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PSIV-1 Distribution of kidding dates as an indicator of buck-induced estrus in cycling meat goat does.

Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: Meat goat operations could benefit from the ability to effectively shorten breeding seasons and in turn shorten kidding seasons to enhance herd management. Buck-induced estrus could facilitate a reduction of time required to maintain service sires in the doe herd. The use of bucks to induce estrus has traditionally been applied to does in seasonal anestrus. During a normal short-day breeding season in the absence of the buck effect, 5% of does within a herd are expected, on average, to come in to heat daily. This study looked at the relationship between expected and observed kidding dates within the first 7 and 10 days of the kidding season. The start of each kidding season was determined based on the date that service sires were placed with the does and using a 150-day gestation length. Over a period of 14 years (2011-2024), the kidding records used in this study were from Boer- and Savanna- (BV; n = 245), Kiko- (K; n = 547), Myotonic- (M; n = 238), and Spanish-sired does (S; n = 487). Each year, does were bred in October or December for kidding in March (n = 960 kidding records) or May (n = 557 kidding records). Chi-square tests were used to compare the actual and expected proportion of does that kidded within the first 7 or 10 days of the start of each kidding season. Kidding records of does that kidded beyond 26 days of the start of the kidding season were excluded from the dataset. A higher (p < 0.01) proportion of does kidded during the first 7 days of the kidding season than expected within each of the doe breed groups (BV: 59.6 vs. 33.5%; M: 53.4 vs. 32.8%; K: 56.5 vs. 32.9%; S: 47.6 vs. 32.9%). A greater (p < 0.01) than expect proportion of does kidded in the first 7 days of the March (58.4 vs. 33.0%) and May (45.4 vs. 33.0%) kidding seasons. The proportion of does that kidded during the first 10 days of the kidding season was also higher (p < 0.01) than expected within each of the doe breed groups (BV: 76.7 vs. 49.8%; M: 68.9 vs. 50.0%; K: 70.2 vs. 49.9%; S: 66.9 vs. 49.9%). Likewise, a higher (p < 0.01) than expected percentage of does kidded in the first 10 days of the March (75.8 vs. 50.0%) and May (60.0 vs. 49.9%) kidding seasons. Preliminary results suggest that a buck effect increased the proportion of does kidding early. The buck effect may allow for shortening the breeding season and reducing the age disparity within a kid crop. Further research on buck-induced estrus in does cycling during the normal breeding season seems warranted.
DOI: 10.1093/jas/skaf300.505
Language: English
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W4414830797
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