Comparison of non-linear growth models to describe the growth curve of Mehraban sheep

In order to describe the growth curves in Iranian Mehraban sheep, five non-linear mathematical equations (Brody, Negative exponential, Logistic, Gompertz and Von Bertalanffy) were used. The data set used in this study was obtained from the Agricultural Organization of Hamedan province and comprised 35,414 weight records of lambs which were collected from birth to 365 days of age during 1991–2011. Each model was fitted separately to body weight records of all lambs, male and female lambs and single and twin lambs using the NLIN and MODEL procedures in SAS. The models were tested for goodness of fit using adjusted coefficient of determination ($R_{{\rm adj}}^2 $ ), root mean square error (RMSE), Durbin–Watson statistic (DW), Akaike’s information criterion (AIC) and Bayesian information criterion (BIC). The Brody model provided the best fit of growth curve in all lambs, male and female lambs and single and twin lambs due to the lower values of AIC and BIC than other models. The Logistic model provided the worst fit of growth curve for all lambs, male and female lambs and single and twin lambs. Evaluation of different growth equations used in this study indicated the potential of the non-linear functions for fitting body weight records of Mehraban sheep