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.
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Clarivate Journal Impact Factor (2025): 0.8 (Q4 of subject category)
Scimago (SJR) (2025): 0.231 (Q3)
Scopus CiteScore (2025): 1.4
A comparison of the OFDA2000 with conventional mid-side testing of mohair
The portable fibre-testing instrument OFDA2000 has applications in the mohair industry for both fibre classing and animal selection. A comparison was completed between single-staple mid-side testing using an OFDA2000 and conventional laboratory mid-side testing using an OFDA100. Mid-side mohair samples…
An evaluation of Angora sires through progeny testing – A progress report
Genetic improvement is a key to future increases in productivity in the Australian Mohair industry. Accurate identification of superior sires is part of this process. A progeny test was established to evaluate some prominent sires in use within the Australian…
A genetic profile of the Kalahari Red goat breed from southern Africa
The erosion of the Kalahari Red with red Boer goats is a major concern among breeders. Little empiric information is available with no comprehensive system of monitoring special characteristics. Eighteen microsatellite markers were applied to investigate the genetic diversity of…
Genetic assay of Caprine arthritis encephalitis in the Hungarian goat herd
Caprine arthritis encephalitis (CAE) is a retroviral infection of goats. CAEV is closely related to the virus which causes Maedi- Visna in sheep and AIDS in humans. The first survey of the seroprevalence of CAEV in Hungarian goats was performed…
Genetic characterisation of the Blanca Andaluza goat based on microsatellite markers
This is a genetic characterisation of the Blanca Serrana Andaluza goat breed based on microsatellite markers. Fifty animals from five herds were typed with a set of 27 microsatellites proposed by the FAO and ISAG for biodiversity studies. Our results…
Polymorphism of the αas1-casein, κ-casein and ß-lactoglobulin genes in the Hungarian Milk Goat
The type and frequency of goat milk protein alleles have not yet been studied in Hungary. Here we report the initial, partial characterization of allelic polymorphisms of αs1-, к-casein and β-lactoglobulin genes in a herd of Hungarian Milk Goat based…
Genetic variation of three commercial and three indigenous goat populations in South Africa
Three commercial and three indigenous goat populations from South Africa were studied for genetic variation using ten microsatellite markers. Heterozygosity values of between 0.62 and 0.69 were obtained for the populations, except for the SA Boer Goat, which had the…
Comparison of different models to estimate purine bases absorbed in goats
The purine bases absorbed (PBa) and microbial nitrogen flow (MNF) in the duodenum were estimated with five models proposed for sheep (1, 4), goats (2), cattle (5) and a goat-sheep mixed model (3). Data of purine derivatives excreted (PDe) in…
A comparison of plant form and browsing height selection of four small stock breeds – Preliminary results
A direct observation technique was used to establish the foraging behaviour of Boer goats, Nguni goats, Pedi sheep and Dorper sheep. According to the Chi-square dissimilarity measure, plant-form (grass, forbs, woody) differences between the diets of goats and sheep were…
The effect of type and level of carbohydrate supplementation on intake and digestibility of Atriplex nummularia cv. De Kock
The effects of type of carbohydrate supplementation on intake and digestibility of Atriplex nummularia cv. De Kock were investigated. Ten rumen cannulated sheep were fed different increments of maize and barley supplements (0%, 15%, 30%, 45%) to a basal diet…
Level of feed intake on performance of two goat genotypes
There is a paucity of literature characterizing response to varying levels of feed intake in goats. A controlled experiment was designed at Prairie View A&M University (PVAMU) with purebred goats, to measure feed intake, and its subsequent effects on growth…
Effect of level of rumen protected CLA supplementation on milk yield and composition in Saanen goats
The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of level of rumen protected conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) 35 on milk yield and composition in Saanen goats. Eight multiparous goats were used in an eight animals and four periods…
Essential amino acid requirements of meat and milk goats
The essential amino acid (EAA) profile of the Boer goat and Saanen kids was investigated. The EAA composition of the components differed from the whole empty body (WEB) concentration. No significant differences between the two species WEB EAA composition were…
Feed intake and growth of Saanen kids weaned at 42 and 70 days of age
The effect of weaning age (42 vs. 70 days) on the feed intake and growth performance from seven to 140 days of age was investigated, using 58 male Saanen kids. Final body weight, average daily gain and feed conversion efficiency…
The effect of dietary protein degradability on production characteristics of lactating Saanen does
Twenty-one lactating Saanen goats of similar milk yield and lactation number were fed one of three experimental protein diets: low UDP (160 g CP/kg DM), high UDP, low protein (128 g CP/kg DM), and high UDP high protein (160 g…
Intake, digestibility and ruminal fermentation of ground and whole maize bran fed to American Alpine goats
A study was conducted to determine the effect of quantity and physical form of maize bran (CB) in diets of goats, on intake, digestibility and rumen fermentation. Sixteen male American Alpine goats weighing ca. 24 kg, were randomly assigned to…
Effect of live yeast culture supplementation on rumen fermentation in lactating dairy goats
Addition of yeast to dairy cow diets might be beneficial for milk production. However, data concerning goats are scarce, especially on the role of yeast on rumen metabolism. Thus, four goats, according to a cross-over design, received successively two diets…
Certain qualitative characteristics of Boscia foetida at different sites in South Africa
The aim of this study was to quantify the suitability of Boscia foetida as a fodder source for goats. Samples of leaves and twigs were taken in the Northern Cape and Limpopo provinces of South Africa. The concentrations of Ca,…
Qualitative evaluation of Cenchrus ciliaris cv. Molopo and Gayndah as foggage
The aim of the study was to determine the qualitative value of Cenchrus ciliaris cv. Molopo and Gayndah utilized by small ruminants as a foggage (standing hay). Molopo material had crude protein (CP) concentrations that varied from 76 to 101…
Seasonal variations in chemical composition and dry matter degradability of the forage consumed by goats in a highly deteriorate
The aim of this study was to determine the seasonal variations in chemical composition and dry matter (DM) degradability of the diet of grazing goats on a thorn scrubland in a semi-arid region of Durango, México. Extrusa samples from four…
