Growth trait heredity in two cavy sublines native to the ecuadoran mountain range

Abstract

Background: studies on conservation and breeding programs for cavy in South America have not been published; Therefore, the objective of this article was to analyze the genotypic and environmental factors that act on the growth traits of a cavy line native to South America that is located in the Ecuadorian Cordillera. Methods: The study was carried out in the Irquis experimental farm, of the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of Cuenca, using two native sub-lines of cavy from rural breeders in the provinces of Azuay and Cañar. Age weight and daily weight gain (g) were analyzed by a mixed variance analysis of litter size (5), season (semester), gender and number of births of the mother as fixed effects, using software R 3.4.4. The random effects were performed by the Azuay (1) and Cañar (2) sublines, and their male parents. The basic statistical values ​​were determined. Results: birth weight, weaning weight and weight at 90 days in grams were 110.2 ± 1.81, 117.0 ± 1.44; 212.2 ± 4.30 and 221.13 ± 3.38; 540.7 ± 12.01 and 659.1 ± 9.44, respectively. Inheritance values ​​for these traits were 0.09 ± 0.101, 0.34 ± 0.201 and 0.11 ± 0.111. In addition, the weight was analyzed at 30, 45, 60, 75 and 90 days after birth, which included gains at each age. The BLUP predictors for the parents of the two sublines were determined. The variation and heritability allowed the selection of weaning weight at 90 days. Conclusions: this line showed low levels of growth, although the observed variations were adequate. Their inheritance could lead to the expected favorable results, provided that a medium-term selection program is implemented.