Estimation of (Co)Variance Components and Genetic Parameter of Withers Height, Chest Girth and Body Length of Bali Cattle Using Animal Model

Abstract

Selection criteria for performance test of yearling bulls commonly include indicators of important traits, such as withers height (WH), chest girth (CG) and body length (BL). Estimations of (co)variance component and genetic parameter of WH, CG and BL of Bali cattle are rarely reported or have not been reported. Therefore, the objective of this study was to estimate (co)variance components and genetic parameter among the indicator traits WH, CG and BL. Records for WH (n = 140), CG (n = 133), and BL (n = 130) were obtained from the Bali Breeding Center which consisted of 23 sires and 134 dams represented in the data. (Co)variance components were estimated using animal model, and average information REML was used to obtain estimates of heritability and genetic correlations. Fixed effects included sex, age, and calving season. The random effect of the animal was included to estimate additive genetic effects. Generally heritability estimates of 0.41±0.08, 0.40±0.09, and 0.39±0.08 were obtained for WH, CG and BL on the underlying scale, respectively. The genetic correlation between WH and CG (0.05) was close to zero, as were the estimated genetic correlations between WH and BL (0.05) and CG and BL (0.05). Genetic and phenotypic trends did not show improvement due to selection. However, these results suggest that concomitant selection for increased withers height, chest girth and body length would not be antagonistic.