Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-lnqnp Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-27T20:27:37.025Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Accuracy in measuring cattle with special reference to identical twins

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 September 2010

C. S. Taylor
C. S. Taylor
Affiliation:
A.R.C. Animal Breeding Research Organisation, Edinburgh, 9
Get access

Summary

A study has been made of the relative accuracy of twelve linear body measurements of dairy cattle. The results of several repeatability trials are presented together with estimates of observer error derived from the routine measuring of identical twins. Various aspects of precision of measurement have been analysed. The accuracy found from any one trial can rarely be used as a reliable estimate of the accuracy of measuring in any subsequent experiment.

The importance of observer error in identical twin studies has been assessed. It was found that from 10% to 70% of the total variation within pairs of uniformly treated identical twins could be due to measuring error. It was therefore concluded that in such studies, where observer error is a fairly large part of the total variation, a single routine repetition of every measurement would be advisable in long term experiments and several in the case of short term experiments with a small number of animals.

Measurements have been ranked for relative accuracy and the ranking was found to be broadly similar on several different criteria: (a) relative to the variation within pairs of uniformly treated identical twins, (b) relative to the total variation in a population of unrelated animals and (c) relative to the mean size of the body part. The choice of measurements on the basis of relative accuracy is discussed.

Type
Research Article
Information
Animal Production , Volume 5 , Issue 1 , February 1963 , pp. 105 - 115
Copyright
Copyright © British Society of Animal Science 1963

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Braude, R. & Walker, D. M., 1949. Mortality, weight and body measurements at birth of Dairy Shorthorn calves. J. agric. Set., 39: 156.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Donald, H. P., 1953. A study of variation in twin cattle. I. General description. J. Dairy Res., 20: 355.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Johansson, I. & Hildeman, S. E., 1954. The relationship between certain body measurements and live and slaughter weight in cattle. Anim. Breed. Abstr., 22: 1.Google Scholar
Jeffreys, H. Sir 1957. Scientific Inference. Cambridge Univ. Press, 2nd ed.Google Scholar
Lush, J. L. & Copeland, O. C., 1930. A study of the accuracy of measuring dairy cattle. J. agric. Res., 41: 37.Google Scholar
Tallis, G. M., Klosterman, E. W. & Cahill, V. R., 1959. Body measurements in relation to beef type and to certain carcass characterisics. J. Anim. Sci., 18: 108.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Taylor, St. C. S., 1962. Identical twins and developmental stability. Anim. Prod., 4: 144.Google Scholar
Taylor, St. C. S. & Rollins, W. C., 1963. Body size and conformation in identical twin cattle. Anim. Prod., 5: 77.Google Scholar
Tibbits, J. P., 1957. The development of calves reared on varying amounts of whole milk. J. agric. Sci., 49: 329.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Touchberry, R. W. & Lush, J. L., 1950. The accuracy of linear body measurements of dairy cattle. J. Dairy Sci., 33: 72.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Weber, Von F., 1957. Die statistischen and genetischen Grundlagen von Korpermessungen am Rind. Z. Tierz. ZuchtBiol, 69: 225.CrossRefGoogle Scholar