DETERMINING THE CURRENT DEGREE IN IMPROVEMENT OF CURL'S RESISTANCE AND ELASTICITY IN THE KARAKUL OF BOTOSANI BREED

I. Nechifor, Al.M. Florea, A. Crismaru, C-tin Pascal

Abstract
    The aim of the research was to carry out a complex study in order to evaluate the current state of improvement of the resistance and elasticity of the curls to the main color varieties formed within the Karakul of Botoșani breed. The biological material subjected to the assessments was represented by purebred lambs obtained from the elite nucleus of the Karakul of Botoșani breed growing at the Research and Development Station for Breading Sheep and Goats Popuți-Botosani. The lambs subjected to the evaluations belonged to all color varieties of the respective breed, obtained over three successive generations, coming from lambing seasons that took place in 2013, 2014 and 2015, respectively. The method applied in assessing the objectives was based on the technical norms specified in Section 1.4 and 1.5 of the MADR Order no. 22 / 20.01.2006, published in the Official Gazette of Romania no. 146 of 15.02.2006 and in which are specified the aspects based on which the official Control of the skins production is performed. Following the research, it was found that the breeding process is located on different levels in the color varieties found in the Botosani Karakul breed. The evaluation of the degree of expression for the strength and elasticity of the curl in black lambs shows that the breeding process is more advanced because the average score was very close to the maximum accepted (45.19 ± 0.451) for these characters. On the other hand, the fact that the proportion of lambs that received the maximum score in 2005 was 57.36% and reached only 69.47% in 2015 shows that the improvement of the strength and elasticity of the curl is slower in the grayish variety.