Pedigree analysis of Burlina cattle population

Abstract

The aim of this study was to characterize the pedigree of Burlina cattle breed. The file was supplied by the Breeders Association of Treviso province (Italy) and included 2303 animals. About 79% of individuals had both parents known. The additive genetic relationship (f) among animals and the coefficient of inbreeding (F) were calculated as well as the number of generations and pedigree completeness index (PCI). The PCI increased over the studied period and individuals born in 2009 had an average value of 90% considering 2 generations and 69% considering 5 generations. The additive genetic relationship increased across years, reached a value of 1.95% in 2004 and then decreased slightly. Coefficient of inbreeding was low in 1990s and increased rapidly afterwards; in 2009 the F value was 4.81%. The monitoring of f and its use as weighting factor for selecting sires and dams of future bulls will be used to control inbreeding levels within the population.