Gorsi Salman Khalid, Manzoor Hamza, Shahid Muhammad Qamer
Department of Livestock Management, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Lahore 54000, Pakistan.
Department of Theriogenology, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Lahore 54000, Pakistan.
Animals (Basel). 2025 Jul 31;15(15):2255. doi: 10.3390/ani15152255.
This study investigated the association between temperament and retrospective growth rates in 84 Nili Ravi buffalo heifers aged 18 to 24 months. Temperament was assessed using chute score and exit velocity, measured twice at a seven-day interval, and classified as calm (≤3) or nervous (>3). Retrospective average daily weight gain data were retrieved from farm records, and blood samples were collected to measure cortisol levels. ANOVA was used to analyze data, considering temperament, age group, season, and year of birth as fixed effects, with birth weight as a covariate. Results showed that 48 heifers were calm and 36 were nervous. Calm heifers exhibited significantly higher average daily gains than nervous heifers during the post-weaning period, with an increase of 240 g/day from 4 to 6 months and 190 g/day from 6 to 12 months ( < 0.001). However, this difference was not significant at 18-24 months ( = 0.144). Calm heifers have numerically lower cortisol levels (0.96 vs. 1.27 μg/dL; = 0.11). These findings suggest that calmer heifers grow faster in early life, emphasizing the importance of temperament in breeding programs aimed at improving growth performance and welfare.
本研究调查了84头18至24月龄的尼里-拉菲水牛小母牛的气质与回顾性生长率之间的关联。使用通道评分和出栏速度评估气质，每隔7天测量两次，并分为平静型（≤3）或神经质型（>3）。从农场记录中获取回顾性平均日增重数据，并采集血样以测量皮质醇水平。使用方差分析来分析数据，将气质、年龄组、季节和出生年份视为固定效应，将出生体重作为协变量。结果显示，48头小母牛为平静型，36头为神经质型。在断奶后期间，平静型小母牛的平均日增重显著高于神经质型小母牛，4至6个月时每天增加240克，6至12个月时每天增加190克（<0.001）。然而，在18 - 24个月时这种差异不显著（=0.144）。平静型小母牛的皮质醇水平在数值上较低（0.96对1.27μg/dL；=0.11）。这些发现表明，较平静的小母牛在生命早期生长更快，强调了气质在旨在提高生长性能和福利的育种计划中的重要性。
