Heritability parameters for some body measurements in Turkish Arabian foals

The aim of the present study was to estimate genetic parameters of body measurements in TurkishArabian foals. Records of wither height, front cannon circumference, heart girth, and body length were usedfor body measurements at birth, 6 months of age, 1-year-old and 2-year-old. Heritability of bodymeasurements of Turkish Arabian foals was estimated by using records of foals sired by stallions which hadat least 5 foals. Body measurement records at birth of 1597 foals sired by 40 stallions were used inheritability calculation of withers height, front cannon circumference, and heart girth. Heritability of all bodymeasurements was estimated by paternal half-sib method. Estimated heritability ranged from 0.05 (heartgirth) to 0.58 (wither height). Heritability estimates can be used to improve body measurements of TurkishArabian horses. These results indicate that mass selection method based on the individual phenotype of thehorses at different ages can provide genetic improvement in the herd. Phenotypic correlations between bodymeasurements at consecutive age periods were all positive, ranging from 0.22 to 0.63. Thus, early bodymeasurements of the Turkish Arabian foals can be used for prediction of the size of the adult horse.