UN SDG
Livestock Studies
2012, Vol 52, Num, 1 (Pages: 001-010)
Reproductive Traits, Growth and Survival Rates of Akkaraman, Awassi and Kıvırcık Sheep Breeds in Ankara Conditions
2 Ankara Üniversitesi Veteriner Fakültesi Zootekni Anabilim Dalı, ANKARA
3 Ankara Üniversitesi Veteriner Fakültesi Eğitim Uygulama ve Araştırma Çiftliği ANKARA - The current study was carried out to investigate the reproduction, survival rate and growth characteristics of Akkaraman, Awassi and Kıvırcık sheep breeds in Ankara, in central Anatolia, conditions. Akkaraman sheep breed is reared in central Anatolia while Awassi and Kıvırcık sheep breeds are reared at southeastern and western regions of Turkey, respectively. In the study, 42 Akkaraman, 28 Awasssi and 25 Kıvırcık ewes and those of lambs were used as animal material. The means of fertility results of Akkaraman, Awassi and Kıvırcık ewes were determined to be 85.71, 85.72 and 80.00 % for birth rates; 1.19, 1.13 and 1.10 for litter size, respectively. The survival rates of Akkaraman, Awassi and Kıvırcık lambs at weaning (90th days) 97.67, 88.89 and 90.91%, respectively. The least squares means obtained for Akkaraman, Awassi and Kivircik lambs were 4.50, 4.40 and 4.34 kg (P>0.05) for birth weight; 25.85, 25.19 and 23.79 kg (P>0.05) for weaning weight; 37.88, 36.65 and 33.86 kg (P<0.01) for 180-day weight, respectively. The result of the study showed that reproduction traits and survival rate were similar among breeds while growth performance of Akkaraman and Awassi lambs was better than Kivircik lambs in Ankara, in Central Anatolia, conditions. Keywords : Ankara conditions, Akkaraman, Awassi, Kıvırcık, Sheep, Production traits, Adaptability
