Repeatability of Docility in Grasscutters (Thryonomy Swinderianus)

Abstract

One of the problems of domesticating grasscutters was their aggressive behaviour towards humans. Docility is the ability of the animal to accept human presence. The objective of this study was to estimate the repeatability of docility in a population of grasscutters maintained at the grasscutter unit of the Department of Forestry and Wildlife, Delta State University, Asaba Campus. 5 families each of lower and larger grasscutters were used for the study. Each family consists of 1 male and 4 female. Only the female grasscutters were scored as the males were few. Docility was scored on a scale of 1 to 4 with 1 representing docile; 2: fright; 3: restless; 4: aggressive. Each grasscutter was scored once a week at 4-6months and 6-8months of age giving a total of 8 scores per animal per period. The average docility scores in the two breeds of grasscutters ranged from 2.54 to 2.80 indicating that most of the grasscutters handled were either fright or restless. Repeatability estimates of lower and larger grasscutters at 4-6 and 6-8 months were moderate to high and ranged from 0.20 to 0.61, thus implying that few records on the animal’s docility were enough to make selection decision.

Keywords: Docility, larger grasscutters, lower grasscutters, repeatability, selection decision