Short communication, Note
https://doi.org/10.5513/JCEA01/22.2.3153
Characteristics of the main body measurements of male and female donkeys in Bulgaria
Radka VLAEVA
orcid.org/0000-0002-1538-7901
; Department of Animal husbandry - Nonruminants and other Animals, Faculty of Agriculture, Trakia University, 6000 Stara Zagora, Bulgaria
Abstract
The donkeys, together with other labour animals (mules and hinnies) are domestic animals that are losing their popularity continually among the rural population in Bulgaria. For the last decades, the population of donkeys in Bulgaria decreased nearly 10 times, from 328 587 donkey registered in 1990 to 35 000 in 2013. For some obvious reasons they were pushed aside, as in recent times it is much easier for a smallholder farmer to cultivate the land with modern machinery than with animal power. The objective of the experiment was to estimate and compare the body measurements of male and female donkeys reared in Bulgaria. The coat colour of the animals was also recorded to estimate the variation of it inside the groups. A total number of 198 donkeys (74 males and 124 females) were included in the study. The animals were located in different regions of Bulgaria. From each individual these main four body measurements were taken: height at the withers, body length, chest circumference and cannon bone circumference. The average height at the withers for male donkeys was 120.40±7.13 cm as for the females it was 119.75±6.83 cm. Body length for males and females was 124.47±7.62 and 123.71±8.01 cm on average, respectively. Mean values for the chest, and cannon bone circumferences for male individuals were 137.08±9.64 and 16.15±1.21 cm, the same traits on female donkeys were on average 134.16±8.11 and 15.65±1.27 cm.
Keywords
donkeys; body dimensions; gender; Bulgaria
Hrčak ID:
259541
URI
Publication date:
29.6.2021.
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