Global Journal of Animal Scientific Research
Volume:11 Issue: 2, Spring 2023

The objective of this study was to estimate the genetic and phenotypic correlation between age at first calving and early growth traits for Holstein Frisian x Ethiopian Boran crossbred cattle in the central highland of Ethiopia. The data used for this study was sourced from records of Holetta Agricultural Research Center dairy cattle herds’ farm collected from 2000 to 2019. The genetic and phenotypic correlation values for age at first calving (AFC) and early growth traits were estimated using WOMBAT software through multivariate analysis of the animal model. The estimated direct genetic correlation between age at first calving and early growth traits ranged from a weak positive (0.11±0.33) for yearling weight (YW) to a strong positive of 0.77±0.36 for weaning weight (WW). The phenotypic correlation ranged from a moderate negative of -0.44±0.03 for AFC and YW to a weak positive correlation of 0.12±0.04 for AFC and YW. Both environmental and genetic effects could influence phenotypic correlations of the age at first calving and early growth traits. The results of the genetic correlation between early growth traits and AFC indicate that early growth traits should be given some consideration in the selection criteria of heifers. A cow with high growth performance has poor reproductive performance due to genetic antagonism between those traits. Selection could be done with caution.

The estimation of genetic and non-genetic parameters for milk production traits is an important tool for the definition and evaluation of selection programs. Results from various studies indicated that research should be intensified to identify and utilize animals with greater genetic potential. Performance traits like milk yield are considerably affected by environmental factors, which, in addition to genetic differences, are responsible for the marked variation between breeds, herds, and animals within the same breed. Some researchers reported a high value, whereas others reported a low to moderate heritability value. The contradictory results may be associated with differences in local breed, number, and composition of used animals in the estimation procedures and differences in methods and software used in genetic parameter estimation. Knowledge of genetic and phenotypic parameters is required for planning efficient breeding programs in animal husbandry. By knowledge of heritability estimates, animal geneticists can determine whether or not a particular trait can be improved by selection, by improvement of management practices, or both. Selection for yield traits has been successful and has improved the efficiency of dairy production. Genetic parameter estimation of indigenous cattle has been scanty in Ethiopia except for limited research activities that have been done in research centers, universities, and some state farms. Even though the country has more than 27 indigenous characterized breeds, only a few of them (Boran, Arsi, Fogera, and Barka) have estimated their performance for cross-breeding purposes. Since livestock is in the hands of farmers and characterized by having a small fragmented population and absence of pedigree history, performance testing, and the selection and breeding program/have not been performed over the years. Estimation of phenotypic performance and genetic parameters over time is necessary, because of changes in management, increased number of herds, and herd size, Ethiopia, imports semen from other countries.

The study was conducted to assess handling, and processing methods and evaluates the microbial quality of milk under smallholder farmers in the Gindeberet district, West Shoa Zone, Oromia regional state. To generate data a semi-structured questionnaire was prepared and administered to which total of 120 respondents, 61 from midland and 59 from lowland at least owing two milking cows. The microbial quality of milk test was done using 30 milk samples (15 from midland and 15 from lowland) collected from dairy producers. The result revealed that almost all the respondents (100%) in the study area practiced hand milking after calf suckling majorly performed by women. About 71.4% of respondents use woven grass (okolee) Utensils for milking and 58.8% for gourd for storage and 79% for churning in the study area. In a present study, about 75.8 and 85.8% of milk wash their hands and equipment with warm water respectively, pre-milking to facilitate washing and kills microorganisms. The majority of them 86.7% not practiced udder and teat washing. Lantana trifolia (Kusaayee), shirfiggii, Quncee doobbii, Olea Africana (Ejersa), Ceekaa (juniperous procera) and Gaarrii” (syzyhuim guineense) are the most commonly used for cleaning and smoking the utensils. The Average microbial count of milk in the case of total bacteria, coliform counts, yeast, and mould counts were 6.94, 5.0,3, and 4.90 log10cf/ml, respectively. TBC, TCC, and YMC significantly differed (p<0.05) between the milk producers in both Agro ecologies. This means the result from the study is 6.94±0.16 total bacterial count which is greater than the minimum Ethiopian standard of 2x106(2009). Therefore, it is concluded that the majority of milk produced in the study area is poorly handled and processed, with low attention to keeping quality of milk and milk products. These suggest that a need for enriched milk handling and processing scheme in the study area and milk producers should be trained on keeping selfhygienic, washing the udder and teats of cows, and generally keeping the quality of the milk.

This study aimed to generate organized information on physical characteristics and prediction of live weight using linear body measurements of indigenous sheep breeds in three districts of Kellem Wolega Zone (Sedi Chanka, Dale Sedi, and Hawa Gelan). The main frequently observed coat color pattern of both sex sheep was plain 63.3%, 72.1%, and 86.9% and the main frequently observed coat color type was brown 51.5%, 53.6%, and 55.4% Dale Sedi, Sedi Chanka, and Hawa Gelan districts, respectively. Straight head profiles 85.9%, 93.6%, and 94.6% were mainly observed for sheep in Dale Sedi, Sedi Chanka, and Hawa Gelan districts, respectively. All the sampled female and male sheep had no horns. The most ear form of sheep observed was semi-pendulous 85.1%, 76.7%, and 65.9% for Dale Sedi, Sedi Chanka, and Hawa Gelan districts sheep populations, respectively. The majority of sampled sheep population in Dale Sedi (52.1%) possesses cylindrical and twisted at the end, whereas Sedi Chanka (79.5%) and Hawa Gelan (74.6%) possess a cylindrical and straight tail shape. The majority of the sheep population in the studied districts had no wattle 96.2 followed by the presence of wattle 3.8%. The highest correlation between chest girth and body weight both for male and female sheep indicates that chest girth is the best variable for predicting live weight than other measurements. The overall mean of body weight, chest girth, body length, pelvic width, wither height, ear length, tail length, tail circumference, and scrotal circumference was 28.74 kg, 70.9 cm, 68.78 cm, 63.21 cm, 15.25 cm, 11.29 cm, 26.13cm, 18.92 cm, and 22.63 cm, respectively. The highest correlation between chest girth and body weight both for male and female sheep indicates that chest girth is the best variable for predicting live weight than other measurements. Consequently, this finding was put baseline for consideration of the physical characteristics of sheep and helped as a base for designing a sustainable breeding program and selection schemes in the study area.

A cross-sectional study was conducted from November 2018 to April 2019 to evaluate the occurrence of ectoparasites and associated skin diseases in ruminants in and around Bishoftu town, central Ethiopia. A total of 437 ruminants (216 cattle, 141 sheep, and 80 goats) brought to the open-air Veterinary Teaching Hospital (VTH) of the College of Veterinary Medicine, Addis Ababa University, were sampled using simple random sampling. Accordingly, the occurrence of ectoparasites and associated skin diseases was found to be 59% (258), and out of these animals, 195 (44.6%) were infected with ectoparasites, of which 111 (25.4%) were bovine, 27 (6.2%) were caprine, and 57 (13%) were ovine. The major ectoparasite species identified were Amblyomma variegatum (13%), A. gemma (0.7%), A. cohaerens (1.8%), A. nymph (3.2%), H. truncatum (2.7%), Boophilus decoloratus (6.2%), Rhipicephalus pulchellus (1.8%), R. eversi (0.7%), Damalinia ovis (3%), Linognatus vituli (5.5%), Psoroptes (0.7%), Demodex bovis (0.5%), Ctenocephalides canis (0.7%) and Ct. felis (5.03). On the other hand, the associated skin diseases infesting animals were: 63 (14.4%), lumpy skin disease (0.9%), sheep pox (5.5%), goat pox (5%), dermatophilosis (0.2%), contagious ecthyma in caprine (2.1%), and contagious ecthyma in ovine (0.7%). The findings of the present study suggest that ectoparasites and associated skin diseases in and around Bishoftu are still widespread and economically important constraints for the productivity and use of ruminants. Hence, stringent adherence to the control of ectoparasites and associated skin diseases is required as a responsibility of the concerned government body based on professional research results in the study area.

The poultry industry in Nigeria will continue to shift from subsistence farming to intensive food production that implies routine antibiotic usage. Chickens were now reaching their market weight at a much faster rate and at a lower cost. With a growing population and greater demand on farmers, antibiotics appeared to be an ideal and cost-effective way to increase the output of poultry. However, imprudent use of antibiotics in food-producing animals is associated with health risks for consumers. It has come to light that most antibiotics used in Nigeria's poultry industry are done with little or no expert consultation and some of these antibiotics are available over the counter. Rational use of antibiotics, source of procurement of antibiotics, Self-prescription, lack of information, and need for profit by poultry farmers culminates in the inappropriate use of antibiotics. To solve this, Government agencies should design policies such as surveillance, monitoring, legislation, and education. There’s a need to change the way we use and view antibiotics, particularly oxytetracycline. Individuals need to be aware that the choices they make when it comes to the use of antibiotic usage could affect the effectiveness of antibiotics in the prevention, treatment, and growth promotion. Government and poultry farmers have a role to play and the time to act is now. This review aims to discuss antibiotic usage in poultry.

Antioxidant supplementation with culture media has emerged as a most promising technique in the field of assisted reproduction technologies (ART) for producing quality mature oocytes by using oocytes derived from in vivo or ex vivo ovaries. In vitro maturation (IVM) of oocytes is the first and most critical process that requires proper bidirectional communication between the oocyte and its surrounding cumulus cells. The production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) during IVM is an invariable phenomenon that slows down communication between oocytes and cumulus cells and severely impairs oocyte developmental acquisition. Antioxidant supplementation is the best way of combating the undesirable effects of ROS produced during culture in vitro. Much research both in animal and human models explored that IVM with antioxidants either enzymatic or non-enzymatic significantly improved oocyte quality as well as subsequent embryo development. Despite, an overall favorable outcome that has been perceived, the specific mechanism of antioxidants in improving oocyte quality regimen remains unknown. Therefore, the goal of this review is to explore the need for antioxidants during culture in vitro and provide the mechanism accomplished with oocyte quality. This study will open new perspectives to understand why, antioxidants need to be included under in vitro model and may be contributed to enhance the outcome of ART.

This study was conducted to explore the challenges and opportunities of cattle milk production and marketing in the case of the Aysaita district in the Afar National Regional State. The study was undertaken in the two purposely selected rural kebeles of the Aysaita district namely Berga and Kerbuda kebeles. Agro-pastoralists from each rural kebeles were selected using the Proportional Probability to Size (PPS) approach for each rural kebeles. A total of 120 Agro-pastoralists were selected based on the number of households in each rural kebeles. To capture gender effects in the overall production system, the sampled households in each rural kebele were stratified into female and male-headed households, which guided the determination of the number of Agro-pastoralists, using the PPS (Proportional Probability to Size) approach. For the market study, one major milk market site was purposively selected namely, the Aysaita town market based on the accessibility. The overall mean market values of cattle milk and milk product sale in dry and wet seasons were fresh cow milk per litter in dry and wet seasons were 30 Birr and 40 birrs respectively. From the study, it was noted that the existing milk production systems were affected by many constraints. There are different challenges or constraints faced in cattle milk production in the study area. These include shortage of feed, inadequate access to veterinary drugs and services, access, inadequate extension service, lack of knowledge and skills, and unavailability of credit. Marketing of milk in the study area was mainly a traditional type and women traditionally do Milk marketing. Key actors involved in the milk market chain are the producer, trader, and consumer, and fresh milk is distributed through informal and formal marketing systems. The informal market involves the direct delivery of fresh milk by producers to consumers. The contribution of milk production and marketing in the study area depends on the certain supply of accompanying inputs such as feed, veterinary services, and improved milk-marketing facilities. Based on the present study, these areas need to be explored if cattle milk production is to develop into a market-oriented business operation.

The economy of livestock production largely depends upon the reproductive efficiency of the animals. This review was conducted to review and generate compiled information about the reproductive traits of crossbred cattle such as age at first service (AFS), age at first calving (AFC), calving interval (CI), days open (DO), and number of services per conception (NSPC) under Ethiopian conditions. All published materials are cited to provide some information on the values of reproductive traits of crossbred dairy cattle. It is concluded that improving the management system such as efficient heat detection and timely insemination, better health management, genetic improvement of crossbreeding, and supplementing of good quality feed resources are required for optimal reproduction performance.

Raising livestock is a significant economic and cultural activity in Ethiopia. Animals are raised for a variety of agricultural products, including milk, meat, eggs, wool, and traction power, but because of their low productivity, livestock owners are unable to meet both their own needs and the demand for animal products from consumers, which adds to food scarcity and insecurity. Therefore, to meet the need for additional animal products, animal production must be improved more so than livestock production. Production systems are struggling with the importance of livestock production to economic progress. Therefore, intensification and modification of several naturally occurring reproductive processes for the advantage of livestock owners and customers have become crucial issues. Despite significant limitations, the use of biotechnologies like estrus synchronization, artificial insemination, and embryo transfer can improve animal productivity and production by resolving issues with conventional and inefficient production techniques.