Resumen de Genetic study of the total score in mangalarga horses
The goal of this study was to estimate the heritability and the genetic trend of the total score (obtained by adding the partial scores of each morphological, functional and behavioral trait of the animal) of the Mangalarga bred horse, contributing to selection programs in these animals. The information used was provided by the Brazilian Association of Mangalarga Horse Breeders (ABCCRM) and considered the total scores of 20270 animals, measured between 1987 and 2003. The components of variance needed to estimate the heritability were obtained by MTGSAM program. With an average value of 0,42, the heritability indicates a strong relation between breeding values and phenotypic values of the animals and the response to a phenotypic selection could reach interesting results. The genetic trend was 0.21 point per year.
