The South African Journal of Animal Science is an open access, peer-reviewed journal. The journal publishes reports of research dealing with the production of farmed animal species (cattle, sheep, goats, pigs, horses, poultry and ostriches), as well as pertinent aspects of research on companion animals and aquatic and wildlife species. All submitted articles are subjected to a single-blind peer review process that is managed by a section editor under the supervision of the editor-in-chief. Copyright of a published article resides with the authors. Such articles will be published as open access content and be covered by the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 South African Licence. Users may copy, distribute, transmit and adapt the work, but must recognise the authors and the South African Journal of Animal Science.
Originally supported by the Agricultural Research Council (ARC), the South African Journal of Animal Science moved online in the early 2000s using a custom-built manuscript submission and editorial management system. In August 2025, the journal transitioned to the Public Knowledge Project’s Open Journal Systems (PKP OJS), hosted by Khulisa Journals at the Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf).
In line with international best practices, the journal integrates key components of digital research infrastructure, including DOIs (digital object identifiers), ORCID iDs (researcher identifiers), ROR IDs (research organisation identifiers), and CCLs (Creative Commons Licences), ensuring transparency, traceability, and global interoperability.
As of August 2025, the South African Journal of Animal Science makes use of the Crossref 10.17159 DOI prefix. View the journal metadata health and the Crossref DOI Conflict Report here.
If you experience any problems with the journal’s online platform, please contact the editor-in-chief at [email protected].
Clarivate Journal Impact Factor (2025): 0.8 (Q4 of subject category)
Scimago (SJR) (2025): 0.231 (Q3)
Scopus CiteScore (2025): 1.4
Effects of supplementing humates on rumen fermentation in Holstein steers
Humates have nitrogen-binding qualities that could prove to be beneficial in the retention of ammonia nitrogen in the rumen of Holstein steers fed a high-concentrate finishing diet. Therefore, four ruminally fistulated Holstein steers were used in a 4 x 4…
Nutrient content of uncooked and cooked meat from South African classes A2 lamb and C2 mutton (Short communication)
The study compared the nutrient content of selected joints of South African mutton (Class C2) (n = 18) and lamb (Class A2) (n = 18) carcasses of fat code 2 in both classes. South African sheep carcasses are classified according…
Photostimulation of male broiler breeders to different photoperiods
The effect of photostimulation of male broiler breeders (n = 144) to different photoperiods (8-h control and 9, 9.5, 10, 10.5, 11, 11.5, 12, 12.5, 13, 14 and 18 h) applied at 20 weeks of age, on age at first…
The effect of dosing Megasphaera elsdenii NCIMB 41125 (Me) on lactation performance of multiparous Holstein cows (Short communic
The objective of the study was to determine whether early post-partum dosing of Megasphaera elsdenii NCIMB 41125 (Me) will be beneficial to performance of high producing TMR-fed cows. Sixty multiparous Holstein cows were randomly allocated to four treatments (60% or…
Non-genetic factors affecting growth performance and carcass characteristics of two South African pig breeds
A study was conducted to establish non-genetic factors affecting growth and carcass traits in Large White and Landrace pigs. This study was based on 20 079 and 12 169 growth and 5 406 and 2 533 carcass data collected on…
Quality related principles of the South African beef classification system in relation to grading and classification systems of
This paper addresses the principles related to different grading and classification systems of the world with specific focus on beef quality related outcomes. The paper uses the definitions that classification is a set of descriptive terms describing features of the…
Effect of dietary protein on the allometric relationships between some carcass portions and body protein in three broiler strain
This paper reports the allometric relationships between some of the physical parts and body protein weight of three commercial broiler strains reared, sexes separate, on four dietary protein levels to six weeks of age. Birds were sampled at day old…
Maintenance requirements for methionine and cysteine, and threonine for poultry
This study aimed to estimate the methionine & cystine (M&C), and threonine (THR) requirements for maintenance of adult roosters differing in liveweight and body composition, and to estimate the concentrations of M&C and threonine in ‘ideal’ protein for maintenance. Five…
Effects of breed on milk fatty acid profile in dairy ewes, with particular reference to cis-9, trans-11 conjugated linoleic acid
The objective of this study was to determine and compare the fatty acid profile of milk fat, with particular reference to cis-9, trans-11 conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), in two indigenous Romanian sheep breeds (Spanca and Turcana), irrespective of the effects…
Polymorphism of the porcine CGA gene and its association with growth and carcass traits
Glycoprotein hormones in the pituitary gland affect a myriad of biological processes such as development, growth, metabolic control and gametogenesis. The quantitative trait loci (QTL) near their common glycoprotein a subunit gene (CGA) have been reported inconsistently. The aim of…
Genetic parameter estimates for live animal ultrasound measures of carcass traits in South African Angus cattle
Genetic parameters were estimated for body weight at scanning (SCW) and live animal ultrasound measures of rump fat thickness (P8FT), rib fat thickness (RBFT), rib eye-muscle area (REA) and intramuscular fat percentage (IMF) for South African Angus beef cattle. A…
Parentage verification of South African Angora goats, using microsatellite markers (Short communication)
South African Angora goats are farmed under extensive production systems in relatively large herds. As a result, breeders make use of group and flock-mating systems that limit accurate parentage recording and selection efficiency. In this study the aim was to…
Effects of partial replacement of barley with sugar beet pulp on pre- and post-partum performance of Zel ewes
Sixteen Zel ewes (BW = 37 ± 3.10 kg) were used in a completely randomized design to determine the effects of partial replacement of barley grain with beet pulp (BP), during late pregnancy and early lactation, on litter weight, lamb’s…
Influence of incubation management on pipping position, hatching ability and survival of ostrich chicks
Despite numerous studies, the effect of artificial incubation on the hatchability and survival of near-term ostrich chicks is still not well understood. Records from 13 975 eggs with embryos of 35 days and older, artificially incubated between 2006 and 2008,…
Effect of breed on performance and carcass characteristics of Mexican hair sheep (Short communication)
To determine the effect of breed on growth performance and carcass characteristics in Mexican hair sheep, 48 lambs (average 38.9 ± 1.56 kg body weight, BW) were used in a completely randomized experimental design. The breed types assessed were 16…
Physical impact of sheep grazing on arid Karoo subshrub/grass rangeland, South Africa
Grazing levels and rotational schemes need to be tailored to each individual farm or pasture, and more studies are needed on the resilience of rangelands and on separating the effects of grazing and climate. The direct short-term impact of three…
Effects of oxidised oil and vitamin E on performance and some blood traits of heat-stressed male broilers
The present study was conducted so that the possible effects of thermally-oxidised dietary oil and vitamin E supplementation could be determined on the performance, lipid peroxidation, antioxidant defence system and some blood and meat quality traits of broilers. Broilers were…
Comparison of analyses to predict ruminal fibre degradability and indigestible fibre in temperate grass silages
The objective of this study was to compare the ruminal degradability of neutral detergent fibre (NDF) and indigestible NDF (INDF) between silages (n = 24) that originated from three different temperate grass species, i.e. Dactylis glomerata L., Festuca arundinacea L…
Feeding of whole cottonseed on performance, carcass characteristics and intestinal morphology of Zandi lambs
The present study was conducted to determine the effect of including different levels of whole cottonseed (WCS) in the finishing diet of lambs on their dry matter intake (DMI), live weight gain, feed conversion ratio (FCR, kg feed/kg gain), carcass…
Dietary effects of Ca-zeolite supplementation on some blood and tibial bone characteristics of broilers
This study was conducted to investigate the effects of differing amounts of natural Ca-zeolite on bone and some blood parameters. A total of 240 day-old Ross 308 broiler chicks were assigned to four treatments with three replicates, each containing 20…
