Influence of additive and maternal genetics on kid survival in Beetal goat.

The objectives of this study were to identify the important factors affecting kid mortality and to estimate additive and maternal influences associated with kid survival in Beetal goats using a Bayesian threshold modeling. Data were collected from 1295 animals born from 62 sires and 363 dams over 20 years of period (2004–2023) and classified for three survival (binary) traits as follows: survival of kids from birth to 3 months (S1), from birth to 6 months (S2) and from birth to 12 months of age (S3). The genetic evaluation was carried out using threshold animal models comprising direct and maternal effects using THRGIBBS1F90 and POSTGIBBSF90 programs. Mortality rates for the study population were estimated as 6.64% (95% CI = 5.35–8.14), 9.50% (95% CI = 7.96–11.23) and 11.12% (95% CI = 9.46–12.96) from S1, S2 and S3 traits, respectively. Kid mortality was significantly influenced by birth period, dam’s weight, birth weight and type of birth. Logistic regression revealed that kid mortality risk was significantly (P < 0.05) higher in earlier birth periods, lower-weight dams (< 29 kg) and low-birth-weight kids (< 2.5 kg), while sex and type of birth had a non-significant (P > 0.05) effect. Major causes of deaths were respiratory diseases (32.89%) and respiratory along with digestive diseases. Bayesian analysis showed that estimates for additive heritability for S1, S2 and S3 traits were 0.10, 0.18 and 0.20, respectively. The maternal genetic effects were more influential in early kid survival. The current finding indicated the increasing role of direct and maternal genetic effects on kid survival, emphasizing the need for selective breeding and improved management in Beetal goats.