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Given pastoralists in arid regions have little control over season conditions and cannot easily manage stocking rate or supplementary feeding, the biggest lever of cow productivity is through genetics. Weaning rate which is a function of maximising calves born and minimising calf loss is the biggest driver of profit. Conception rate in heifers is related to joining weight and growth during joining. In cows, condition score is the key predictor. The EBV of greatest importance for reproduction is days to calving. EBVs for other traits like growth, calving ease, temperament and recently cow condition are important also. Cows in the greatest condition which show the greatest resilience are likely to have eaten more when feed was available rather than being metabolically more efficient.