Effect of systematic factors on gestation length in Simmental cows
2010
Petrović, M.D., Faculty of Agronomy, Čačak (Serbia) | Bogdanović, V., Faculty of Agriculture, Belgrade - Zemun (Serbia) | Bogosavljević-Bošković, S., Faculty of Agronomy, Čačak (Serbia) | Đoković, R., Faculty of Agronomy, Čačak (Serbia)
The effect of systematic environmental factors on gestation length in Simmental cows was evaluated by calculating the least squares mean (LSM) and its error, by analysis of variance and by calculating the coefficient of determination. The study involved Simmental cows reared at three locations. The analysis included gestation length in Simmental cows as affected by continuous systematic factors (age at first conception), and discontinuous factors such as farm, calving season, birth season, parity group, calf sex, type of birth and the interaction of these factors. The effect of age at first conception was statistically significant (P is less than 0.05). The discontinuous factors had a very high significant (P is less than 0.001) effect on gestation length. The coefficient of determination was as low as 0.086 (8.6%), undoubtedly suggesting the small effect of the non-genetic factors on gestation length, given the fact the trait is biologically determined and that it shows low variability.
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