Estimation of 305-day yield from total milk yields in Bunaji and Friesian-Bunaji crosses

Abstract

Lactation data of 207 cows comprising of 91 Bunaji and 116 Friesian-Bunaji crosses milking for over 305 days were analysed on the basis of average daily yield (ADY), actual 305-day yield (A305), total yield (TY) and lactation length (LL). The objective was to fit a suitable equation that would estimate 305-day yield from TY and to develop estimation factors. The linear regression equations for estimating 305-day yield TY are: Y = 1895.229 + 0.804TY (R2 = 0.971) and Y = 366.176 + 0.775TY (R2 = 0.827) for Bunaji and Friesian-Bunaji cows, respectively. Various combinations of TY, ADY and LL were used in multiple regressions to estimate 305-day yield with R2 values of over 90%. Factors for the estimation of 305-day yield from cows lactating for periods between 305 to 350 days were developed from the fitted equations.