Goat parchment from Sixian County

Goat parchment from Sixian County

　　Sixian County has been ranked among the top ten livestock-producing counties and advanced counties in the province for five consecutive years. It is a national production base county for commercial pigs and goat parchment, as well as a national model county for straw-fed sheep farming. The physical properties of goat parchment are measured according to the requirements of sheep husbandry and the leather industry, while histological properties are assessed by preparing skin samples into slices and examining them under a microscope. In recent years, sheep production has received widespread attention, and the introduction of Boer goats has created new opportunities for meat goat farming. Anhui Province is rich in goat resources, with the main breed being the Anhui White Goat, a local subgroup of the Huaihai Goat. This breed is dual-purpose for both meat and hide, and its goat parchment belongs to the “Hankou variety,” known for its high quality, making it premium raw material for the leather industry. Adult bucks weigh around 30 kg, and adult does around 22 kg. The breed has relatively high fertility, typically giving birth to two litters per year or three litters every two years, with a lambing rate of 260%. This study, based on the needs of modern meat sheep production and the resource characteristics of the Anhui White Goat, introduced Boer goats and Saanen goats to crossbreed with the Anhui White Goat in a two-way hybridization. A systematic comparison was conducted between the hybrid offspring and the Anhui White Goat, providing a scientific basis for meat sheep production.