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 (2024): 0.6 (Q4 of subject category)
Clarivate Journal Citation Indicator (2024): 0.26
Scopus CiteScore (2024): 1.4
Adjustment of heterogeneous variances and a calving year effect in test-day models for national genetic evaluation of dairy catt
South Africa implemented test-day models for genetic evaluations of production traits, using a Fixed Regression Test-Day Model (FRTDM), which assumes equal variances of the response variable at different days in milk, the explanatory variable. Data at the beginning and at…
Substituting maize grain with barley grain in concentrates fed to Jersey cows grazing kikuyu-ryegrass pasture
The aim of the study was to determine the effect of substituting maize grain with barley grain in the diet of lactating Jersey cows grazing kikuyu-ryegrass pasture. Sixty Jersey cows were blocked in terms of number of days in milk,…
The effect of hemi-orchidectomy on reproductive traits of boars
Large White boars (n = 120) were assigned to hemi-orchidectomy at 60, 100, 140 or 300 days of age or as intact controls throughout the 450 day observation period to evaluate the effects of unilateral testicular hypertrophy on libido (reaction…
Effect of dietary thyme oil and vitamin E on growth, lipid oxidation, meat fatty acid composition and serum lipoproteins of broi
A trial was conducted to investigate the effects of dietary vitamin E (E) and thyme oil (TO) supplementation on the growth performance, lipid oxidation, fatty acid concentration of tissues and the serum lipoprotein levels of male broilers. Two-hundred day-old Ross…
Effect of hot-deboning on the physical quality characteristics of ostrich meat
The effects of hot-deboning on the physical meat quality characteristics and shelf-life of ostrich m. gastrocnemius, pars interna (gastroc) and m. iliofibularis (iliof) were investigated during 42 days (d) of refrigeration. The hot-deboned gastroc was initially tougher than the cold-deboned…
Polymorphism of the pig pre-implantation protein 3 (prei3) gene and its association with litter size traits
The pre-implantation protein 3 (prei3), which might play a role in pre-implantation embryogenesis, is one of the promising candidate genes for litter size traits in pigs. In this study, a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP: T802G) in intron 6 of the…
Effect of a dietary essential oil mixture on performance of laying hens
The experiment was conducted to evaluate the effects of dietary supplements of either an essential oil mixture (EOM) or a mannan oligosaccharide (MOS) as alternatives to an antibiotic feed additive (avilamycin) for layers kept under hot summer conditions. Four hundred…
Efficacy of different adsorbents in reducing the toxic effects of aflatoxin B1 in broiler diets
The ability of dietary hydrated sodium calcium aluminosilicate (HSCAS), diatomite and activated charcoal (AC) in reducing the detrimental effects of aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) in broiler diets was evaluated. Adsorbents were supplemented at 2.5 g/kg to the diets containing 0, 40…
Reproductive performance of Karakul ewes following different oestrous synchronisation treatments outside the natural breeding se
This study was designed to evaluate the efficiency of five different hormonal treatments of oestrous synchronization in Karakul ewes reared in southern Iran. During mid- to late spring, (outside the natural breeding season), 180 Karakul ewes were stratified based on…
Raw and heat-treated culban (Vicia peregrina) seed as protein source for mirror carp (Cyprinus carpio) fingerlings
An 80-day feeding trial was conducted in a recirculation system aquarium operating at 26 ± 0.3 °C, to evaluate the nutritive value of Vicia peregrina seed as a possible protein source in the diet of mirror carp (Cyprinus carpio) fingerlings…
Correlation between an oestrogen receptor gene and reproductive traits in purebred and crossbred pig populations (Short communic
The relationship between an oestrogen receptor (ESR) gene and reproductive traits in 11 Large White (LW), 19 Landrace (L), 22 Meishan (MS), 22 Meishan x Large White (MS x LW) F1, 26 Large White x Meishan (LW x MS) F1, 16 Landrace x Large White…
Excretal Near Infrared Reflectance Spectrometry to monitor the nutrient content of diets of grazing young ostriches (Struthio ca
Feeding systems in which young ostriches feed on pasture but have access to concentrates provide better welfare than confined systems but are sustainable only if nutrition is carefully controlled. This study was conducted to evaluate the potential of "excretal NIRS",…
A self-limiting complete feed changes forage intake and animal performance of growing meat goats (Short communication)
Rangeland or hay-based finishing systems often do not allow kids to reach slaughter weights of 30 - 50 kg by 12 months. This study determined the effects of a complete feed (CF) and a self-limiting complete feed (LCF) alone or…
Estimation of the additive and dominance variances in South African Landrace pigs
The objective of this study was to estimate dominance variance for number born alive (NBA), 21- day litter weight (LWT21) and interval between parities (FI) in South African Landrace pigs. A total of 26223 NBA, 21335 LWT21 and 16370 FI…
An isolation, polymorphism and trait association study of bovine GAD1 and GAL genes
The type and frequency of bovine GAD1 and GAL alleles have not yet been studied in beef cattle. Initial, partial characterization of several polymorphism sites of GAD1 and GAL genes was reported, and association analyses with feed intake, growth and…
Genetic parameters for weaning weight of Kenyan Boran cattle accounting for direct-maternal genetic covariances
Genetic parameters were estimated for weaning weight (WW) in Kenya Boran cattle using animal models that assumed non-zero direct-maternal genetic covariance. In addition to the direct and maternal genetic effects, maternal permanent environmental and sire by herd-year interaction effects were…
Validating the breeding value for maternal preweaning gain in beef cattle with measured milk production
The objective of this research was to validate the maternal breeding value for preweaning gain as a predictor of genetic differences in milk production. Phenotypic variation in preweaning gain and in milk production measured by the weigh-suckle-weigh method was partitioned…
Genetic parameters for growth traits in South African Limousin cattle
Accurate genetic parameters are vital for genetic prediction, selection on breeding values and creation of selection objectives. Consequently, records for birth weight (BW), 200 (WW), 400 (YW) and 600 (FW) day weight were analyzed to obtain heritability estimates. These records…
Wet faeces produced by sheep fed dried spineless cactus pear cladodes in balanced diets
Cactus pear cladodes in ruminant diets are characterized by the production of wet faeces and assumed to be diarrhoea. Incremental levels of sun-dried and coarsely ground spineless cactus pear (Opuntia ficus-indica var. Algerian) cladodes were used to substitute part of…
Plasma free amino acid profiles of Boer goat bucks as influenced by two feeding regimens
The aim of the study was to monitor the physiological changes in plasma free amino acid profiles in Boer goats under nutritional restriction. Fifteen Boer goat bucks were allocated to two experimental groups: CG (control), fed Themeda trianda hay, supplemented…
