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AUTHOR(S):

Chnoor M. Karym, Abdulrazzaq A. Al-Rawi, Goran M. Karim

 

TITLE

Performance of Karadi Lambs Screened from Elite Flocks

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KEYWORDS

Sheep, Screening young lambs, Performance test, Karadi sheep

ABSTRACT

Karadi sheep in Kurdistan, Iraq provide sustainable organic commodities. Productivity of Karadi is rather low and cause low efficiency of meat production. The objective of this work was to develop breeding strategies for improving productivity of Karadi sheep. Performance test was carried out on 32 young Karadi lambs. The Karadi lambs were screened, selected and purchased from commercial sheep flocks from four different geographical-ecological zones (Sharazoor, Halabja, Sharbazher, and Penjween) in Sulaimani governorate. Eight lambs from each of the 4 ecological zones were randomly assigned to 2 feeding treatments (concentrate diet vs. whole barley grain). Body weights and dimensions were monthly recorded. Overall mean of the body weight at 9-month old was 38.0±1.5 kg. Overall means of body length, height at withe, chest depth, heart girth and chest widths at 9-month old were 68.6±0, 64.9±0.6, 30.1±0.3, 86.2±1.1, 17.1±0.2 cm, respectively. Geographic locations had a significant effect on body weights along performance testing period. One of the reasons for such differences may be due to genetic make-up variation among lambs of the different geographic locations. This may confirm the possibility of screening high genetic make-up young lambs as a tool for selection for genetic improvement of Karadi sheep for meat production. It was concluded that implementation of screening young lambs and performance testing project for improvement of productivity of Karadi sheep can be adopted successfully.

Cite this paper

Chnoor M. Karym, Abdulrazzaq A. Al-Rawi, Goran M. Karim. (2016) Performance of Karadi Lambs Screened from Elite Flocks. Food and Nutrition Science - An International Journal, 1, 1-5