Effect of Non-Genetic Factors on Production Traits in Gir Cattle

The data on production performance of Gir maintained at “Shree Nashik Panchavati Panjarpole, Nashik (M.S) were utilized for present study. The least squares means of total lactational milk yield (kg), lactation length (days), dry period (days) and peak milk yield (kg) were estimated by considering the effects of period of calving, season of calving and lactation order as non-genetic factors. The overall least squares mean for total lactational milk yield, lactation length, dry period and PMY in Gir cattle were 1887.38 ± 16.68 kg, 266.14 ± 1.38 days, 108.15 ± 1.25 days and 9.14 ± 0.12 kg, respectively. The effect of period of calving was significant on all traits TLMY, LL, DP, PMY; the effect of season of calving was significant on TLMY, LL and DP, while it was non-significant on trait PMY; the effect of order of lactation was significant on traits LL, PMY and DP while it was non-significant on trait TLMY.9.

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TLMY: P₁ vs P₂ vs P₃Close ×

Replotted from Table 1 (page 3) of the original paper. Every bar is the paper's own table value.

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TLMY: S1 vs S2 vs S3Close ×

Replotted from Table 1 (page 3) of the original paper. Every bar is the paper's own table value.

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Introduction

India ranks first globally in cattle population, where rearing practices primarily aim to fulfill two essential functions milk production and draught power. Economic limitations often compel farmers to maintain cattle capable of serving both purposes, providing milk as well as labour. Although a majority of native breeds are primarily used for draught purposes, breeds such as Gir, Red Sindhi, and Sahiwal are widely recognized for their exceptional milk-producing ability. The efficiency of indigenous dairy herds is governed by both productive and reproductive performance, which are affected by genetic potential along with environmental influences such as management practices, nutrition, and seasonal variations. Among these, Gir cattle hold a distinguished position as one of India's finest dairy breeds, native to the Gir forests and hilly regions of Saurashtra in Gujarat, with their distribution extending into adjoining areas of Maharashtra and Rajasthan. Locally, the breed is referred to by several names, including Bhodali, Desan, Gujarati, Kathiawari, and Sorthi. Gir cattle are easily identifiable by their characteristic convex forehead, long drooping ears, and smooth, glossy skin. In the Indian context, milk yield remains the key criterion for assessing breed suitability, and evaluation is based on attributes such as lactation duration, peak yield, and total lactation milk yield, which collectively indicate the animal's adaptability and productive potential under prevailing environmental and management conditions.

Materials and Methods

The data of Gir cows maintained at "Shree Nashik Panchavati Panjarpole" for a period from 2018 to 2024 (7 years) were collected for present investigation for following Traits: a) Productive traits: 1) Total lactation milk yield (kg) 2) Lactation length (days) 3) Dry period (days) 4) Peak milk yield (kg). To examine the production traits, the research data were classified into 3 periods of calving viz. P1 (2018-2019), P2(2020-2021), P3 (2022-2024); 3 seasons of calving, viz. S1 (Rainy) June-September, S2 (Winter) October-January and S3 (Summer) February-May; 7 order of lactation viz. L1 first lactation, L2 second lactation, L3 third lactation, L4 fourth lactation, L5 fifth lactation, L6 sixth lactation and L7 seventh lactation. The effects of non-genetic factors like period of calving, season of calving and parity were estimated by using least-square analysis as suggested by Harvey (1990) [6] .

The model was used with the assumption that different components being fitted into the model were as linear, independent and additive. The model used was as follows:

Model І

Model І

Yijkl = μ+ Si + Pj + Lk + eijkl

Where, Yijkl: Observation of l th parameters for i th season of calving, j th period of calving & k th lactation order µ: Overall mean Si: Effect of i th season of calving (i=1, 2, 3) Pj: Effect of j th period of calving (j=1, 2, 3) Lk: Effect of k th lactation order (k=1, 2, 3, 7)

Duncan's Multiple Range Test (DMRT)

Duncan's Multiple Range Test as modified by Kramer (1957) [12] was used to make pair wise comparison among the least square means with the use of inverse elements and root mean squares for error If the value:

>𝝈 2 e, Z(P, ne)

Where, Yi -Yj: Difference between two least squares means Cii: Corresponding i th diagonal elements of C matrix Cjj: Corresponding j th diagonal elements of C matrix Z (P, ne): Standardized range value in Duncan's table at the chosen level of probability for the error degrees of freedom P: Number of means involved in the comparison 𝜎 2 e: Root mean squares for error

Results and Discussion Overall least-squares means of production traits

The production traits of Gir cattle are shown in Table 1. The overall least-squares means for production traits were 1887.38 ± 16.68 kg for Total Lactational milk yield (TLMY), 266.14  1.38 days for Lactation length (LL), 9.14 ± 0.12 kg for peak milk yield (PMY) and 108.15  1.25 days for Dry period (DP), respectively. The findings for TLMY are in close agreement with Javed et al. (2000) [9] in Sahiwal (1779.04 ± 18.17 kg). Similar results were observed by Bairwa et al. (2022) [1] in Gir (273.83  5.01 days) for lactation length. Close agreement to the value reported by Krishna et al. (1991) [13] in HF x Deoni (10.48 ± 0.22 kg) and Chigale et al. (2016) [2] in Red Sindhi (9.13 ± 0.18 kg) for PMY. The result of present findings were in close agreement for DP reported by Jadhav (2011) [7] in Phule Triveni (100.84 ± 3.78 days) and Tawadar et al. (2021) [21] in Red Sindhi cattle.

Effect	N	TLMY	LL	DP	PMY
µ	199	1887.38 ± 16.68	266.14  1.38	108.15  1.25	9.14 ± 0.12
Period of Calving
P₁	30	1968.22 ±35.18a	283.19  2.92a	93.34 ± 2.64c	9.74  0.25a
P₂	58	1918.65 ± 24.15b	267.96  2.00b	106.93 ± 1.81b	9.37  0.17b
P₃	111	1775.26 ± 15.35c	247.27  1.27c	124.18 ± 1.15a	8.31  0.11c
Season of Calving
S1	49	1768.21 ± 26.03c	265.56 ± 1.60ab	108.60 ± 1.96ab	9.13  0.18
S2	88	1990.02 ± 19.31a	278.36  1.60a	98.98 ± 1.45b	9.18  0.13
S3	62	1903.90 ± 23.50ab	254.49 ± 1.95b	116.87 ± 1.77a	9.10  0.17
Lactation Order
L1	42	1877.74 ± 23.69	271.65  1.96a	101.79  1.78b	9.20  0.20ab
L2	41	1879.65 ± 23.83	269.70  1.97a	104.67  1.79ab	9.49  0.17ab
L3	38	1887.53 ± 27.87	271.61  2.31a	104.28  2.09ab	9.57  0.17a
L4	29	1867.06 ± 30.05	262.48  2.56ab	111.12  2.32ab	9.16  0.22ab
L5	24	1940.51 ± 36.05	269.84  2.99a	105.98  2.71ab	9.35  0.26ab
L6	17	1919.91 ± 41.81	267.23  3.47ab	107.93  3.14ab	9.16  0.30ab
L7	08	1839.24 ± 57.13	250.44  4.74b	121.28  4.30a	8.03  0.41b

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Table 1Close ×

Least Square means of TLMY, LL, DP and PMY in Gir Cattle

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The influence of period of calving on total lactational milk yield was significant. These results were in agreement with the results by Kulkarni (2001) [14] in Red Sindhi cattle, Patond (2013) [18] in Gir triple cross cows and Jadhav et al. (2019) [8] in HF × Gir halfbreds. In Gir, the total lactational milk yield (kg) of cattle calved during period P1 (1968.22 ±35.18 kg) was substantially higher than those cows calved during P2 (1918.65 ± 24.15 kg) and P3 (1775.26 ± 15.35 kg).

The influence of season of calving on lactational milk yield was highly significant in Gir cow. These results were in agreement with Khade (2001) [11] in Gir crossbred cows, Nanavati and Singh (2004) [16] in Gir cattle, Garudkar (2011) [3] in Phule Triveni, Patond (2009) [17] in Jersey cattle. In the present study, total lactational milk yield was detected highest when cows calved during winter season S2 (1990.02 ± 19.31 kg) than those who calved during rainy season S1 (1768.21 ± 26.03 kg) and summer season S3 (1903.90 ± 23.50 kg). The variation due to lactation order in total lactational milk yield (kg) was non-significant in Gir cattle. Similar effects were reported by Radhika et al. (2012) [19] in crossbred cows and Kumar et al. (2020) in Sahiwal cows. In Gir cows, the higher total lactational milk yield (kg) was found during L5 (1940.51 ± 36.05 kg), followed by L6 (1919.91 ± 41.81 kg), L3 (1887.53 ± 27.87 kg), L2 (1879.65 ± 23.83 kg), L1 (1877.74 ± 23.69 kg), L4 (1867.06 ± 30.05 kg) and lowest in L7 (1839.24 ± 57.13 kg) lactation. In Gir cattle, no specific trend of total lactational milk yield was observed during different lactations.

Lactation length (LL)

The influence of the period of calving in lactation length was highly significant on Gir cattle. The significant effect of the period of calving on lactation length was noticed by Kulkarni (2001) [14] in Red Sindhi cows, Jadhav (2011) [7] in Phule Triveni. In Gir cow, lactation length (days) was higher in cows calved during period P1 (283.19  2.92 days) followed by P2 (267.96  2.00 days) and P3 (247.27  1.27 days). The variation due to the season of calving on lactation length was highly significant in Gir cattle. These results were similar to Javed et al. (2000) [9] in Sahiwal, Varade et al. (2002) [23] in Jersey crossbreds, and Thombare et al. (2013) [22] in HF x Deoni halfbreds. In Gir cattle, the highest lactation length was observed in cows calved during the winter S2 (278.36  1.60 days) season followed by rainy S1 (265.56 ± 1.60 days) and lowest in summer S3 (254.49 ± 1.95 days) season. The influence of the order of lactation on the lactation length was highly significant in Gir cattle. These results were similar found with Gawari (1999) and Kamble (2003) [4, 10] in Gir crossbred cows and Jadhav (2011) [6] in FG halfbreds. In Gir cattle, the highest lactation length was observed in L1 (271.65  1.96 days) lactation followed by L3 (271.61  2.31 days), L5 (269.84  2.99 days), L2 (269.70  1.97 days), L6 (267.23  3.47 days), L4 (262.48  2.56 days), and which was lowest in L7 (250.44  4.74 days) lactation.

Dry period (DP)

The influence of the period of calving in the dry period had a highly significant effect on Gir cattle. Similar results were noticed by Hadge et al. (2012) [5] in Jersey x Sahiwal crossbred cows, Nanavati and Singh (2004) [16] in Gir cattle. In Gir cattle, the highest dry period was found in P3 (124.18 ± 1.15 days) followed by P2 (106.93 ± 1.81) and lowest in P1 (93.34 ± 2.64). The influence of the season of calving in the dry period was highly significant in Gir cattle. These results were in agreement with Javed et al. (2000) [9] in Sahiwal cows and Jadhav (2011) [7] in IFG cows. In Gir cows, the longest dry period was observed in cows calved during summer S3 (116.87 ± 1.77 days) season followed by rainy S1 (108.60 ± 1.96 days) and shortest in those calved in winter S2 (98.98 ± 1.45 days) season. The influence of the order of lactation in the dry period was highly significant in Gir cattle. These results were similar to Talape (2010) [20] in Jersey cows and Jadhav (2011) [7] in FG cows. In Gir cattle, the highest dry period (days) was observed in cows during L7 (121.28  4.30 days) followed by L4 (111.12  2.32 days), L6 (107.93  3.14 days), L5 (105.98  2.71 days), L2 (104.67  1.79 days), L3 (104.28  2.09 days) and lowest in L1 (101.79  1.78 days) lactation.

Peak milk yield (PMY)

The variation due to period of calving in PMY was highly significant in Gir cattle. Similar results were reported by Patond (2009) [17] in Jersey cows, Kulkarni (2001) [14] in Red Sindhi. The PMY of cows calved during period P1 (9.74  0.25 kg) was significantly higher than those calved in P2 (9.37  0.17 kg) and P3 (8.31  0.11 kg). The variation due to the season of calving in PMY was nonsignificant in Gir cattle. Similar results were noticed by Patond (2009) [17] in Jersey and Garudkar (2011) [3] in Phule Triveni cattle. In Gir cattle, the highest PMY was observed in cows calved during the winter S2 (9.18  0.13 kg) season followed by S1 (9.13  0.18 kg) and lowest in S3 (9.10  0.17 kg). The difference due to order of lactation in PMY was significant in Gir cattle. Similar significant effect of the order of lactation on PMY was observed by Kulkarni (2001) [14] in Red Sindhi, Nanavati and Singh (2004) [16] Gir cattle. In Gir cattle, the highest PMY was observed during L3 (9.57  0.17 Kg) followed by L2 (9.49  0.17 kg), L5 (9.35  0.26 kg), L1 (9.20  0.20 kg), L4 (9.16  0.22 kg), L6 (9.16  0.30 kg) and lowest in L7 (8.03  0.41 kg) lactation.

Conclusion

The effect of period of calving was significant on all traits TLMY, LL, DP, PMY; the effect of season of calving was significant on TLMY, LL and DP, while it was nonsignificant on trait PMY; the effect of order of lactation was significant on traits LL, PMY and DP while it was nonsignificant on trait TLMY.

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