Comparative Assessment of Meat Qualities of Purebred and Crossbred Kalmyk Bulls

Abstract

The purpose of thisstudy was to review the meat qualities of Kalmyk cattle by the method oflifetime evaluation of the meat forms of purebred and crossbred bulls bystudying growth and development, as well as determining the thickness ofsubcutaneous fat, the loin eye area and the meat marbling. Throughout theexperiment (from 6 to 12 months), Kalmyk bulls were characterized bysignificantly (p≤0.01) higher average daily growththan crossbred bulls obtained from Angus and Kalmyk breeds (750 g vs.670 g). The average daily increase in purebred Kalmyk bulls reached 750 g andwas significantly higher (p<0.05) than in bulls obtained from crossbreeds ofKazakh white-headed and Kalmyk breeds. Despite such indicators as the thicknessof subcutaneous fat, the area of the loin eye and meat marbling among thestudied groups for the evaluation of meat qualities in points, purebred bullshad higher indicators for the loin eye area and meat marbling and lower feedcosts per 1 kg of live weight gain. They significantly surpassed their peers,the Kazakh white-headed and Aberdeen-Angus breeds (at p<0.001) in terms ofthe thickness of subcutaneous fat and meat marbling. The young animals of thisgroup had lower feed costs per 1 kg of growth, by 1.1 feed units, or 14%,compared with the peers from the Kazakh white-headed x Kalmyk group and by 3.4feed units, or 44%, compared with the Angus x Kalmyk group. This is since thecattle of this breed are characterized by endurance, unpretentiousness to feed,high adaptive plasticity, good weight gain per quantity of feed both duringfattening and graziery and early meat maturity, compared with the Angus andKazakh white-headed breeds.