Characterization of Phenotypic Traits and Socioeconomic Importance of Native Horses in Bangladesh: Current Status and Way Forward
Characterization of Phenotypic Traits and Socioeconomic Importance of Native Horses in Bangladesh: Current Status and Way Forward
Gautam Kumar Deb1*, Md Faizul Hossain Miraz1, SM Jahangir Hossain1, Shahrina Akter1, Md. Ahsanul Kabir1, Md Ruhul Amin2, Md Panir Choudhury1, Nure Hasni Desha1
ABSTRACT
Horses have been an integral part of Bangladesh’s cultural and economic landscape for a long time and serve diverse roles. This study aims to characterize the phenotypic traits of native horses and investigate the management practices and socioeconomic status of horse owners. A total of 233 horse-rearing households were interviewed by structured questionnaire from selective locations covering all divisions of Bangladesh. Phenotypic traits (Body weight, body length, chest girth, neck length, head length, ear length, wither height, back height, length from ear to tail, mane length, tail length) and reproductive features (Age of 1st heat and conception, foaling interval, gestation length and estrous length) were recorded for phenotypic characterization (n=240). Half of the farmers (53.20%) possess a basic level of education and agriculture is the main occupation (43.30%) followed by business. Horses are reared for income generation (77.3%) and farmers prefer stallions (43.65%) over geldings for rearing. A semi-intensive rearing system is identified where farmers provide a combination of roughage and concentrate feed. Bloat, diarrhea, colds, fevers and skin diseases are common among others. Mares experience first heat at 24.02±2.61 months and conceive at 27.09±3.64 months. Foaling length, gestation interval and estrous length were recorded as 26.98±3.14 months, 11.58±0.46 months and 21.25±0.75 days respectively. Chestnut and bay are the predominant coat colors among others. Male horses have higher (p<0.05) body length, neck length, head length, wither height, back height, ear-to-tail length and mane length than female horses. Bangladesh has no horse breed, and indigenous horses are smaller in size with homogeneity of reproductive and phenotypic features. Genetic characterization is recommended to identify the origin of indigenous and crossbreeds including samples from nationwide.
Keywords | Horse, Indigenous, Socioeconomic condition, Phenotype, Characterization, Bangladesh
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