Relationships Between Productive and Reproductive Traits in Maramureș Brown Breed from Subcarpathian Area of Romania
Keywords:
Maramureș Brown breed, milk production, reproductive performance, calving interval, fertility, RomaniaAbstract
The aim of the present study was to evaluate the relationship between productive and reproductive traits in Maramureș Brown breed raised in sub-Carpathian farms from Romania. The research was based on productive and reproductive records collected between 2017 and 2023 from farms located in Argeș, Dâmbovița and Prahova counties. A total of 1,150 valid individual records were included in the final statistical analysis. The analysed productive traits included milk yield standardized to 305 days, fat percentage, protein percentage, EBV milk and EBV fitness, while the reproductive traits included age at first calving, services per conception and calving interval. The average milk yield recorded in the analysed population was 5,539.55 kg, while the mean calving interval was 387.58 days. Weak negative correlations were identified between milk production and reproductive traits, suggesting that higher productive levels were not clearly associated with reduced fertility under the studied farming conditions. A moderate positive correlation was observed between milk yield and EBV milk (r = 0.404). The obtained results suggest that Maramureș Brown breed from may maintain a relatively balanced productive-reproductive profile under semi-intensive farming systems specific to subcarpathian area of Romania.
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