J. Anim Sci.
HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced]


     

J. Anim Sci. 1981. 53:611-619.
© 1981 American Society of Animal Science
This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow reprints & permissions
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Ojala, M. J.
Right arrow Articles by Van Vleck, L. D.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow Articles by Ojala, M. J.
Right arrow Articles by Van Vleck, L. D.

Measures of Racetrack Performance with Regard to Breeding Evaluation of Trotters

M. J. Ojala1 and L. D. Van Vleck2,3

University of Helsinki, 00710 Helsinki 71, Finland

3 To whom correspondence should be addressed.

Abstract

Trotting records on the Finnish Horse were divided into two subsets? the total data set, with 13,000 race records on 554 horses by 206 sires, and the summary data set, with 1,378 records summarized annually for each horse. The purpose of the study was to determine whether these data could be utilized in a simple, yet useful way for the assessment of breeding value. A total of 24 measures of performance based on time at finish, money won and rank at finish were studied in the summary data set. The total data set included four traits compiled from records made at ages of 3 through 6 years. The proportion of horses that started races and at the end of a race year had records different from those of unraced horses, i.e., different from zero, was 95, 82 and 40 through 77% for measures of performance based on time, money and rank, respectively. Simple correlations between best and average time for a year were in excess of .90. Repeatabilities for time at finish during a year were about .70. Both estimates imply that time records are relatively consistent over an entire year. Estimates of heritability for best time were about .30, whereas those for money and rank traits were small or even negative. The results from this study support the concept that best time in a year is the most useful measure for assessing sire breeding values based oh progeny records.

Footnotes

1 Dept. of Anim. Breed.

2 Dept. of Anim. Sci., Cornell Univ., Ithaca, NY 14853.






HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
Copyright © 1981 by the American Society of Animal Science.