Growth and development of young sheep of Edilbaev breed under the conditions of farm in the Republic of Kazakhstan

Abstract

The features of growth and development of young animals of Edilbaev breed obtained from sheep bred under the production conditions of the farm “Birzhanov” in the Auliekolsky area in the Kostanay region of the Republic of Kazakhstan have been studied in the paper. In a comparative aspect the live weight was studied, the conformation features of the young sheep of Kazakh fat-tailed rough-haired and Edilbaev breeds were determined. Two groups of sheep were formed for the research: a control group (Kazakh fat-tailed rough-haired breed) and an experimental (Edilbaev breed) with 15 heads in each group. Studies have shown that with the same housing and feeding of animals of diff erent breeds, the gain in live weight was diff erent. The largest absolute gain in live weight was shown by young rams and young ewes of Edilbaev breed 11,3 and 10,0 kg, while young rams and young ewes of Kazakh fat-tailed rough-haired breed only 10,3 and 8,8 kg. The highest growth rate in sheep of the experimental groups was observed until the age of one month. In other age periods the growth rate was signifi cantly infl uenced by feeding conditions, however, in general, the growth rate of young animals was high. When studying the conformation features of the experimental young sheep, it was found that with age the conformation of the lambs of the experimental group changed in the same way as in the control group, however, high indices of blockness and massiveness allow us to state that the lambs of the experimental group have well-developed meat forms. Studies have shown that there is a significant difference in the experimental young animals of the compared groups in terms of live weight, body measurements and conformation indices in favor of sheep of Edilbaev breed.