The effect of early weaning on the lactation performance of Damascus goats and the growth rate of the kids

1975 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 213-218 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Louca ◽  
A. Mavrogenis ◽  
M. J. Lawlor

SummaryOne hundred and four Damascus goats with their kids were used study the effects of early weaning on the lactation of the goats and the growth rate of the kids. The treatments studied were: 2-day suckling (S2) where the kids were suckled by their dams for 2 days a d then reared artificially on milk replacer; 35-day suckling (S35) where the dams suckled their kids for 35 days; 70-day suckling (S70) where the dams suckled their kids for 70 days.The differences among treatments in 150-day and total milk yield and lactation length were not significant. Conversely, the differences in the yield of milk available for marketing were highly significant. The goats on S2 produced more marketable milk than those on S35 and S70, and the goats on S35 produced more than those on S70. The growth rate of the kids weaned at 35 days of age was significantly lower than that of those weaned at 70 days. The differences between kids reared artificially and those suckled by their dams to 70 days of age were not significant. It was concluded that early weaning does not materially affect lactation performance and that it can increase the milk available for marketing.

1974 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 293-299 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. J. Lawlor ◽  
A. Louca ◽  
A. Mavrogenis

SUMMARYNinety-nine ewes, 33 from each of the Cyprus fat-tailed, Chios and Awassi breeds, were used to compare the effects of three suckling regimes on lactation. These consisted of weaning the lambs at birth (W0), 2 days (W2) and 35 days (W35). The 35-day, 150-day and total milk yields, as well as lactation length, were measured for each group. The lambs weaned from the ewes at birth and 2 days were reared on ewe-milk replacer. The growth rate of these lambs was compared with that of the lambs being suckled by their dams, before and after weaning.In all cases the milk yields of the Chios and Awassi breeds of sheep were significantly higher (P<0·01) than those of the Cyprus fat-tailed. Within each breed the 35-day milk yields of the ewes suckling one lamb were significantly higher (P<0·01) than those of the ewes on the W0 or W2 treatments, which themselves did not differ significantly. While the 150-day milk yields of the W35 treatment were significantly higher than those of the W0 or W2 treatments, the differences between suckling regimes in terms of total milk yield and lactation length were not significant. It is concluded that differences in milk yield obtained on different suckling regimes are attributable solely to the length of time that the lambs are suckled by their dams.Prior to weaning the growth rate of the lambs given the ewe-milk replacer was significantly lower than that of the lambs suckled by their dams. There were no differences in the growth rates of these groups of lambs when both were fattened on a creep feed after weaning.


1972 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 53-59 ◽  
Author(s):  
Avraam Louca

SUMMARYSeventy-two Cyprus Fat-tailed and Chios ewes with their lambs were used over a 2-year period to study the effects of three suckling regimes on the lactation performance of ewes and growth rate of lambs. The regimes studied were continuous or 24-hr a day suckling, 12-hr suckling and no suckling. The lambs were weaned at the age of 10 weeks. All the ewes, including those suckling, were handmilked throughout the trial twice daily.Highly significant differences in milk yield (milk sucked by lambs plus milk withdrawn by hand) and lactation length were found between the Fat-tailed and Chios ewes, the respective average milk yields being 159 and 265 kg and the corresponding lactation lengths, 158 and 209 days. There were no significant differences between breeds in the live weight or average daily gain of lambs up to the age of 20 weeks. Suckling for 12 rather than 24 hr a day had no adverse effects on the milk yield of ewes or the growth rate of lambs. The no-suckling regime, however, adversely affected milk yield and lactation length but the effects were less pronounced for the Chios breed.


1986 ◽  
Vol 107 (2) ◽  
pp. 377-384 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Hadjipanayiotou

SummaryForty-nine and 58 Damascus goats were used in each of two trials, respectively. Goats were randomly allocated 2 days post-partum to twin-suckling (TS), singlesuckling (SS) and no-suckling (NS) kids treatments. In trial 1, artificially reared kids were divided into two groups fed either on ewe-milk (25·8% fat, 24·2% protein) or on calf-milk (15% fat, 22·5% protein) replacer. In trial 2, all artificially reared kids were fed on ewe-milk replacer. The ewe- and calf-milk replacers were reconstituted in the ratio of 1 part powder to 5 or 4 parts (by weight) of water, respectively.Separation of kids from their dams reduced total milk yield (means of two trials) until weaning (TS 194, SS 176, NS 121 kg/goat) and from weaning to 90 days of lactation (TS 95, SS 89, NS 70 kg/goat). On the other hand, separation of kids increased marketable milk yield until weaning (TS 68, SS 99, NS 121 kg/goat). Marketable milk during the period 3–90 days post-partum was similar for NS and SS goats (TS 163, SS 188, NS 191 kg/goat). Goats suckling two kids suffered greater weight losses (TS 78, SS 44, NS 6 g/day). Goats suckling two males produced more milk until weaning than all other twin sets. Differences in concentrate intake between group means of TS and SS were smaller compared with the NS group (TS 2·26, SS 2·08, NS 1·86 kg/goat per day).There were no differences in weaning weight and weight gain from birth to weaning between kids reared on milk replacers. However, four kids on the calf-milk replacer died and two more were excluded from the data because of severe scouring. Single suckling kids gained more weight until weaning than TS and those reared artificially (AR) on ewe-milk replacer (SS 11·1, TS 9·1, AR 9·3 kg/kid). Furthermore, males consumed more milk than females (males 74, females 64 kg/kid) and SS more than TS kids (SS 75, TS 63 kg/kid).It is concluded that SS and NS treatments increase commercial milk yields compared with the TS goats, but NS should not be recommended because of an adverse effect on pre- and post-weaning lactation performance.


1976 ◽  
Vol 87 (1) ◽  
pp. 15-20 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Hadjipanayiotou ◽  
A. Louca

SummaryTwo trials with 82 and 54 Chios ewes and one with 44 Damascus goats were conducted during 1973–4 to study the effects of partial suckling on lactation performance and the growth rate of the lambs and kids. The treatments studied were: (a) continuous (24 h a day) suckling; (b) partial (8 h a day) suckling and (c) partial with decreasing duration of suckling from 8 h daily to residual suckling, i.e. 20 min after each milking.No significant differences were found in either the 35-day milk yields (commercial milk yield+milk sucked) of ewes or the 70-day milk yields of goats between animals suckling continuously and those suckling partially. However, the 35-day and 70-day commercial milk yields of ewes and goats on the partial suckling treatments were significantly higher than those of ewes and goats on the continuous suckling treatment. Residual suckling of ewes from 36 to 120 days after lambing resulted in an increase in the total milk yield but not in the milk sold. Significant differences in milk yields were found between ewes nursing one and those nursing two lambs. The corresponding mean values for the 35-day milk yield were 78 and 94 kg and those for the 120-day milk yield 205 and 238 kg.Up to weaning (35 days for sheep and 70 days for goats) the growth rate of lambs and kids on the partial suckling treatments tended to be poorer than that of those on continuous suckling. After weaning, however, the growth rate of the partially suckled lambs and kids as well as that of the lambs on residual suckling from 36 to 120 days were as good as that of those suckling continuously so that the differences in the final weight were not significant.It is concluded that partial suckling in sheep and goats is profitable in the early stages of lactation provided that the milk left to the young and the intake of solid feed are sufficient to sustain satisfactory growth.


2008 ◽  
Vol 51 (4) ◽  
pp. 305-317 ◽  
Author(s):  
Z. U. Rehman ◽  
M. S. Sajjad Khan ◽  
S. A. Bhatti ◽  
J. Iqbal ◽  
A. Iqbal

Abstract. To study the environmental and genetic factors affecting productive and reproductive traits, data on 5,897 cows from five main recorded herds (for 1964–2004) of Sahiwal cattle in Pakistan were used. A general linear model was applied on the data. The 305-day milk yield, total milk yield, lactation length, age at first calving, dry period, calving interval and service period averaged 1,393 ± 12 kg, 1,429 ± 11 kg, 235 ± 2, 1,390 ± 4, 244 ± 3, 464 ± 3 and 1,78 ± 3 days, respectively. The age at first calving was effected by herd, year and season of birth. The 305-day and total milk yields were affected by herd, year, season of calving, age at first calving, service period and lactation length while all other first lactation traits were affected by herd, year, season of calving and 305-day milk yield. Animal model heritability estimates for these traits were 0.11 ± 0.029, 0.11 ± 0.028, 0.09 ± 0.027, 0.02 ± 0.019, 0.05 ± 0.019, 0.12 ± 0.027 and 0.04 ± 0.020, respectively. Rate of decline in first lactation milk yield was 7 l per year over the last 35 years with genetic trend close to zero. Lactation length and service period decreased and age at first calving increased by 2, 1 and 6 days per year, respectively. Herd differences for most of the traits were significant. Improved feeding and management may improve performance traits of Sahiwal cattle. Accurate recording of pedigrees and performance traits would help improve genetic param


1988 ◽  
Vol 46 (2) ◽  
pp. 237-242 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. Ruvuna ◽  
T. C. Cartwright ◽  
H. Blackburn ◽  
M. Okeyo ◽  
S. Chema

AbstractTwo experiments were conducted to test different milking procedures for dual-purpose goats that would be suitable for smallholder farmers. In experiment 1, 105 East African and Galla does that kidded to singles were randomly assigned to three treatments: (a) milking in absence of kid and kid sucking residual; (b) milking in presence of kid and kid sucking residual; and (c) milking once a week and kid sucking all milk 6 days of the week. In experiment 2, 45 Galla does that kidded to singles were randomly assigned to three treatments: (a) weigh-suckle-weigh; (b) milking half udder while kid sucking other half and (c) kid sucking all milk in the evening and milking mornings. Measurements of milk yield, milk sucked and weights of kids were taken for 12 weeks of lactation.Results were analysed using least-squares techniques for unequal subclass numbers. Milking in the presence of kids increased does' milk yield. This increase was attributed to the stimulation of milk let-down by the presence of kids. Although this method potentially provided most milk for dairy use, less residual milk was left to sustain growth of kids. Estimates of total milk yield by milking once a week underestimated milk yield potential of the East African and Galla breeds. Results indicated an appropriate method for estimating milk potential should combine both milked and sucked milk measurements. Restricting milk available to the kids reduced their growth rates and thus indirectly affected their maturing rates. No milking procedure proved to be superior all-around for the smallholder for milking goats. To resolve this dilemma, use of an optimizing technique including socio-economic weighting of milk for family use relative to milk for kids was proposed.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mahesh Shivanand Dige ◽  
P. K. Rout ◽  
S. Bhusan ◽  
G. R. Gowane

Abstract This study aims to evaluate the genetic potential of the Jamunapari goat and formulate a new selection strategy for improving the lactation traits. The data set included 4049 phenotypic records for lifetime milk yield at 90 days (MY90) and 140 days (MY140), total milk yield (TMY), and lactation length (LL) obtained from the progeny of 83 sires and 1643 dams between 1990 and 2019. Animal model employing average information restricted maximum likelihood (AIREML) was used to estimate genetic parameters for milk yield traits and LL. The direct additive heritability estimates for lifetime lactation traits, that used repeatability model were 0.10 ± 0.03, 0.08 ± 0.03 and 0.12 ± 0.02 for MY90, MY140 and TMY, respectively, while it was low for LL (0.06 ± 0.02). The repeatability estimates were moderate ranging from 0.17 to 0.22 for milk yield traits and LL, indicating persistent performance over the parities. Animal permanent environment influence (c2) was significant in milk yield attributes, whereas additive maternal genetic effects were absent. As the early selection criteria based on first parity records is essential, we analysed the data for the first parity separately and obtained moderate h2 estimates viz. 0.26 ± 0.05, 0.26 ± 0.06 and 0.25 ± 0.06 for MY90, MY140 and TMY, respectively. These estimates augurs further positive scope of selection in Jamunapari goats for higher milk yield. High and positive genetic correlation of MY90 with MY140 (0.97 ± 0.01) and TMY (0.91 ± 0.05) revealed the scope of using MY90 as the selection criterion.Based on these results, we recommend use of MY90 as a single trait selection criterion for genetic improvement of all lactation traits in Jamunapari goat.


1999 ◽  
Vol 68 (4) ◽  
pp. 625-633 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Y. Kurtut ◽  
C. L. Tawah ◽  
J. E. O. Rege ◽  
Nega-Alemayehu ◽  
Mesfin-Shibre

AbstractA study was conducted at the Asella Station in the Arsi Region of Ethiopia to investigate the dairy performance of indigenous purebred Arsi and Friesian × Arsi crosses under different pre-partum and post-partum supplementary feeding regimes. A total of’343 first-lactation animals were involved in the experiment. Lactation performance was not significantly affected by pre-partum supplementation. Post-partum supplementary feeding significantly affected total lactation milk and butterfat yields of the crosses but not the purebred Arsi. Arsi crosses produced more milk (1873 (s.e. 65·1) v. 258 (s.e. 31·7) kg) and butterfat (92 (s.e. 4·0) v. 25 (s.e. 2·8) kg) than purebred Arsi. The crosses stayed in lactation longer (474 (s.e. 13·0) v. 179 (s.e. 15·4) days) than the latter. Purebred Arsi manifested much more variation in total lactation milk yield (CV: 1·27 v. 0·37), lactation length (0·91 v. 0·30) and butterfat yield (0·71 v. 0·42) than Arsi crosses. F1 crosses produced slightly more milk (+266 kg) and butterfat (+19·3 kg) but had shorter (-30 days) lactations than the backerosses.


Author(s):  
Poonam Ratwan ◽  
Ajoy Mandal ◽  
Manoj Kumar ◽  
A. K. Chakravarty

Present study was carried out with the aim to determine the effect of genetic and non-genetic factors on milk production efficiency traits and their genetic control. Data on milk production efficiency traits i.e. total milk yield per day of lactation length and total milk yield per day of calving interval in Jersey crossbred animals maintained at organized herd of ICARNational Dairy Research Institute, Eastern Regional Station, Kalyani, Nadia, West Bengal spread over 29 years (1986-2014) were analyzed in the study. The overall least-squares means of total milk yield per day of lactation length and total milk yield per day of calving interval were estimated as 6.97±0.21 and 6.02±0.23 kg/day, respectively. The data was grouped into different sub-classes of season of calving, period of calving, parity and genetic group of animals. The random effect of sire had shown significant (p<0.01) influence on milk production efficiency traits. Various environment factors significantly affected the milk production efficiency traits indicating the scope of improvement in management of these crossbred animals. The heritability estimates of 0.54 for TMY/LL and 0.63 for TMY/CI were high in magnitude which suggests that fast genetic progress can be made, if these animals are selected based on the milk production efficiency traits.


2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 8-17
Author(s):  
MA Jalil ◽  
S Akther ◽  
MP Choudhury ◽  
MA Habib

The study was undertaken to evaluate the genetic progress of Black Bengal Goat (BBG) by estimating genetic parameters viz. heritability and breeding values for economically important productive and reproductive traits (birth weight, weight at 3, 6, 9 & 12 months, daily milk yield, lactation length, total milk yield and litter size of BBG goat population). Variance and co-variance components were analyzed applying Residual Maximum Likelihood (REML) approach by VCE 4.2.5 computer package. The heritability (h2) of birth weight was estimated as 0.2, which was low. The heritability estimates for 3-month weight (0.40), 6-month weight (0.50), 9-month weight (0.37) and 12-month weight (0.36) were found medium. Estimated h2 of daily milk yield, total milk yield and lactation length in this study were from 0.55 to 0.82.  h2 of litter size was 0.09. The maximum estimated breeding value (EBV) was found for 6 month body weight (12.94 kg), however, for daily milk yield, the value was 1.513 kg. The results found in this study revealed that genetic improvement of BBG for most of the traits is possible by selection and breeding. Bangladesh J. of Livestock Res. 20(1-2): 8-17, Jan-Dec 2013


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