Correlation between body measurements of gazella marica fawns after weaning and estimating body weight from these measurements

Abstract

This study aims to find out for the first time the change in body measurements of gazelle fawns from birth to weaning and the estimation of live weight based on body measurements (BW, BL, CC, CD, AC, SH) of a total of 42 fawns, 17 female and 25 male, taken after birth, and a total of 30 fawns, 15 female and 15 male, were taken after weaning. Weighings were made with electronic scales. Measurements were made with a 150 cm strip measure. At the end of the 165-day suckling period, female fawns gained an average live weight of 8.07 kg and male fawns gained an average live weight of 9.17 kg. There is no statistical difference between the measurements at birth and the body measurements after weaning depending on gender (P>0.05). In general, the highest correlation (0.910) according to body measurements is between chest circumference and body weight (P<0.01). In male fawns, body weight can be predicted by chest circumference at a rate of 89% (P<0.01). In female fawns body weight can be predicted by shoulder height and chest circumference at rate of 79% (P<0.01). By selecting breeding individuals based on the high correlations and prediction values investigated in this study we can ensure faster genetic progress in a gazelle herd.