Haematology and serum biochemical profile of Kalahari Red goats reared in the hot-humid south-west Nigeria

Abstract

The aim of this study was to determine the biochemical and haematological profiles of Kalahari Red goats reared in the tropical environment. The Kalahari Red goats were imported into Nigeria from South Africa by the Federal University of Agriculture Abeokuta, Nigeria. The study was carried out on fifty animals of both sexes. The animals were managed under semi-intensive system where they were allowed to go out and graze on paddocks during some part of the day and brought back to the pens in the evening. The goats were fed with concentrate and grazed on sown pastures of Chloris gayana and Stylosanthes amata. Water was given ad-libitum. The serum biochemical analysis was determined using Randox^R analysis kits. The sex of each animal was noted and recorded. The packed cell volume, haemoglobin concentration, red blood cell count, white blood cell count, neutrophils, lymphocytes, monocytes, eosinophils and basophils were determined as haematological parameters while total protein, albumin, globulin, sodium, potassium, calcium and phosphorus were determined in serum analysis. The results showed that there was no significant (p>0.05) difference in all the haematological parameters determined across sex. There were significant (p<0.05) differences in total protein and albumin across sex of which the mean values were higher in the female goats. The value of the mean total protein in the female goats was 5.93±0.88 while the value was 5.31±0.23 in the male goats. It can be concluded that sex did not have any influence on the haematology but had association on only the protein component of the serum biochemistry. This result obtained can be used as a reference value for Kalahari Red goats reared in the tropics and under similar nutrition.