Inheritance of wear rate in the teeth of sheep

H.H. Meyer, W.M. Aitken, J.E. Smeaton

Ruakura Animal Research Station, Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Hamilton

Proceedings of the New Zealand Society of Animal Production. 1983, 43: 189-192

Teeth wear over a 12-month period was measured in young ewes of 9 Romney and crossbred genotypes. Animals of Border Leicester breeding had higher-than-average wear rates and Merino-derived animals showed lowest wear. Genetic variation among genotypes and sires within genotypes accounted for the majority of explainable variation in wear rate. The pooled heritability estimate for teeth wear was 0.46 ą 0.13. After genetic effects, reproductive performance was the next largest factor affecting wear rate. Timing of tooth eruption and incisor occlusion each accounted for very little of the variation in teeth wear observed.

Keywords: NZSAPAB; Sheep's teeth; teeth wear; malocclusion; teeth eruption; sheep breeds

Download abstract in text format
Last Updated 03-05-1997