Institute for Sheep Breeding Trenčianska Teplá

This institute is aimed at scientific-research problems in the sphere of breeding and selection of small ruminants in line with the needs of practice, and it cooperates closely with other departments of the Centre. The main programme is aimed at breeding, which is oriented at permanent improvement of genetic potential in sheep and goats, improvement of economically decisive production parameters as well as of the so called functional properties that influence markedly the survival of sheep and quality of products.

Great attention is paid to optimization of farming systems with various aims of production, to technical and technological aspects of breeding, ethology, and welfare. Also the research of problems with reproduction in sheep and goats from biological and ethological viewpoints as well as tasks connected with global increase in temperature belong into this range. Attention is paid also to problems with optimization of nutrition and feeding of sheep with different production specialization, and of various sheep and goats categories, utilization of biomass from permanent grasslands from the viewpoint of sustainable surroundings.

Priorities of the scientific and research activities of the institute:

  • Optimization in methods of genetic evaluation in sheep, using economic scales in selection indices step by step.
  • Analysis of genetic and non-genetic factors influencing morphology and functional properties of udder (milkability, kinetics of milk ejection, linear description of udder) with the aim to make production of good quality milk more effective (functional food).
  • Ethology of lambs and their mothers at various ways of lamb raising (very early, early), production levels of mothers and concentrations of animals, with the aim to optimize the farming system for milk sheep.
  • Analysis of disorders in fertility of ewes and rams (genetic, physiological and behavioural aspects), controlled reproduction and optimization of utilization of biotechnological methods in breeding.
  • Herd management of non-milk (meat) sheep, ethological aspects, optimization of sheep breeding in different categories of sheep, with the stress put on effective utilization of permanent grassland.
  • Analysis of the influence of PrP gene (scrapies) and other major genes on production, reproduction and functional characteristics in sheep; rationalization in sanative programmes for sheep breeding.