Joint breeding and keeping of sheep and goats on farms and private farms sometimes results in interspecific crossing. Sheep-goat hybrids exhibit characteristics of both parents. But, due to a genetic discrepancy, they are most often not viable: the pregnancy is terminated in the first half of the term. For the same reason, born individuals cannot have offspring.
Who are basles and what do they look like?
The word “bazli” is a derivative of “ram” + “goat”.The name was invented by a farmer from the Novgorod region, who had 12 sheep goats: 3 males and 9 females. They were more like sheep, but more massive, with thick and coarse wool, with spring shedding, like goats. In other words, a bazle is a hybrid or hip (from the English “geep” - “goat” + “sheep”) from crossing a goat and a sheep/ram and a goat when kept together. Hybrid offspring are most often nonviable and die before lambing or a few hours after birth. Surviving individuals are sterile and unable to produce offspring, although males have a high libido.
The reason for the incompatibility is differences in the genetic code: in rams it contains 54 chromosomes, in goats - 60. The surviving hypos had 57 chromosomes each. A cross between a ram and a goat turned out to be more viable than a cross between a goat and a sheep. Offspring from random crosses have been recorded:
- in New Zealand;
- Botswana;
- Ireland;
- France;
- USA;
- Russia;
- Germany.
The most durable was the New Zealand hip. It had characteristics of both species and was 30 kilograms (93 kilograms) heavier than a normal ram. At 10 months, Basle was castrated due to constant abuse of sheep and goats, despite the absence of estrus.
Hybrid individuals are also obtained artificially by implanting eggs into goats that are fertilized with ram sperm in vitro with a partially deleted goat genome. Similar studies are conducted to determine the possibility of reviving extinct species.
Such hypos are called chimeras. Unlike hybrids, they have 4 parents. Several successful experiments resulted in the appearance of a goat and a kid. The chimera, which looked like a goat, had blood proteins similar to those of sheep, and the skin consisted of pieces of goat and sheep skin and fur.The kid died a day later; the cause of death was not established.
Description and characteristics
Buzzles have high goat legs and a massive ram body. The coat is thick, coarse, but with a soft undercoat. The tail is hanging, like a sheep's. Males have small horns, curved back, and no beard. Female hippos have a sheep-like muzzle.
Cubs are born with horns, which is why the goat may refuse to accept them for feeding as foreign.
Gips have the herd instinct of goats and sheep. Males and females are infertile, but males have an increased libido, as a result of which they have to be castrated.
Main positive and negative aspects
Basle meat has a unique taste, different from sheep and goat.
Maintenance and care
Sheep and goats are related animals for which the stall-pasture regime is most suitable in temperate climatic latitudes. In warm weather, it provides for free grazing during daylight hours with overnight stays under a canopy in a paddock or indoors. In the autumn-winter period, when there is no green food on the pasture, the animals are kept indoors with daily walks in the pen (the duration depends on the air temperature).
For bases, the principles of maintenance and care are similar. Animals need shelter from the rain. Wet wool will become matted, dirty, and will need to be cut. When kept in stalls, it is necessary to provide a flooring of straw or sawdust so that the casts do not get cold through the hooves. Goat sheep do not feel discomfort at temperatures up to +5 degrees, so they do not need additional heating of the room.The main requirements are dry air, good ventilation and lighting.
Bazzles do not tolerate damp and polluted air well. Manure is removed daily. The premises must have wooden flooring for animals to rest and sleep. Feeders and drinking bowls are installed at a height of 30 to 50 centimeters above the floor and kept clean.
What to feed hybrids
Gip is unpretentious in food, like his parents. In summer, the main part of food is green matter on the pasture. If the grass cover is sparse, the bazles should be fed with hay 2 times a day: in the morning and in the evening. Considering that gips grow faster than kids and lambs, they require 30% more feed. The increased need for food is also explained by the presence of thick fur in animals. The thicker the fur of a goat or sheep, the more nutrients are spent on its formation. Bazles have the same wool as rams, so they constantly need more feed.
When kept in stalls, the diet of sheep goats includes:
- hay;
- corn;
- vegetables;
- twig food;
- salt lick.
In winter, the feeding regime for hypos is the same as for the rest of the sheep/goat herd.
The daily diet is divided into 3 parts:
- in the morning they give roughage and succulent food;
- at lunch (after drinking) - a daily dose of concentrates;
- in the evening - roughage.
The minimum amount of legume-cereal hay per day for basla is 3 kilograms. You can mix oatmeal, millet chaff, and chopped straw into the hay. Before introducing them into food, they are soaked in water, steamed, chopped vegetables and concentrates are added.The daily dose should not exceed 1.5 kilograms.
The composition of succulent feed includes:
- pumpkin;
- beet;
- potatoes (raw or boiled);
- turnip;
- swede.
Up to 1 kilogram of vegetable mixture is given per head per day.
Concentrated feeds in the diet of hybrids include:
- corn;
- compound feed;
- sunflower cake.
Grain concentrates are oats, corn, barley. An adult basil is given up to 1 kilogram of grain per day. For a growing animal, the most beneficial is oats (up to 300 grams per day). Mineral supplements (salt, cobalt, copper) - from 10 to 15 grams per day for an adult animal, for a baby - 2 times less. In winter, water is given 2 times a day. Branch food must be available at all times.
Subtleties of breeding
To obtain hybrid offspring, the ram and goat are left in the same pen when the goat is in heat.. For goats, this is September-October. In the vast majority of cases, pregnancy in goats spontaneously ends at 3 months. After an abortion, the goat skips lactation until the next birth.
Mature basles are fed in two ways:
- goat's milk, without taking it away from the mother;
- milk mixtures for kids or cow's milk.
What diseases are they susceptible to?
According to available information, basleys are not susceptible to diseases of sheep and goats, as they have good natural immunity.
Can a ram cover a goat?
When kept together between a ram and a goat, mutual interest and mating are possible.
