AGE BASED CLASSIFICATION OF MORPHOMETRIC TRAITS OF DIFFERENT NIGERIA GOAT BREEDS

Résumé

A total of nine hundred (900) goats comprising of three hundred Sahel goats from Borno state, three hundred Red Sokoto goats from Sokoto state and three hundred West African Dwarf goats from Ogun state were used for the study. Each breed consisted of three hundred goats each, made up of fifty males and fifty females distributed in the following age groups <1, 1-2 and 2-3 years. These were evaluated for morphometric characteristics. The pairs of permanent incisors in the dentition of the goat were used to determine age. The effects of age, breed, and sex on linear measurement were estimated using the GLM procedure of the statistics analysis software package. These were computed on the basis of interaction with age groups. Means were separated within age groups using Duncan multiple range test. The result of this study indicated that the Sahelian breed was superior to other breeds across all age groups in body weight, while the red Sokoto was intermediate followed by the West African Dwarf.