Associations between weaning and post-weaning body measurements in Limousin cattle and their potential use for early...

In beef cattle breeding, analysing body size parameters enables the evaluation of production-related correlations and growth dynamics. By assessing these traits at multiple time points, it is possible to examine whether early measurements are associated with later development and may provide information relevant to early selection decisions. In this study, the correlations between the data measured at weaning age (230 days) and at 13-14 months of age (weight, withers height, rump height, back length, shoulder width, hip width and pin width) were analysed. Data from bull calves classified as 'Breeding-approved' or 'Removed at weaning age' were also compared. The results indicated a weaker correlation between body measurements taken at weaning age (r_AVG = 0.581) than at 13-14 months of age (r_AVG= 0.640; n = 817). Pin width showed weak correlations with all other body dimensions and at both measurement time points (r = -0.009-0.293). The strongest positive correlation between the two measurement times was found for withers height (r = 0.618) and rump height (r = 0.631). The measurements of Removed bulls (n = 459) were compared with those of Breeding-approved bulls (n = 469). Comparative analysis revealed that Breeding-approved bulls had higher mean values for most traits than Removed bulls. In contrast, differences in pin width and overgrowth index were small and not consistently supported across the adjusted and unadjusted analyses. Overall, although Limousin calves exhibit variable growth rates, withers height and rump height may serve as useful preselection indicators in the breeding programme. These findings may support the identification of indicators for early selection in commercial beef production systems.