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SUMMARY
The weight gain and its seasonal changes were examined of red deer calves
kept under farm conditions in Hungary. The calves were weighed at birth and 5
times later at the average age of 119, 154, 182, 214, and 242 days. Based on the
live weight data of 5 male and 5 female calves 34 different growth models were
tested, using Proc nlin procedure of SAS software. Based on the different goodness
of fit criteria of the tested models the 5 best fitting equations were chosen.
The live weight difference between sexes has grown significantly with age.
Weight gain decreased during winter months dramatically in both sexes a typical
phenomenon in deer species. The male claves reached 75.8 kg the females
65.6 kg live weight already at 182 days of age demonstrating the high growth
potential of Hungarian red deer surpassing considerably the performance of
C. e. scoticus and C. e. hispanicus. In the comparisons of 34 tested growth equations
the best fitting model was (–0,95+10,27*age0,39). The model estimates the
measured live weight with an accuracy with a mean of ±2 kg in both sexes. In
applying this model the live weight measurement at birth is not required but the
exact date of birth is essential.
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