AGB 211: Livestock and Poultry Breeding (2+1)

MEASUREMENT OF ECONOMIC TRAITS OF CATTLE AND BUFFALO

The genetic improvement of dairy animals depends on animal breeding technologies. In most of the developing countries including India the animal breeding technologies are neither advanced nor widely adopted because of considerable geographical variation in environment, fragmented farming mostly at a subsistence level, substantial livestock genetic diversity, lack of awareness of rural households and many other problems directly and indirectly associated with the genetic improvement of animals. As a result, in spite of some important genetic resources available in the country, the productivity of dairy animal in general is very low in India in comparison to the dairy animals of developed countries. Thus, the reasoning for genetic improvement of dairy cattle and buffaloes would be critically differentiated in institutional / organised herds and field condition in our situation.

Measurements of economical traits are important to know the improvement in a particular character in any farm animal. The following economical traits are important in cattle and buffalo.

• Age at first calving: Age of a cow or buffalo in days at the time of first calving.
• Lactation length: Number of days in milk from the date of calving to the date of drying or cessation of milk production (the order of lactation should be indicated as I, II, III etc.).
• Lactation milk yield: Milk yield in kg from the date of calving to the date of drying or cessation of milk production (the order of lactation should be indicated as I, II, III etc.).
• 305-day milk yield: Milk yield in kg from the date of calving to 305^th day of lactation. If the lactation length is less than 305 days, the milk yield for the lactation period is considered as 305-day milk yield. When the lactation length is more than 305 days, milk yield for the lactation is converted to 305 days using correction factor.
• 180-day milk yield : Milk yield in kg from the date of calving to 180^th day of lactation.
• Peak yield: Highest daily milk yield in kg during the lactation period.
• Average daily milk yield: Average daily milk yield in kg calculated by dividing the lactation milk yield by the lactation length.
• Average fat percentage: Average of fat tests done with milk samples drawn during lactation at fortnightly intervals.
• Dry period: Number of days from the date of drying to the date of next calving (the order of dry period should be indicated as I, II, III etc.).
• Service period: Number of days from the date of calving to subsequent service resulting in conception.
• Calving interval or inter-calving period: Number of days from the date of one calving to the date of next calving (the order of calving interval should be indicated as I, II, III etc.).
• Conception rate: Number of services required per conception. It should be calculated for I calving, II calving etc.
• Breeding efficiency : Overall reproductive efficiency of the animal expressed as percentage. It is calculated by using a formula given by Tomar (1965).

Breeding efficiency (%) (for cows) =( (No. of calving intervals X 365) + 1020 /Age at first calving + Sum of calving intervals ) X 100

Breeding efficiency (%) (for buffaloes)  =( (No. of calving intervals X 365) + 1040 /Age at first calving + Sum of calving intervals )  X 100