Breed Testing

Breed Testing

 

the biological, zootechnical, and economic comparative evaluation of breeds for a specified time under the same natural and economic conditions; testing takes place in the actual region where the animal is bred.

Breed testing is essential for scientific substantiation of regionalization of breeds, which is being implemented in many countries. Breeds being bred and designated for breeding in a given zone are tested. Animals of the same age that have produced progeny in the same season are evaluated. The principal requirement for breed testing is that diet and maintenance conditions for all animals be the same, thereby permitting the advantages of a particular breed to be attributed to breed characteristics.

The animals are evaluated for rate of maturation, survival rate of progeny, quantity and quality of output, payback on feed, and suitability to progressive feeding and maintenance technology at large, highly mechanized stock-raising farms. The first results are received in two to four years (depending on the animal species). Longer observation, involving the study of two or three generations, is required to determine such characteristics as resistance to diseases, length of economic use, and acclimitization in new conditions.

S. A. RUZSKII