Estimated Breeding Values for Monetary Earnings and Cutting Points in Brazilian Quarter Horses

In the Brazilian Quarter Horse (QH), cutting points (CP) and monetary earnings (ME) are key success indicators, yet their genetic parameters remain unestablished. This study estimated heritability and breeding values for these traits to guide breeding decisions. Performance data from 1661 QHs competing in official Brazilian cutting events between 1981 and 2020 were analyzed for three traits: total lifetime cutting points (CPt), cutting points at four years of age (CP4), and lifetime monetary earnings (ME). Variance components and genetic parameters were estimated using single-trait Bayesian animal models. Heritability estimates were 0.110 ± 0.038 for CPt, 0.110 ± 0.048 for CP4, and 0.288 ± 0.091 for ME. Although overall genetic trends were positive, in the last decade CPt registered the highest annual genetic gain (0.116). The findings suggest that both CP and ME could be considered as potential selection criteria, and evaluating performance at four years of age (CP4) may favor early genetic progress. While ME shows greater potential for lifelong phenotypes due to its moderate heritability, both traits exhibited comparable selection accuracies; therefore, definitive recommendations require further studies on genetic correlations and expected responses.