Abstract
This study was carried out at the Research Farm of Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi, Nigeria (October, 2003 – May, 2006) to investigate the effects of some factors (breed, stage of gestation, body condition score and stage of lactation) on udder and teat traits with their relationships with partial daily milk yield (PDM) in goats. The goat breeds studied were Red Sokoto, Sahel and West African Dwarf. The traits studied included udder circumference (UC), udder length (UL), teat length (TL), teat height to ground (THG) and teat circumference (TC). The results showed that during pregnancy these traits were significantly (P
Highlights
In Nigeria, the indigenous goats belong to three distinct breeds
The hardy, short-legged West African Dwarf restricted to high altitude areas and humid forest of the south, the relatively small-sized Red Sokoto found in the savannah zone and the long-legged Sahel found in the arid and sahel regions (Adu et al, 1979)
Breed x gestation interaction had significant effect on Udder length (UL), udder circumference (UC), teat circumference (TC) and teat length (TL), whereas THG was not influenced by the interaction effect
Summary
In Nigeria, the indigenous goats belong to three distinct breeds. The hardy, short-legged West African Dwarf restricted to high altitude areas and humid forest of the south, the relatively small-sized Red Sokoto found in the savannah zone and the long-legged Sahel found in the arid and sahel regions (Adu et al, 1979). Goats in the country ranked second, followed by cattle, sheep, swine and rabbits, in population among domesticated animal species after chicken (FAO, 2006). A report shows that the savannah area alone has more than 60 % of the total goat population of Nigeria (Adalemo and Baba, 1993). This area is the ecological niche of the Red Sokoto goats, the most predominate and widely distributed goat breed in Nigeria. This study was designed to evaluate the performance of the three Nigerian breeds of goat with respect to the relationships of udder and teat traits with partial daily milk yield in Bauchi, a part of the sudan savannah ecological zone of Nigeria
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