Reproductive and Milk Performances of Holstein and Montbeliarde Cows in Morocco

Abstract

The study was carried out on 1727 lactations of 493 Holstein cows and 1148 lactations of 319 Montbeliarde cows kept on a private farm. Data were collected from 1997 to 2007. The age at first calving of Holsteins and Montbeliardes was almost 29 months. The calving interval, and the interval between calving and fertilizing insemination of Montbeliardes were 385.6 and 83.1 days, respectively. They were 9.7 and 30 days, respectively, shorter than those of Holsteins. The lactation length of Holsteins was 4.2 days shorter and the dry period 14.1 days longer than those of Montbeliardes. However, Holsteins produced 623.1 kg more of milk and 30.2 kg more of fat per lactation of reference than Montbeliardes. In conclusion, Montbeliardes had a slight advantage with regard to reproduction and a slight disadvantage with regard to milk production compared to Holsteins. The study of other traits will be necessary to improve comparison of these breeds.