Effects of Environmental Factors Growth Traits of Akkaraman Sheep in Çankırı Province

Authors : Sedat Behrem

Pages : 22-27

Doi:10.46897/livestockstudies.610104

View : 16 | Download : 14

Publication Date : 2021-07-01

Article Type : Research

Abstract :Small ruminants are important contributors of food supply chains throughout the world. In this study, characterization of distributions of birth weight, weaning weight, average daily gain and Kleiber ratio as well as estimation of effects of certain environmental factors on these traits were aimed in Akkaraman sheep raised around Çankırı province. For this purpose, the linear mixed model was fitted to estimate the effect of factors and to obtain the least square means for the traits. The effect of all studied fixed factors on birth weight (BW), weaning weight (WW), average daily weight gain (ADWG) and Kleiber ratio (KR) were found to be significant. The male lambs have more BW and WW than female lambs. The least square mean of ADWG for female lambs was found higher than male lambs. Additionally, the least square mean of the pre-weaning growth traits of single-born lambs were found to be higher than that of twin-born lambs. The birth weights of lambs born in January and February were higher than March. In general, the study reported that pre-weaning growth traits were affected by several environmental factors, which can be used for herd management practices aiming for higher productivity in Akkaraman sheep.
Keywords : Pre-weaning growth traits, Environmental factors, Akkaraman, Kleiber ratio