PHENOTYPIC VARIATIONS IN BIRTH AND BODY WEIGHT OF THE LOCAL SHEEP AT EARLIER AGE

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the phenotypic variations in birth and body weights at various ages of local sheep, total of 37 heads, born as singletons n =13, twins n = 19, triplets n =5. The lambs were reared at two locations Purwakarta and Jatinangor under extensive feeding system and grazing. All animals were weighed monthly till six months of age by hang scale (kg). Data analyzed by SAS (version 9.0). Means ± SE for the birth and body weights were performed. Analysis of variance GLM was done to examine the effects of sex, type of birth and location on the measured variables. Results shown that birth weight ranged between 1.50 to 3.50 kg, the overall means of the type of birth are: single, twins and triplets were 2.69±0.12, 2.24±0.11 and 1.96±0.20 respectively, male weight were 2.355±0.122, females were 2.220±0.126, also birth weight at Purwakarta is of 2.218±0.106 and Jatinangor is of 2.447±0.156. Males heavier than females but there are no significant differences among locations, sex, and interaction between them, however; the type of birth was significantly affected by birth weight. The logistic growth model is given highest correlation (R = 0.98) for the body weight–age relationship of local asheep and the inflexion point of growth was happening at the first month of age.