Studies on morphometrical traits of Boran bulls reared on two feedlots in Southern Ethiopia

Assessment of indigenous Shaka cattle structural indices reared in Shaka zone, south west Ethiopia

“…If appropriately maintained, cows with a higher BL have a greater potential as meat animals ( Lawrence and Pearce, 1964 ). Cows with a higher BL generally require more up keep ( Mwambene et al., 2012 ; Banerjee et al., 2014 ). These cows can also be used as surrogates since they generally have enough area for the calves to grow ( Karume, 2013 ).…”

“…Measurement preferably taken with a sliding ruler. Hock circumference Measured as the circumference of the hock bone Pelvic width The horizontal distance (cm) between the extreme lateral points of the hook bone (tuber coxae) of the pelvis Cannon bone circumference The circumference (cm) of the cannon bone of the foreleg of the animal Width of fore head The point between the two polls (cm) Neck length The length between the atlas vertebrae and the first thoracic vertebrae (cm) Neck circumference Circumference of the neck at its widest point (cm) Body weight The weight of the animals using chest girth meter (tape meter) measurement (Kg) Source: FAO (2012) ; Banerjee et al. (2014) .…”

“… Type of index Calculation Height index Height at withers/body length × 100 Rump length index Length of rump/body length × 100 Over increase index Height at rump/height at withersX100 Height slope Rump height–withers height Length index (1) Body length/height at withers Width slope Hip width–chest width Body weight index Body weight/height at withers × 100 Length index (2) body length/chest (thorax) depth Balance: (hip width x rump length)/(chest depth x chest width) Depth index: chest depth/withers height Foreleg length: withers height - chest depth Body index a Body length ∗100/chest girth Body ratio e Height at withers/Height at rump. Transverse pelvic e Pelvic width ∗100/height at rump Weight e HG c ∗80 Source: Alderson (1999) ; Banerjee et al. (2014) .…”

Structural Traits, Structural Indices and Body Weight Prediction of Arsi Cows

“…Knowing body weight of animals is important for management decisions such as breeding, culling, feeding and determination of selling prices [4] . However, many farmers in developing countries grade their livestock using informal methods of quality estimation such as feeling the loin area or by visual estimation alone [5,6] because of lack of weighing scales and, if available, the weighing scales are mostly inaccurate due to lack of maintenance and calibration. Under such conditions, the livestock keepers are usually unable to receive a fair price for their livestock.…”

“…Consequently, assessment of structural indices is useful as a measure to select young animals for breeding purpose and predict mature rating. They provide a more realistic indicator for which a particular livestock breed was created and therefore provide a directional approach for further improvement of the same [5] .…”