Growth performance of black bengal goat in rural areas in Chandel district

The study aimed to evaluate the growth performance of Black Bengal goats, focusing on the impact of the sex of kids, type of kidding, and parity of the dam on body weight at birth, as well as at 3, 6, and 9 months of age under field conditions in Chandel district of Manipur. The goats in the study area were raised extensively and data collection spanned from June 2022 to February 2023. Least-squares means for body weights at birth, 3, 6, and 9 months of age were found to be1.46±0.07 kg, 6.70±0.21kg,9.15±0.11 kg, and 12.55a±0.33 kg, respectively in compare to female goat weight was found to be1.07±0.07kg, .5.75±0.17,8.20±0.27 and 10.93±0.30in 1st,3rd,6th and 9th month, respectively. The average body weight of male kids exceeded that of female kids at all ages, with a significant (p<0.05) difference noted at 6 and 9 months. Litter size significantly (p<0.01) influenced birth weight, with single-born kids having the highest birth weight compared to twin and triplet-born kids. Parity of the dam also had a significant (p<0.01) effect on birth weight, which increased with successive parities. However, body weights at 3, 6, and 9 months were not significantly affected by litter size and parity of the dam. These findings suggest that non-genetic factors should be considered to enhance the growth performance of Black Bengal goats.