Genetic parameters and trends in production and reproduction traits at the Kenya Sahiwal Stud

Abstract

Estimates genetic parameters and trends in reproductive and productive traits of Sahiwal cattle - milk yield, birth weight of calves, service period, number of services per conception and calving interval, from records covering the period 1964 through 1988 obtained from the Kenya Sahiwal Stud, Naivasha, with a view to examining the appropriateness of the assumed parameters; analyses trends in genetic and environmental components of performance; estimates levels of inbreeding and quantifies its effects on performance in order to identify which of these factors is responsible for the decline in performance at the stud.