Ecole des Sciences et Techniques de Production Animale, Faculté des Sciences Agronomiques, Université d'Abomey-Calavi, 03 BP 2819, Cotonou, Benin.
Trop Anim Health Prod. 2022 Mar 26;54(2):143. doi: 10.1007/s11250-022-03137-3.
The West African shorthorn Lagune cattle has long been incriminated as of low productivity and subjected to gradual replacement or indiscriminate crossbreeding with zebu breeds. But there are still insufficient studies reporting the productive and reproductive performances of this breed under village conditions. This study aimed to evaluate the productive and reproductive performances of the Lagune cattle herds kept under village conditions in two agroecological zones in Southern Benin. Sixteen herds (seven in the Oueme Valley zone and nine in the Pobe zone), chosen from a previous retrospective survey, were regularly visited on a bi-monthly basis between January 2018 and February 2019. At the first visit to each selected herd, all animals present were identified, their ages determined through their dentition, and their breeding history recorded. At each subsequent visit, information on calving, birth weights, herd entries and exits, disease incidence, and changes in the physiological status of the animals were recorded. In addition, all suckling calves from birth to 6 months of age were weighted and measured. The average age at first calving was 37.2 ± 3.5 months and varied from 3 to 4 years. With no significant variations between agroecological zones, the parturition rate, fertility rate, fecundity rate, and abortion rate were, respectively, 74.3% ± 10.7, 77.0% ± 12.0, 68.9% ± 9.1, and 2.7% ± 1.4. The overall annual mortality rate and perinatal mortality rate were 8.4% ± 3.1 and 7.3% ± 2.7, respectively. The annual offtake rate was 12.9% ± 4.3 and varied significantly (P ≤ 0.05) between zones. The average birth weight varied significantly (P ≤ 0.05) between sex and was 10.2 ± 0.7 kg and 10.8 ± 0.9 kg for female and male, respectively. The average daily body weight gain of calves, calculated over the period from birth to 6 months of age, was 160.5 ± 8.5 g/day. In addition to environmental conditions, individual farmers' management practices varied significantly among herds and probably influenced the recorded reproductive and productive performances. The estimates of reproductive parameters obtained in this study suggest a good reproductive ability of the Lagune breed which could be improved with better management conditions.
西非短角牛长期以来被指责为生产力低下，并逐渐被替代或与瘤牛品种随意杂交。但是，仍然缺乏关于该品种在农村条件下的生产性能和繁殖性能的研究报告。本研究旨在评估贝宁南部两个农业生态区农村条件下饲养的拉格牛群的生产性能和繁殖性能。从之前的回顾性调查中选择了 16 个牛群（奥埃姆河谷区 7 个，波贝区 9 个），从 2018 年 1 月至 2019 年 2 月，每两个月定期访问一次。在对每个选定的牛群的第一次访问中，对所有在场的动物进行了识别，通过它们的牙齿确定了它们的年龄，并记录了它们的繁殖历史。在随后的每次访问中，记录了产犊、初生体重、牛群的进入和退出、疾病发病率以及动物生理状况的变化。此外，对从出生到 6 个月大的所有哺乳小牛进行了称重和测量。首次产犊的平均年龄为 37.2±3.5 个月，从 3 岁到 4 岁不等。在农业生态区之间没有显著变化的情况下，分娩率、受胎率、繁殖率和流产率分别为 74.3%±10.7、77.0%±12.0、68.9%±9.1 和 2.7%±1.4。总体年死亡率和围产期死亡率分别为 8.4%±3.1 和 7.3%±2.7。年出栏率为 12.9%±4.3，在两个区之间有显著差异（P≤0.05）。平均初生重因性别而异，雌性为 10.2±0.7kg，雄性为 10.8±0.9kg，差异有统计学意义（P≤0.05）。从出生到 6 个月龄期间计算的小牛的平均日增重为 160.5±8.5g/天。除了环境条件外，个体农民的管理做法在牛群之间也有很大差异，这可能影响了记录的繁殖和生产性能。本研究中获得的繁殖参数估计表明，拉格牛品种具有良好的繁殖能力，通过改善管理条件可以进一步提高。
