Genetic evaluation of reproductive disorders and fertility traits in Holstein cows under standard and recursive mixed models

The objective of the present study was the genetic evaluation of retained placenta (RP), metritis (MET), number of inseminations to conception (INS), and days open (DO) in Holstein cows using standard (SMMs) and recursive (RMMs) mixed models. Data on 50230 first-lactation Holstein dairy cattle, collected during 2008 to 2017 in 17 large dairy herds were used. The data was analyzed using four-variate animal Threshold-Gaussian models under SMMs and RMMs. The existence of causal effects from RP on MET, INS and DO, from MET on INS and DO and from INS to DO were considered in RMMs. The causal effects of RP and MET on INS were 0.19 and 0.09 services, respectively; and those on DO were 4.74 and 5.38 days, respectively. Also, causal effect of INS on DO was obtained as 33 days. The considered causal relationships except that of RP on MET, phenotypic and residual correlations among the disorders and fertility traits were statistically significant and different under two models. Posterior means of heritability for RP, MET, INS and DO were 0.15, 0.17, 0.07 and 0.09 under SMMs, respectively; and 0.16, 0.17, 0.07 and 0.1 under RMMs, respectively. The difference between the corresponding heritability estimates under SMMs and RMMs were not statistically significant. Therefore; RMMs may be an alternative for SMMs in genetic evaluation of studied traits in first -lactation Holstein cows.