1. WP Leader: SRUC (Georgios Banos) INIA, AUTH, UNIVPM, CSIC, AHDB
Genetic solutions
WP Leader: SRUC (Georgios Banos)
INIA, AUTH, UNIVPM, CSIC, AHDB
29/8/2017
EAAP, iSAGE-Sheepnet networking

2. EAAP, iSAGE-Sheepnet networking
Aim – sheep & goats
Develop breeding strategies and tools
enhance animal welfare, resilience and adaptability to future climatic, environmental and socio-economic challenges,
improve the sector’s sustainability and profitability.
29/8/2017
EAAP, iSAGE-Sheepnet networking

3. Aim – characterise resilience traits
Lamb survival
Aspects of ewe fertility
Age at 1st lambing
Lambing interval
Ewe longevity
Dairy goat longevity

4. Lamb Survival – mining existing data
Binary trait (0/1)
‘Direct’ trait of the lamb (not the ewe)
Recorded in both sexes
Dead = 0
Born dead and lambs born alive but no subsequent live weights
Alive = 1
Lambs with a live weight
Birth
Mid-lactation
~ 8 weeks old
Weaning
~ 20 weeks old 3

5. Data –lamb survival National data from performance recorded flocks
Dorset – 15,433 records
Lleyn – 51,174 records
Texel – 48,995 records
Scottish Blackface – 173,895 records 4

6. Heritability Estimates (direct lamb)8

7. Key messages Males have higher mortality vs females
Intermediate optimum birthweight
Intermediate dam age
Lamb survival has low heritability
(<10%)
Coefficient of variation (~33-39%)
Worthwhile selecting for lamb survival
Cv% (sd/mean)x 100

8. Lamb survival - impact
2017 implemented in UK breeding programmes for 2 sheep breeds by AHDB / SRUC

9. Longevity and fertility - sheep -Lambing interval , LI -Age at 1st lambing, AFL

10. National data used Dorset n= 15.3K – 73.7K Texel n= 24.2K – 63.5K
Lleyn n= 14K – 42.5K
Different breeds and management systems
133 Texel flocks

11. National data used Dorset n= 15.3K – 73.7K Texel n= 24.2K – 63.5K
Lleyn n= 14K – 42.5K
Different breeds and management systems
160 Lleyn flocks

12. National data used Dorset n= 15.3K – 73.7K Texel n= 24.2K – 63.5K
Lleyn n= 14K – 42.5K
Different breeds and management systems
51 Dorset flocks

13. Trait definitions Longevity Lambing interval Age @1st lambing
Age at last recorded lambing (in years)
Lambing interval
Number of days between the ewes first and second lambing event
lambing
Age of the ewe at her first recorded lambing event (in years)

14. % Heritability Lleyn Dorset Texel Longevity 7 11 1
Lambing interval 1-2 12 2

15. % Heritability
Lleyn
Dorset
Texel
1st lamb 31 16

16. Relationships between traits?
Correlations: Longevity and 1st lambing Implications ? Ewe lambs leave the flock earlier
Dorset
Lleyn
Genetic
0.8
0.3
Phenotypic
0.7
0.2

17. Relationships between traits?
Longevity and litter size Implications? Higher litter size in Dorsets leads to shorter lifespan (Not the case for Lleyn)
Dorset
Genetic
-0.4 (0.09)
Phenotypic
-0.2 (0.01)

18. Relationships between traits?
Longevity and lambing interval Implications? Less productive ewes last longer
Dorset
Lleyn
Genetic
0.6 (0.08)
0.7 (0.07)
Phenotypic
0.6
0.65

19. Key messages Breed differences in genetic variation
Lambing ewe lambs leads to shorter lifespan
Higher litter size in Dorsets leads to shorter lifespan
Less productive ewes last longer
Cv% (sd/mean)x 100

20. Implementing Lambing interval EBV

21. Longevity definition – dairy goats
Different definitions
Age at death
Actual
Predicted
Completed lactations
29/8/2017
EAAP, iSAGE-Sheepnet networking

22. Predicted age at death
8 years is the end point/goal age as the remaining population alive is less than 10%

23. Predicted age at death Phenotype = 7.18 7 years 8 years 6 years
Based on historical data predictions
Phenotype = 7.18

24. Predicted age at death Phenotype = 7.18 Years lived Phenotype 1 5.89 2
6.01 3
6.23 4
6.49 5
6.81 6
7.18 7
7.56 8+ 8
7 years
8 years
6 years
Pr=0.62
Pr=0.56
Based on historical data predictions
Phenotype = 7.18

25. Longevity definition – dairy goats
Aspects of productive longevity Lifetime days in milk Average lifetime daily yield Total lifetime yield
29/8/2017
EAAP, iSAGE-Sheepnet networking

26. Heritability Trait Heritability (s.e.) Age at death 0.10 (0.01)
Predicted age
0.11 (0.01)
Heritabilities are fairly typical of longevity traits based on the literature

27. Hertitability Trait Heritability (s.e.) Age at death 0.10 (0.01)
Predicted age
0.11 (0.01)
Lifetime DIM
Total lifetime yield
0.09 (0.01)
Av lifetime daily yield
0.15 (0.01)
Heritabilities are fairly typical of longevity traits based on the literature

28. Further phenotyping activities (INIA, INRA)
3 experiments mainly oriented to determine body reserves utilisation under different environments(nutritional and weatherlike)
–Meat sheep (Romane) in two environments, poor and semi-intensive; link between feed efficiency and adaptation to harsh environment
29/8/2017
EAAP, iSAGE-Sheepnet networking

29. Further phenotyping activities (INIA, INRA)
3 experiments mainly oriented to determine body reserves utilisation under different environments(nutritional and weatherlike)
–Meat sheep (Romane) in two environments, poor and semi-intensive; link between feed efficiency and adaptation to harsh environment
–Dairy sheep (Lacaune)-body reserve dynamics including restricted intake and two selection lines for milk production persistency
–Dairy sheep (Manchega) –body reserve dynamics under different weather conditions
29/8/2017
EAAP, iSAGE-Sheepnet networking

30. Genotyping activities
Sheep to be genotyped over the next year
Genomic characterisation of resilience traits
Genomic association studies
Genomic predictions
Partner
50K LD HD
AUTH
670 20
INIA
300 22
INRA
375
330
SRUC
999
1,085 30
Total iSAGE
2,344
1,415 72

31. Other ongoing activities
Case studies to assess productivity and competitiveness of local breeds
Spain, UK, Turkey, Greece, Finland
New breeding programmes
29/8/2017
EAAP, iSAGE-Sheepnet networking

32. EAAP, iSAGE-Sheepnet networking
29/8/2017
EAAP, iSAGE-Sheepnet networking

33. Methodology -Models Fixed Effects Random effect Birth year Farm
Max lactation number
Age at 1st kidding
Deviation from lactation 1 mean milk yield (per kid year group)
Birth year by farm interaction
Max lactation number by farm interaction
Random effect
Individual animal
ASReml used to run linear mixed models
All these effects were significant so were included in the model

34. Longevity data summary
Trait
Count
Min
Max
Average SD
Age at death (years)
15,724
0.70
12.93
4.40
2.15
Predicted age (years)
23,580
5.06
2.01
Lifetime DIM (days) 2
3,670
1,064.4
705
Total lifetime yield (kg) 1
10,982
2,857
2,214
Av lifetime daily yield (kg)
5.63
2.57
0.98
NOTE predicted lifetime yield is not included here as the phenotypes of this trait were calculated slightly differently (used the residuals which are adjusted phenotypes so in this context they would not make sense)