Growth Patterns and Morphometric Characteristics of Female Sakub Sheep Reared by Smallholder Farmers in Brebes Regency of Central Java, Indonesia

Abstract

The Indonesian government designated the Sakub sheep as a local breed in 2022, and it is mainly cultivated in Brebes Regency, Central Java. This study investigates the growth patterns and morphometric characteristics of Sakub sheep as a local breed in the Brebes Regency. The data were collected from 195 healthy and non-pregnant female Sakub sheep reared by smallholder farmers. The sheep were categorized into eight age groups, and various morphometric measurements were performed, followed by descriptive data analysis. The results showed that body weight (BW), chest width (CW), and chest depth (CD) experienced optimal growth until 36–48 months with average body weight and size of 47.34 kg, 21.76 cm, and 35.35 cm, respectively. The body size of heart girth (HG), body length (BL), and hip height (HH) grew optimally for 7–12 months at 80.40, 64.73, and 65.08 cm, respectively. Wither height (WH) and hip-width (HW) growth were optimal for 12–24 months at 67.27 and 15.77 cm, respectively, gradually developing into maturity. In conclusion, this study showed the rapid growth of female Sakub sheep, indicating that body weight and size (CW and CD) generally grew to maturity. In contrast, the growth pattern of body size related to BL, WH, HH, and HW showed rapid growth from birth to puberty, followed by a decline in development rate at post-puberty. The body weight of female Sakub sheep has a positive and significant correlation to all linear body sizes, but in different age categories, the correlation weakens with age.