Biological indicators of simmental cows



In the article the author comparatively studied the exterior indicators of Simmental cows for three lactation periods.

Keywords : simmental breed, exterior, lactation period.

Dairy cows bred on the farm should have higher milk production rates, and their physique, that is, according to exterior indicators, should correspond to animals that give such large milk yields. This is due to the fact that if the physical structure of cows of high productivity does not meet the standard, when they are tested, their classes may go down, and these cows may be rated in a lower class [1,2].

In this regard, studies were carried out on the Simmental cows of the Kalikhanuly farm located in the Beskaragai district of the Abay district. The main objective of the research work is the selection of dairy cows of this herd into the main herd, sorting animals according to breed standards, and obtaining more milk from them during the milking period. In this regard, the exterior indicators of dairy cows of the Simmental dairy breed of the studied farm during lactation periods due to «blood flow» can be seen in the following Table 1.

Table 1

Exterior indicators of Simmental cows during the milking period

Imdicaters, см	Purebred Simmental cows	Simmental cows with Holstein blood.
1 lactation period, 25 heads
Withers height	124±0,8	127±0,6
Oblique torso length	149±0,6	152±0,8
chest girth	193±0,7	191±0,5
chest depth	68,1±0,3	67,5±0,4
chest width	41,7±0,8	41,1±0,5
width of buttocks in hook bone	48,2±0,2	48,6±0,3
Pastern circumference	18,9±0,3	18,2±0,2
live weight, kg	505	480
2 lactation period, 25 heads
Withers height	129±0,6	131,5±0,4
Oblique torso length	151±1,6	154±2,5
chest girth	195,6±3,2	194,1±3,8
chest depth	69,2±0,8	68,8±1,4
chest width	42,8±0,2	42,5±0,7
width of buttocks in hook bone	49,8±0,5	50±0,8
Pastern circumference	19±0,1	18,8±0,2
live weight, kg	524	502
3 lactation period, 25 heads
Withers height	132,2±0,5	133±0,3
Oblique torso length	153,2±0,8	154,8±0,7
chest girth	196,7±3,4	196,5±1,1
chest depth	70,8±0,7	69,6±0,8
chest width	43,6±0,6	43,2±0,7
width of buttocks in hook bone	50,3±0,6	50,7±0,3
Pastern circumference	19,1±0,1	19±0,2
live weight, kg	540	526

If you look at the data from Table 1 on exterior indicators in the first, second, and early lactation periods of dairy cows of the Simmental breed in the studied farm, purebred Simmental cows are lower than the average by 3 cm or 2.5 % in the first milking period than cows with the blood of the Holstein breed, then in the second and third periods, milking was lower by 2.6 cm or 1.9 % and 0.7 cm or 0.4 %, respectively.

According to the oblique length of the trunk, Simmental cows with Holstein blood are on average 3.2 cm or 1.7 % higher than their peers in the first and second milking periods and 1.6 cm or 1 % in the third lactation period.

It can be seen that in purebred Simmental cows, chest girths were 1.8 cm higher than the peers in the first lactation period, and by the third milking period they were equal to 0.3 cm.

From the data of this table, it can be seen that in dairy cows of the Simmental breed, the indicators of the shin girth during the milking season after the renewal of blood, on average, range from 0.2 cm to 0.4 cm.

In terms of live weight, Simmental dairy cows on the farm were on average 36 kg or 7 % more in the first lactation period than their peers with Holstein blood, and in the second and third milking periods, it can be seen that it increases by 29 kg or 4.6 % and 37 kg or 5.4 %. respectively. Therefore, it is clearly seen that as the proportion of blood in Holstein cattle increases, the live weight of the animal decreases, and the shape of the body becomes longer. Given this, it should be noted that these are characteristic features of the productivity of dairy cattle.

This can be seen in the different conformation profiles during the first milking season shown in Figure 1 below.

Fig. 1. Profile of the exterior of Simmental cows in the first milking season

In the given Fig. 1, Simmental dairy cows bred in an experimental farm showed signs of purebred Simmental cows and peers with Holstein blood according to exterior profiles in the first milking season due to blood renewal.

One of the most important indicators in the evaluation of dairy cattle is the udder. For its full accounting, the indicators of measuring the udder of dairy cows were obtained (Table 2). Table 2 shows that according to the results of the control during the first milking season for breeding Simmental dairy cows, the udder volume of purebred Simmental cows is 6.1 cm or 5.3 % lower than their peers with Holstein blood.

Table 2

Indicators of udder sizes for the first milking season of cows of the Simmental breed

Sizes, cm		Purebred Simmental cows	Simmental cows with Holstein blood
Udder’s	girth	115,2±1,74	122,3±1,77
	length	26,4±0,80	29,6±0,64
	width	19,7±0,29	22,4±0,30
The depth of the udder section	front	24,3±0,48	26,2±0,25
	back	25,8±0,65	27,7±0,85
Chest Length	front	6,4±0,41	6,9±0,26
	back	5,2±0,54	1,5±0,21
Distance between nipples	front	11,2±0,09	12,2±0,08
	back	6,7±0,14	6,6±0,09
	Front and back	8,3±0,09	8,5±0,11

In conclusion, we can say that when breeding dairy cows by hybridization, compared to purebred breeding, the external indicators of the Simmental breed have improved significantly, which, accordingly, has a positive effect on productivity. In general, the cows that we have taken into practice fully meet the breed standard in terms of exterior indicators.

References:

1. Tajiev K. P. Improvement of productive and technological qualities of Simmental cattle of Kazakhstan: textbook.- Almaty, 2017. — 208 p.
2. Samusenko L. D., Mamaev A. V. Practical training in cattle breeding: textbook /. — St. Petersburg: Lan, 2013. — 240 p.