Development of a routine genetic evaluation and a total merit index for sheep breeds with focus on meat production

Abstract The introduction of a routine genetic evaluation for specialized meat sheep (Blackheaded meat, Suffolk, Texel, Ile de France, Dorper, and Berrichon du Cher) and land sheep with focus on meat production (Merinoland) is described. Even though performance recording has existed for several production and fitness related traits and years, breeding values have not been officially available for sheep in Austria until 2017. Meat performance traits, recorded for purebred animals of both sexes, include average daily gain, fat depth and eye muscle depth. Historic computer tomography performance recording results serve as auxiliary traits. Regarding functional traits, lambing interval, number of lambs born and number of lambs born alive are considered. The routine genetic evaluation is carried out twice a year, at the beginning of January and at the end of June. Additionally, breeding values and reliabilities are calculated at weekly intervals but only uploaded if the change in reliability exceeds 5%-points or a new individual performance recording result is available. All estimated breeding values are standardised to relative breeding values with a mean of 100 (rolling base including rams aged 5–15 years), and a genetic standard deviation of 12, higher values are favourable. Apart from breeding values for individual traits, subindices for meat and fitness traits as well as a Total merit index (TMI) are calculated. For the calculation of the Meat index, the relative weights (in %) for average daily gain (direct) : muscle depth : fat depth are 36 : 62 : 2 for Merinoland and 44 : 52 : 4 for meat sheep. For fat depth, the breeding values are transformed to an intermediate optimum in the index calculation. In the Fitness index, the relative weights (in %) for lambing interval : lambs born maternal : lambs born paternal: lambs born alive maternal : lambs born alive paternal are 35.0 : 33.3 : 8.3 : 18.3 : 5.0 (Merinoland) and 20.0 : 49.0 : 17.0 : 10.0 : 4.0 (Meat sheep). Including the trait average daily gain maternal in the meat complex, the relative weights (in %) of Meat : Fitness are 40 : 60 and 60 : 40 in Merinoland and Meat sheep, respectively. The TMI was defined in a way so that the calculated selection response is positive for all single traits in order to avoid an unfavourable development. Thus, it serves as a starting point for a breeding objective that is both, economically feasible and sustainable in the long-term. Further traits that may be considered in a future TMI are e.g. longevity and selected conformation traits.