Authors : N.K. Alade , S.T. Mbap and I.D. Kwari
Abstract: At the University of Maiduguri Teaching and Research farm, breed and environmental effects on body measurements were investigated using 192 individual kid records of Sahel (S), Red Sokoto (RS) and West African Dwarf (WAD) breeds of goat. The Body Measurements (BM) were Heart Girth (HGT), Height at Withers (HWT), Body Length (BLT) and Diagonal Length (DLT). Body measurements increased with age. Average HGT, HWT, BLT and DLT at birth were 24.70, 27.65, 31.36 and 19.02 cm, respectively while the corresponding values at 9 months of age were 47.40, 50.17, 66.25 and 40.66 cm. At all ages, S and RS had similar body measurements but, both, significantly (p<0.001) performed better than WAD. Seasonal effect became significant only at the older ages. Animals born in the wet and dry seasons were more superior to those born in the dry hot season. Year of birth effect was significant on HGT and BLT at all ages except 90days (GHT) and 30 days (BLT). Significant effect of year of birth was recorded at 60, 240 and 270 days of age for DLT and 270 days of age for HWT. Among all the measurements, only DLT was significantly affected (p<0.05) by parity between 60 days and 240 days of age. Litter size and sex affected all the BM (except DLT) at all ages. For DLT, non significant effects of litter size and sex were recorded at birth and 270 days of age.
N.K. Alade , S.T. Mbap and I.D. Kwari , 2008. Breed and Environmental Effects on Linear Measurements of Goats in a Semi Arid Region of Nigeria. Journal of Animal and Veterinary Advances, 7: 689-694.