Phenotypic variation in breeding traits of Mouton Charolais breed

Staika Laleva, Petya Slavova, Georgi Kalaydzhiev, Yovka Popova, Nikolai Ivanov, Daniela Miteva, Stanimira Slavova

Abstract: The aim of this study is identifing the phenotypic changes in breeding traits of Mouton Charolais sheep. The study is conducted with 498 Mouton Charolais sheep from the flock at the Agricultural Institute in Stara Zagora during the period 2005–2018. The main breeding traits have been examined – live weight from birth to 3.5 years of age and fertility /number of lambs born per ewe/ by years of birth and by sequence of lambings. The growth rate of male and female lambs over three ages has been analyzed. The general genetic model has been applied during the study: Y = G + E and G = а + d + е, based on the Test day model. Mouton Charolais sheep reach a live weight of 63.866 kg and 73.118 kg, respectively, at 2.5 and 3.5 years of age. The highest average daily gain is observed up to 10 days of age – 0.390 kg for male and 0.422 kg for female lambs. The gender impact is more pronounced at the age of 70 days, when male lambs surpass females by 0.743 kg. There is no definite trend in live weight variation by age, depending on the year of birth, but according to the sequence of lambing,
higher values are observed for lambs born at the 7th to the 9th lambing. Fertility over the analyzed period
averages 1,445 lambs per ewe. The rate of the trait is lower for those born at the beginning and
end of the study period, and is the highest for the sixth lambing – 1,725 lambs per ewe.

Keywords: breeding traits; Mouton Charolais; sheep; рhenotypic variation

Date published: 2020-10-09