Problems of adaptation of imported specialized breeds of cattle

Abstract

The experience of importing Simmental breed from Austria of beef cattle Hereford breed from Novosibirsk region, red steppe breed from the Altay Territory to the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) is analyzed. Acclimatization of imported livestock to the conditions of the Far North is hard. Of 471 heads of cattle of Austrian Simmental breed imported in 2007, 171 are currently left. The average milk production of cows per head is 2485 litres, the average figure for the Republic is 2364 litres. Of 200 heads of Herefords brought in 20112012, only 32 have remained. A brief description of the milk productivity of the red steppe breed in Yakutia is presented. Milk yield per cow amounted to 2630 litres in six lactations, which is 166 litres higher than the national average. Due to non-compliance with the requirements of the technology of keeping and feeding imported animals, 116 out of 200 imported cows have remained. The hematological parameters of cattle reflecting the state of the body's immune system during acclimatization are given. Adaptation of red steppe cows was difficult, but the hematological parameters corresponded to the physiological norm. Possible ways of developing livestock breeding programme in Yakutia to create a simmentalized Yakut zonal type of cattle, which is distinguished by exceptional adaptive abilities for keeping and feeding conditions, are proposed. Thanks to crossbreeding with Yakut cattle, the acclimatization and further breeding of imported specialized breeds and their crosses is successful. The ways of improving the technology of keeping and feeding cattle on the farms of the Republic are shown.