Published in Scientific Papers. Series "Management, Economic Engineering in Agriculture and rural development", Vol. 22 ISSUE 4
Written by Leontii KHMELNYCHYI, Serhii KHMELNYCHYI, Yevgeniya SAMOKHINA, Igor RUBTSOV

The aim of the paper was to study the lifespan dependence of Ukrainian Red-and-White dairy (URWD) and Ukrainian Black-and-White dairy (UBWD) breeds on the level of linear traits evaluation that characterize the udder morphological qualities in the overall system of linear classification of the conformation type. The experiments were conducted in the herds of Cherkasy and Sumy regions for breeding URWD (n = 465) and UBWD (n = 598) breeds. By the trait fore udder parts attachment, reliable difference between cows, estimated at 1 and 9 scores, was 636 (URWD; P <0.001) and 721 (UBWD; P <0.001) days. The difference between the lowest and highest scores of the height of attachment of the udder rear parts in cows of experimental breeds was 663 (URWD; P <0.001) and 715 (UBWD; P <0.001) days. Animals with an assessment of the development of central udder ligament above 5-8 scores lived longer, according to assessed breeds, from 2,402 to 2,723 (URWD) and from 2,572 to 2,869 (UBWD) days. Cows of the UBWD breed estimated at 5-9 scores lived on 141-170 (P <0.01) days longer compared to the URWD cows. Relative variability between the udder depth and lifespan was curvilinear, as higher lifespan observed in cows with 6-7 scores. Cows of both breeds with an average grade of 7 for the fore teats position were used the longest in the herd. Evaluation of the relative variability of the fore teats length and cow's lifespan of controlled breeds showed that cows had a longer functional life with an average score of 5 and 6. The relative variability established between the evaluation of linear traits that characterize the udder morphological structure and the lifespan of cows testified about the effectiveness of animal selection by type in the direction of longevity. Linear traits that positively correlate with the lifespan of cows can be used in the future as indirect predictors of longevity.

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