Direct and maternal genetic effects for preweaning growth in Retinta cattle estimated by a longitudinal approach throughout the calving trajectory of the cow

Summary The direct and maternal genetic effects were estimated for the preweaning growth of Retinta calves with a multitrait model across parities, using a longitudinal approach with random regression models ( RRM ). The 120 (P120) and 180 days (P180) weights (5972 calves) were considered as different traits in each calving. The heritability of direct effect across parities was on average 0.37 for P120 and 0.58 for P180, slightly higher than the estimates by univariate (0.30 and 0.56) and bivariate models (0.30 and 0.51, respectively). The heritability for maternal effects was 0.16 for P120 and 0.26 for P180 and very similar by uni‐ (0.16 and 0.23) and multivariate model (0.16 and 0.22, respectively). The correlation between direct and maternal effects by RRM showed a pronounced antagonism −0.64 for P120 and −0.78 for P180), likewise uni‐ (−0.62 and −0.72) and multivariate case (−0.64 and −0.74, respectively). The preweaning weights should be considered as different traits across parities, because the genetic correlations were different from unity. The RRM also allowed us to estimate all the parameters throughout the calving trajectory of the cow. The use of multiple traits RRM across parities can provide very useful information for the breeding programmes.