Toviesi, D.P., Shittu, O.O., Odeyemi, A.J., Okwelum, N., Famakinde, S.A.,

 Yusuff, M.A. and Oluwatosin, B.O.

ABSTRACT

Pre-weaning kid mortality data of Kalahari Red goats herd managed semi-intensively at the Institute of Food Security, Environmental Resources and Agricultural Research (IFSERAR) farm, Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB) were accessed from breeding and veterinary records kept from 2014 to 2017. Data obtained were analyzed for the effects of sex, type of birth, and birth weight on pre-weaning kids’ mortality at various ages after birth. Female kids accounted for a higher pre-weaning kids mortality (74.1%) as against the males (62.2%) within 1 to 10 days (age) of kidding. The highest mortality was observed for kids within 1 to 10 days of kidding, decreased as age advanced from 11 – 20 to 21 – 30 days,  and increased slightly at >30 days. Birth weight had a significant effect (p<0.05) on pre-weaning kid mortality. Low birth weight was also responsible for higher kid mortality, among other factors considered. The highest cause of pre-weaning kid mortality was hypothermia, which accounted for 34.0% mortality, while unknown causes of death were responsible for 32.1% of the pre-weaning kid mortality. It was suggested that pre-weaning kid mortality could be minimized by improving on the management of the pregnant does especially in the second and third trimesters of the pregnancy.