A study of the growth rate of F₂ and F₃ Africander cross, Brahman cross and British cross cattle from birth to 18 months in a tropical environment

Abstract

The mean birthweights and weaning weights of approximately 1200 male and female calves of the F2 and F3 generations of Africander cross (AX), Brahman cross (BX) and Shorthorn X Hereford cross (SH) cattle, together with the weights at four months, and nine months post weaning for approximately 500 of the females, for the years 1964-1968, are presented. BX calves (29.7 kg) were lighter at birth than AX (31.0 kg) or SH (31.8 kg), but at weaning (eight-nine months) they were 13.7 kg heavier than the AX, and 28.9 kg heavier than the SH. In the first four months postweaning, at the end of the dry-season, female AX gained 21.5 kg, BX gained 18.5 kg, and the SH 11.7 kg, and in the next five months, which included the wet-season, AX gained 78.6 kg, BX 83.1 kg, and SH 63.2 kg. At approximately eighteen months old the AX weighed 282.8 kg, BX 294.8 kg, and SH 244.2 kg. There were substantial differences between years but the rank order of the breeds at each growth period did not change.