Herd dynamics, phenotypic characteristics of indigenous beef cattle breeds (Bos indicus) in Gokwe North

Abstract

The objective of this study was to evaluate the population dynamics and phenotypic parameters of indigenous beef breeds as well as constraints affecting their conservation in Gokwe North, Zimbabwe. A multi-stage sampling procedure was used to identify participants from three wards (13, 15 and 36), which were randomly selected from five villages (Rusere, Zvichemo, Matendere, Kwashira and Chigova). Purposive sampling was employed to select 155 (60% male and 40% female) households practising beef production. The generalised linear model procedure of SAS (2010) was used to investigate the phenotypic parameters. Results showed that Mashona (60%) was the dominant breed, followed by Tuli (14%), Afrikaner (18%) and their crosses (4%). The average herd sizes were 7.8 ± 0.96, 7.3 ± 0.96 4.8 ± 0.71 for wards 36, 13 and 15, respectively. Lack of grazing, lack of drinking water, low fertility and diseases were the major (P < 0.05) constraints limiting production. Tuli animals had higher (P < 0.05) values of 147.3 ± 0.38, 489.1 ± 0.46, 169.3 ± 0.37, 135.6 ± 0.72 and 35.7 ± 0.28 for body length (BL), body weight (BW), heart girth (HG), height at withers (HW) and shank circumference (SC), respectively. Mature cows weighed up to 301, 322 and 342 kg, whereas the bulls weighed up to 413, 525 and 630 kg for Mashona, Africander and Tuli, respectively. It can be concluded that phenotypic characteristics of indigenous beef breeds vary widely and there is evidence of genetic purity indicated by a lack of variation among wards. It is recommended that breeding programmes target the improvement of maternal traits to suit climatic conditions.