Effects of Slaughter Weights on Meat Yield and Chevon Characteristics of West African Dwarf Goat (bucks)

The study was conducted at the Ruminants section of Teaching and Research Farm University Ibadan, Ibadan to evaluate effects slaughtering weights on meat yield other chevon characteristics West African Dwarf bucks (WAD). Fifteen WAD were fed similar diets before sacrificing nine three pre-determined 15, 20 25kg relative percentage proportions Eviscerated Weight-EW, Hot Carcass Weight-HCW, Dressing percentage-DP, Rib Eye Area-REA, Meat Bone Ratio-MBR Total Fat Deposit-TFD in a Completely Randomised Design (CRD). Also evaluated physicochemical each carcasses weights. results showed that EW ranged from 62.0% 15kg-bucks 71.8% 25kg-bucks, while HCW 52.1% 55.3% 25kg-bucks. 25kg-bucks had highest TFD 4.7±0.3% compared with 3.1±0.1% 4.4±0.4% 15 20kg-bucks, respectively. Bucks higher elicited more REA as those lower However, there an inverse relationship between ether extract crude protein increased. DP not significantly different among treatments. In conclusion, observed necessarily terms value but only fat. This goes show when animal has reached its full maturity, it doesn’t add rather accumulates