Yitbarek Dagmawi, Gessese Abebe Tesfaye, Dagnaw Gashaw Getaneh, Admasu Mengistu Bimrew, Fantahun Tewodros, Mebratu Biruh, Kinde Mebrie Zemene, Demessie Yitayew
Department of Veterinary Sciences, College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, Bahir Dar University, Bahir Dar, Ethiopia.
Department of Veterinary Biomedical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, University of Gondar, Gondar, Ethiopia.
Vet Med Sci. 2025 Jul;11(4):e70432. doi: 10.1002/vms3.70432.
Simien sheep are the predominant fat-tailed sheep breeds found in Northwest Ethiopia, playing a significant role in the livelihood of resource-poor farmers. This study provides the morphometric and morphological descriptions of the appendicular skeletons of Ethiopia's indigenous female Simien sheep. The reason for this work was the dearth of knowledge regarding the osteometry and morphology of appendicular skeletons in domestic animals, particularly the indigenous sheep of Ethiopia. Hence, it has been done to generate osteometrical data and investigate morphological features. Two age groups ([12-18 months] and [19-24 months]) of 10 female Simien sheep were purchased from Wogera district. Sheep with a lack of observable skeletal abnormalities, non-pregnant and lactating and in good health were purposively selected. The chemical method standard procedures were adopted for specimen preparation. Osteometrical measurements and morphological investigations were taken and summarized using descriptive statistics (mean ± SD) and independent sample t-tests. The measurement values were significantly (p < 0.05) increased with age across groups in most of the variables; however, a significant difference was not observed in scapula (breadth of the glenoid cavity), humerus, ulna, metacarpal, femur and tibia (smallest breadth of the diaphysis), metacarpal and femur (smallest circumference of the diaphysis), metatarsal measurement parameters and weight of metatarsals. The study demonstrated that the anatomy of the appendicular skeletons of Simien sheep differed slightly, both morphologically and morphometrically, from other ruminants. The findings on the osteometric and morphologic characteristics can be used as a contribution to a comparative model for other ovine breeds in general and Ethiopian sheep breeds in particular. It is therefore recommended that further work and studies should be carried out on other age groups, ecotypes and other indigenous sheep breeds, and investigation on the effect of age and sexual dimorphism should be important. It is imagined that the results obtained will be useful as baseline research data for further surgical and comparative anatomical studies.
西米恩羊是埃塞俄比亚西北部主要的肥尾羊品种，在资源匮乏的农民生计中发挥着重要作用。本研究提供了埃塞俄比亚本土雌性西米恩羊附属骨骼的形态测量和形态学描述。开展这项工作的原因是缺乏关于家畜附属骨骼，特别是埃塞俄比亚本土绵羊的骨测量学和形态学方面的知识。因此，开展此项研究以生成骨测量数据并研究形态特征。从沃杰拉地区购买了两个年龄组（[12 - 18个月]和[19 - 24个月]）的10只雌性西米恩羊。特意挑选了没有明显骨骼异常、未怀孕且未哺乳且健康状况良好的绵羊。采用化学方法标准程序进行标本制备。采用描述性统计（均值±标准差）和独立样本t检验进行骨测量和形态学研究并进行总结。在大多数变量中，测量值随年龄在各年龄组间显著增加（p < 0.05）；然而，在肩胛骨（关节盂宽度）、肱骨、尺骨、掌骨、股骨和胫骨（骨干最小宽度）、掌骨和股骨（骨干最小周长）、跖骨测量参数以及跖骨重量方面未观察到显著差异。该研究表明，西米恩羊附属骨骼在解剖学上，在形态和形态测量方面与其他反刍动物略有不同。关于骨测量和形态特征的研究结果可作为对一般其他绵羊品种，特别是埃塞俄比亚绵羊品种比较模型的贡献。因此，建议对其他年龄组、生态型和其他本土绵羊品种开展进一步的工作和研究，并且对年龄和两性异形的影响进行研究应具有重要意义。可以想象，所获得的结果将作为进一步外科手术和比较解剖学研究的基础研究数据。
