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
Genetic trends in a South African Mutton Merino nucleus breeding scheme
Genetic parameters and trends were estimated for 2296 lambs from a SA Mutton Merino nucleus breeding scheme using multiple trait mixed model procedures. Direct heritability estimates obtained for the traits were 0.32 for weaning weight, 0.03 for post-weaning average daily…
Prediction of cattle performance on Coastcross 2 at different fertilizer and stocking rates
The performance of young cattle, grazing Coastcross 2 (a cynodon hybrid) was studied at two sites in the Eastern Cape (Republic of South Africa). The rainfall and the fertilization rates at the two sites differed. Three stocking rates were applied…
The influence of stocking rate, growth implant, energy and ionophore supplementation on the performance of weaner wethers grazin
The performance of 98 Merino weaner lambs at two stocking rates (55 and 68 lambs/ha), with access to either no supplementation, 250 g molasses meal/lamb/day or 250 g molasses meal plus 35 mg ionophore (lasalocid)/lamb/day, with or without a growth…
Dietary influences on lutein pigments and carcass fat quality in wethers of different maturity types
The aim of this research was to study the effect of high-maize diets and pelleting on the accumulation of lutein pigments and appearance of the subcutaneous fat in Dorper and SA Mutton Merino wethers. High and medium energy maize diets…
The effect of temperature on the hatching performance of ostrich chicks, and its implications for artificial incubation in force
Batches of 60-65 ostrich eggs were incubated in electronic incubators at 36.09, 36.5 and 37.3°C. The proportion of live chicks hatched relative to eggs set at 37.3°C (22/65 = 0.338) was impaired (p < 0.05) relative to those incubated at…
A critical look at the use of exotic bulls in traditional beef farming in Botswana
Data of indigenous and exotic bull breeds used between 1987 and 1995 were available from Ramatlabama Bull Stud and Artificial Insemination Laboratory. The bull breeds include indigenous breeds: Tswana, Tuli, Bonsmara and Africander and exotic breeds: Brahman, Simmental, Hereford, South…
Effect of water intake on the nitrogen balance of sheep fed a low or a medium protein diet
Mutton merino wethers (n = 16) fed either a low nitrogen (LN, with a crude protein [CP] content = 5.4%) or a medium nitrogen (MN, with CP = 10.3%) diet were subjected to two water treatments; either ad libitum or…
Meat quality and carcass characteristics of the vondo, Thryonomys swinderianus
Animals, maintained from birth on a higher and lower fibre diet, were slaughtered when postnatal growth curves flattened off. Males tended to be larger than females. The meat of females tended to have higher lipid (9.2 g/100 g fresh mass)…
Multitrait estimation of direct and maternal (co)variances for growth and efficiency traits in a multibreed beef cattle herd
Estimates of (co)variance components were obtained for growth and efficiency traits in a multibreed synthetic beef cattle herd. Components were estimated simultaneously by fitting four alternative seven-trait models. Direct heritabilities varied according to the model fitted but were higher for…
Supplementation of selenium to sheep grazing kikuyu or ryegrass: I. Selenium status of unsupplemented sheep and animal performa
The selenium (Se) status of lambs grazing kikuyu (Pennisetum clandestinum) or ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum) in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands was determined during four trials and their growth response to Se supplementation was measured. Two methods of Se supplementation were evaluated using…
Supplementation of selenium to sheep grazing kikuyu or ryegrass: II.Effect on selenium concentration in the grass and body tissu
The investigation entailed four trials in which selenium (Se) was supplemented to lambs grazing kikuyu (Pennisetum clandestinum) pastures during two summer periods or Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum) pastures during two winter periods. Two methods of supplementing the lambs were tested,…
Effects of time of egg collection and pre-incubation treatment on blastoderm development and embryonic mortality in ostrich embr
The hatching success of artificially incubated ostrich eggs can be influenced by egg management prior to setting the eggs in the incubator. This can include the length of time and conditions to which eggs are exposed in nests prior to…
Some non-genetic factors affecting commercial pig production in Zimbabwe
The effect of environmental factors on pre-weaning performance traits was studied using 3556 records collected between 1980 and 1995. Sow performance in terms of number born alive was higher if sows farrowed in summer months of October to April than…
Heritability estimates for merino sheep obtained from a national progeny test (Short Communication)
Data of 5342 progeny from 232 sires from 30 genetically linked flocks, collected through the National Progeny Testing program for Merino sheep from 1991 to 1996, were used to estimate heritabilities for several production and type traits. The traits analysed…
The effect of the anabolic agent, nandrolone laurate, on certain production and reproduction parameters in ram lambs, under inte
Forty Dorper ram lambs were allocated to two trails. In the first trial (intensively housed) and second trial (extensively maintained), one group (n + 10) in each trial was treated weekly with an intramuscular injection of an anabolic steroid (50…
The substitution of lucerne hay with ammoniated wheat straw in diets for lactating dairy cows
The effect of substituting lucerne hay (LH) with ammoniated wheat straw (AWS) in diets for lactating Holstein Friesland cows was investigated in two trials. In Trial 1 four roughage diets containing LH and AWS in the following ratio`s of 100:0;…
