding programme.
- Cogent's distinguished selection of high reliability UK proven bulls offers dairy and
beef farmers an unprecedented combination of production, type and value.
- In 2011, Cogent acquired the business and marketing rights of World Wide Sires UK,
the highly-regarded cattle-breeding business, and Dairy Daughters, the UK’s first
direct supplier of Holstein semen. These businesses remain a key part of the Cogent
business, and Cogent remains the exclusive supplier of WWS US products in the UK.
- For more information, please contact Laura Andrews on 01244 622 069 or via email
at laura.andrews@cogentuk.com.
The text from this news release can be downloaded directly from the
Agriculture/Livestock section of the ABC (Agribusiness Communications Ltd)
Press Centre at www.abccomms.co.uk