SELECTION ACHIEVEMENTS OF PEDIGREE CHARACTERISTICS OF SOVIET MERINO SHEEP BREED IN THE CONDITIONS OF NORTH CAUCASUS
Nowadays, sheep breeding in the Stavropol Territory remains the main type of animal husbandry. It is a specialized industry with the richest gene pool. In terms of sheep products it has no equal among other types of livestock breeding. In terms of specific weight of gross output it takes the second place after grain. As for the fine wool production it ranks third in the country after the Republic of Kalmykia. Despite the crisis state of all livestock industries, sheep breeding still holds the position as a strategic base for rapid recovery. Increased production should be achieved through the development and implementation of advanced technologies for stock reproduction, the use of new technical means, as well as the efficient use of pastures. The article shows the results of the research during the improvement of the flock for the period from 2017 to 2021 in the agricultural production cooperative named after Lenin, where fine-wool Soviet Merino sheep are bred. Analysis of pedigree and productive characteristics of sheep flock was carried out. It was found out that the class composition of the group of rams was high enough and accounted for 100% of the elite livestock. As for the female part of the flock, elite class ranged from 84.9 to 95.2% during that period. Shearings of virgin wool of all age and sex groups of sheep exceeded the minimum requirements for the productivity characteristics of wool sheep by 0.3-0.9 kg or 0.17-0.37%, which played the major role in increasing the pedigree and productive characteristics of sheep.