Correlations of Subjective Fleece Traits with Production and Reproduction in Arfino Sheep
Animal breeders make many of their selection decisions based on subjective type traits. Examples of this in alpacas include leg coverage, crimp in Huacaya, lock style in Suris, face wool, bone density, size and so on.
In this article about South African sheep breeders, geneticists analyzed whether the subjective traits such as softness of face, crimp and “creeping belly” were linked to objectively measured, economically important traits. They discovered that crimp was related to fineness but that selecting against creeping belly also selected against fineness and crimp.
As alpaca breeders we need to spend more time studying the subjective traits that we rely on in our selection programs. This article, while it is about sheep, can help us understand the importance of these decisions.
Click here to read Correlations of Subjective Fleece Traits with Production and Reproduction in Arfino Sheep.
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