Mezgebe Gebretnsae, Gizaw Solomon, Urge Mengistu
Department of Animal Sciences, Asosa University, P.O. Box: 18, Asosa, Ethiopia.
Department of Animal Sciences, Haramaya University, P.O. Box: 138, Dire-Dawa, Ethiopia.
Trop Anim Health Prod. 2018 Aug;50(6):1313-1318. doi: 10.1007/s11250-018-1560-4. Epub 2018 Mar 8.
The performance of indigenous Begait cattle (498 cows, 284 calves, and 48 heifers) in northern Ethiopia was studied. System of herd management significantly (P < 0.01) influenced all production traits. Calves in medium-input herds (MIHM) grew faster than those in low-input herds (LIHM), by 232 g/d from birth to 9 months (Gain) and by 385 g/d from 9 to 12 months (Gain). Cow's dry period, calving interval (CI), and age at first calving (AFC) were 234, 222, and 343 days shorter for MIHM than for LIHM. Compared with LIHM, cows from MIHM had 74% higher daily milk yield (DMY) and 91% higher lactation milk yield (LMY). Calves born at wet season grew faster by 14 and 10% than those calves born in the dry season at Gain and Gain. The subsequent CI of cows calved in the wet season had 77 days shorter, 0.45 kg DMY, and 93 kg LMY increment. The differences between production systems can be attributed to differences in management skills and access to better quality feeds. Technical intervention is needed to ensure provision of balanced rations to exploit the potential productivity of Begait cattle.
对埃塞俄比亚北部本土贝盖特牛（498头母牛、284头犊牛和48头小母牛）的生产性能进行了研究。畜群管理系统对所有生产性状均有显著影响（P < 0.01）。中等投入畜群（MIHM）中的犊牛生长速度比低投入畜群（LIHM）中的犊牛快，从出生到9个月的日增重快232克（增重），从9个月到12个月的日增重快385克（增重）。MIHM中母牛的干奶期、产犊间隔（CI）和初产年龄（AFC）比LIHM分别短234天、222天和343天。与LIHM相比，MIHM中的母牛日产奶量（DMY）高74%，泌乳期产奶量（LMY）高91%。在增重和增重阶段，雨季出生的犊牛比旱季出生的犊牛生长速度分别快14%和10%。在雨季产犊的母牛随后的CI缩短77天，DMY增加0.45千克，LMY增加93千克。生产系统之间的差异可归因于管理技能和获得优质饲料的差异。需要技术干预以确保提供均衡日粮，从而挖掘贝盖特牛的潜在生产性能。
