The relationship between measures of temperament, growth performance, and social hierarchy in finishing beef cattle were explored in two experiments. In experiment 1, high OCS (objective chute score) steers had periods of significantly higher ADG (P < 0.01), but OCS had no relationship with dominance ranking (P > 0.47). Conversely, slow exit velocity (EV) correlated with higher ranking (P ≤ 0.06), but EV had no relationship with performance (P > 0.37) in a competitive environment. Rank showed no relationship with performance (P > .58). In experiment 2, steers with fast EV had periods of decreased growth (P ≤ .06), intake (P ≤ .06), and gain:feed (G:F; P = 0.02). There were no interactions between EV, OCS, and monensin or between EV and monensin. Monensin and EV together, however, significantly impacted overall (days 0 – end) G:F (P = 0.02) and gain (P = 0.05). Overall, these studies further confirm the idea that EV affects performance as does OCS in concert with monensin. Moreover, it further confirms that different measures of temperament correlated to different aspects of performance and should not be lumped together under the general term “temperament” when describing its relationship with performance.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:uky.edu/oai:uknowledge.uky.edu:animalsci_etds-1067 |
| Date | 01 January 2016 |
| Creators | Mimiko, Jasmyn |
| Publisher | UKnowledge |
| Source Sets | University of Kentucky |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | Theses and Dissertations--Animal and Food Sciences |
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