Wool and sheepskin-coat productivity of sheep romanov breed of belarusian breeding

At the present stage of sheep breeding development, the main task is the rational use of the biological capabilities of sheep for the production of economically profitable marketable products. The Romanov sheep breed occupies a special place in terms of productive qualities among the numerous sheep breeds bred in the Republic of Belarus. The breed has the highest fecundity among coarse-haired breeds, polyestericity, optimal live weight, and good taste qualities of meat. The fur qualities of the Romanov sheep breed are considered indicative of all fur breeds. The assessment of fur qualities is an integral part of the study of the productive performance of Romanov sheep. Analysis of the data showed that the longest wool fibers were found in sheep, in which they outperformed ewes by 5,5 and 14,0%, respectively. The length of the wool fibers of sheep at the age of 12 months has similar differences compared with sheep of the same age. At the same time, sheep of all the studied sex and age groups have a desirable type of quantitative ratio of awn and down, so in adult sheep of the Romanov breed, on average, rams have 5 and queens have 8 down fibers per fiber. The young animals have a wider ratio of down and outer fibers (1:6 and 1:7, respectively).