Phenotypic characteristics and comparative evaluation of preserved animals from Lithuanian pig breeds

Abstract

The aim of the study was phenotypic characterization and comparative evaluation of Lithuanian Indigenous Wattle and Lithuanian White pigs. Physical measurements were taken only from a representative set of adult animals: sows and boars. Evaluation of breeds included discrete (qualitative) and quantitative variables and was performed according to the Guidelines of FAO for Phenotypic Characterization of Animal Genetic Resources. The data were subjected to the analysis of variance in general linear (GLM) and discriminant analysis procedures in SPSS 17. The qualitative characterization of preserved animals validated the characteristics of Lithuanian pig breeds described in old literature. The comparative evaluation of the physical measurements of Lithuanian White and Lithuanian Indigenous Wattle pigs showed the highest significant differences in body, ear and tail length. Due to the different physiological status of females the statement that Lithuanian White pigs are larger animals than Lithuanian Indigenous Wattle pigs better confirms the weight and body dimensions of males. Small differences in body dimensions were found only between the youngest animal groups under 24 months of age and older animals. However, the results of the canonical discriminant analysis did not give any evidence that pigs of different age have different characteristics.