Calving ease (CE) is a trait of economic importance that affects animal welfare and
farm profitability. The objective of present study was to investigate genetic and environmental factors affecting CE among Primiparous (PP) and multiparous (MP) buffaloes. A total of 9,627 records from 1999 MP and 2,110 PP recorded during the period
from 1988 to 2018 were considered. Herd, season of calving, year of calving, birth
weight, parity order and gestation length significantly affected CE rate, while age at
first calving and sex of calf had no significant effects. Direct and maternal heritabilities of CE in PP and MP were 0.06 and 0.01, respectively. The low heritability of CE
indicated that direct selection may not be an effective method to improve CE trait in
Egyptian buffalo. |
