Abstract
Background: In Libya, goats are considered as one of the most important livestock in which there are many breeds of goats such as Kurdi, Hegazi, Cyprus, Shami, and Mahali. A little hematological and biochemical information is known on these goat breeds raised in Libya. Aim: The main purpose was to verify the effect of breed variations on the hematological and biochemical parameters of goat breeds raised in Libya. Methods: The blood samples were collected in the winter season from 70 clinically healthy animals of different breeds for hematology and biochemical analysis. Results: Regarding the effect of breeds on blood hematology, significantly higher number (p < 0.01) of Mid cells were found in Hegazi (3.12 ± 1.30 × 103/μl) and Cyprus (2.41 ± 1.69 × 103/μl) when compared to other goat’s breeds including Kurdi (2.28 ± 0.95 × 103/μl), Shami (1.90 ± 0.84 × 103/μl), and Mahali (1.37 ± 0.88 × 103/μl). Moreover, the percentage of Mid cells was highest in Hegazi (22.34% ± 9.40%), 11.40% ± 4.34%), followed by Kurdi (17.71% ± 8.16%), Cyprus (15.84% ± 8.33%), Shami (13.38% ± 5.76%), and lowest in Mahali (11.40% ± 4.34%). There are significant differences (p < 0. 01) in hemoglobin (Hb), red blood cells (RBCs), hematocrit (HCT), mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH), red cell width distribution-coefficient of variation (RDW-CV, %), and red cell distribution widthstandard deviation (RDW-SD, fl) values among all different breeds of Libyan goats. The results of biochemistry displayed significant changes among the studied goats’ breeds, where the highest serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT, U/L) activity was observed in Cyprus (17.81 ± 7.95) and Shami (17.27 ± 1.15) compared with Hegazi (15.31 ± 6.13) and Mahali (14.60 ± 0.46), while Kurdi breed (11.68 ± 7.95) showed the lowest ALT activity. Moreover, significant differences (p < 0.01) in serum lactate dehydrogenase (LDH, U/l), total and direct bilirubin, glucose (GLU), creatinine, lipid profile, and electrolyte levels were recorded among different breeds used in this study. On the other hand, non-significant variations (p >0. 05) are reported in aspartate aminotransferase (U/l), alkaline phosphatase (U/l), total protein (g/dl), albumin (g/dl), urea and magnesium (Mg, mg/dl) levels. Conclusion: These results showed a significant difference between some blood parameters of goat breeds raised in Libya. This could aid veterinarians in interpreting laboratory data properly in order to improve the management and conservation of those breeds.