Biometric measures of dairy goats were taken to estimate equations for prediction of weight and carcass characteristics of animals with different nutritional conditions. An experiment was carried out into two phases, with 27 male Saanen goats at each one. The animals were assigned to the following feeding groups: ad libitum, 30 and 60% of restriction. The initial live weight (LW) was 5 kg at the Phase 1 and 20 kg at the Phase 2, the animals were slaughtered when they reached 20 and 35 kg of LW, respectively. The biometric measurements and body conditions were determined when the animals were alive. After the slaughter and 24 hours of chilling, were evaluated the carcass characteristics. The fasted live weight (FLW), cold carcass weight (CCW) and carcass compactness were estimated in function of the biometric measurements. Among the biometric measurements, thoracic perimeter and body length showed the best adjustment for FLW, CCW and compactness estimation, and are recommended, because of its precision and easy execution.
biometric; body length; compactness; goats; score corporal; thoracic circumference
