Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-p9bg8 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-23T17:06:37.240Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Effects of inbreeding and other genetic components on equine fertility

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 July 2009

J. Sairanen ,
K. Nivola ,
T. Katila ,
A.-M. Virtala  and
M. Ojala
J. Sairanen*
Affiliation:
Department of Animal Science, University of Helsinki, Koetilantie 5 (PO Box 28), 00014 Helsinki, Finland
K. Nivola
Affiliation:
Department of Production Animal Medicine, University of Helsinki, Paroninkuja 20, 04920 Saarentaus, Finland
T. Katila
Affiliation:
Department of Production Animal Medicine, University of Helsinki, Paroninkuja 20, 04920 Saarentaus, Finland
A.-M. Virtala
Affiliation:
Department of Basic Veterinary Sciences, University of Helsinki, Agnes Sjöbergin katu 2 (PO Box 66), 00014 Helsinki, Finland
M. Ojala
Affiliation:
Department of Animal Science, University of Helsinki, Koetilantie 5 (PO Box 28), 00014 Helsinki, Finland
*
†E-mail: [email protected]
Get access

Abstract

The Finnish mating records of Standardbred trotters (SB; n = 33 679) and Finnhorses (FH; n = 32 731) were analysed to study the effect of the level of inbreeding on foaling rates and to estimate the heritability of foaling rate. A linear mixed model was assumed, with the outcome of the foaling (foal or no foal) as the trait of the study. A restricted maximum likelihood-based method was used to calculate the estimates of the variance components. Predictions of breeding values and estimates of fixed effects were also calculated. The average level of inbreeding was 9.9% in the SB and 3.6% in the FH. The average foaling rates were better in the SB (72.6%) than in the FH (66.3%), but within each breed intense inbreeding had a statistically significant negative effect on foaling rate (P < 0.05). Also, the mating type, the age and breeding type of the mare, and the age of the stallion had statistically significant effects on foaling rate (P < 0.001). The heritability of foaling rate was between 3.4% and 3.7% in SBs and between 5.5% and 9.8% in FHs, when the outcome of the foaling was considered to be a trait of the expected foal. With the same model, the estimates of maternal genetic effect were 4.7% for SBs and 3.2% for FHs, and the estimates of the permanent environmental effects of the stallion were between 1.3% and 1.7%. Avoiding matings with very high inbreeding coefficients would improve foaling rates. It would also be possible to devise a breeding program for better equine fertility, but because the heritability is low, improvement of environmental factors deserves special attention.

Keywords

fertilityhorsesheritabilitymaternal effectinbreeding
Type
Full Paper
Information
animal , Volume 3 , Issue 12 , December 2009 , pp. 1662 - 1672
Copyright
Copyright © The Animal Consortium 2009

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

Berglund, B 2008. Genetic improvement of dairy cow reproductive performance. Reproduction in Domestic Animals 43 (suppl. 2), 89–95.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Boichard, D 2002. PEDIG: a Fortran package for pedigree analysis suited for large populations. In Proceedings of the 7th World Congress of Genetics Applied on Livestock Production, CD-ROM communication no. 28-13. Montpellier, France.Google Scholar
Bowling, AT 2001. Historical development and application of molecular genetic tests for horse identification and parentage control. Livestock Production Science 72, 111–116.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cothran, EG, MacCluer, JW, Weitkamp, LR, Pfennig, DW, Boyce, AJ 1984. Inbreeding and reproductive performance in Standardbred horses. Journal of Heredity 75, 220–224.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dowsett, KF, Knott, LM 1996. The influence of age and breed on stallion semen. Theriogenology 46, 397–412.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
van Eldik, P, van der Waaij, EH, Ducro, B, Kooper, AW, Stout, TAE, Colenbrander, B 2006. Possible negative effects of inbreeding on semen quality in Shetland pony stallions. Theriogenology 65, 1159–1170.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Gonzáles-Recio, O, López de Maturana, E, Gutiérrez, JP 2007. Inbreeding depression on female fertility and calving ease in Spanish dairy cattle. Journal of Dairy Science 90, 5744–5752.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Groeneveld, E 2006. PEST user’s manual. Retrieved December 15, 2008, from ftp://ftp.tzv.fal.de/pub/pest/doc/pest-manual-Apr-2006.pdfGoogle Scholar
Guerra, JLL, Franke, DE, Blouin, DC 2006. Genetic parameters for calving rate and calf survival from linear, threshold, and logistic models in a multibreed beef cattle population. Journal of Animal Science 84, 3197–3203.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jamrozik, J, Fatehi, J, Kistemaker, GJ, Schaeffer, LR 2005. Estimates of genetic parameters for Canadian Holstein female reproduction traits. Journal of Dairy Science 88, 2199–2208.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kadarmideen, HN, Thompson, R, Simm, G 2000. Linear and threshold model genetic parameters for disease, fertility and milk production in dairy cattle. Animal Science 71, 411–419.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Klemetsdal, G, Johnson, M 1989. Effect of inbreeding on fertility in Norwegian trotter. Livestock production science 21, 263–272.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kovac, M, Groeneveld, E, Mielenz, N 2008. VCE user’s guide and reference manual version 6.0. Retrieved December 15, 2008, from ftp://ftp.tzv.fal.de/pub/vce6/doc/vce6-manual-3.1-A4.pdfGoogle Scholar
Langlois, B, Blouin, C 2004. Statistical analysis of some factors affecting the number of horse births in France. Reproduction, Nutrition, Development 44, 583–595.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
MacCluer, JW, Boyce, AJ, Dyke, B, Weitkamp, LR, Pfennig, DW, Parsons, CJ 1983. Inbreeding and pedigree structure in Standardbred horses. Journal of Heredity 74, 394–399.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mahon, GAT, Cunningham, EP 1982. Inbreeding and the inheritance of fertility in the Thoroughbred mare. Livestock Production Science 9, 743–754.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Samper, JC 2001. Management and fertility of mares bred with frozen semen. Animal Reproduction Science 68, 219–228.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Vilva, V 2008. WSYS-L program package. Department of animal science, University of Helsinki, Finland.Google Scholar
Wall, E, Brotherstone, S, Kearney, JF, Woolliams, JA, Coffey, MP 2005. Impact of nonadditive genetic effects in the estimation of breeding values for fertility and correlated traits. Journal of Dairy Science 88, 376–385.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wilkens, J, Preisinger, R, Kalm, E 1990. Analyse der Fruchtbarkeit beim Holsteiner Warmblutpferd. Züchtungskunde 62, 81–92.Google Scholar
Wolc, A, Bresińska, A, Szwaczkowski, T 2006. Genetic and permanent environmental variability of twinning in Thoroughbred horses estimated via three threshold models. Journal of Animal Breeding and Genetics 123, 186–190.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed