Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-dsjbd Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-29T13:54:52.975Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Effects of ensiled forage legumes on performance of twin-bearing ewes and their progeny

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 March 2007

M. H. M. Speijers ,
M. D. Fraser ,
W. Haresign ,
V. J. Theobald  and
J. M. Moorby
M. H. M. Speijers*
Affiliation:
Institute of Grassland and Environmental Research, Plas Gogerddan, Aberystwyth SY23 3EB, UK Institute of Rural Studies, Llanbadarn Fawr, Aberystwyth SY23 3AL, UK
M. D. Fraser
Affiliation:
Institute of Grassland and Environmental Research, Plas Gogerddan, Aberystwyth SY23 3EB, UK
W. Haresign
Affiliation:
Institute of Rural Studies, Llanbadarn Fawr, Aberystwyth SY23 3AL, UK
V. J. Theobald
Affiliation:
Institute of Grassland and Environmental Research, Plas Gogerddan, Aberystwyth SY23 3EB, UK
J. M. Moorby
Affiliation:
Institute of Grassland and Environmental Research, Plas Gogerddan, Aberystwyth SY23 3EB, UK
*
† E-mail: [email protected]
Get access

Abstract

Twenty-four twin-bearing mature Mule ewes were used to evaluate the effects of feeding ensiled red clover (Trifolium pratense), lucerne (Medicago sativa) or perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) during late pregnancy on subsequent ewe and lamb performance. Eight weeks prior to lambing the ewes were individually penned and offered one of the treatment forages ad libitum (no. = 8 per silage). All ewes were supplemented with molassed sugar-beet shreds to avoid dietary energy being a limiting factor and to ensure the responses were primarily attributable to the forage protein content. Individual intakes of the ewes were determined daily and weekly measurements of ewe live weight and body condition score were made. The ewes were also scanned weekly for depths of subcutaneous fat and longissimus dorsi (LD) muscle. Blood samples were taken at 6, 4, 2, and 1 week(s) before lambing, 24 h after lambing and at 3 weeks after lambing and were analysed for serum concentrations of total protein (TP), albumin, urea, beta-hydroxybutyrate (BHB) and plasma concentrations of glucose and non-esterified fatty acid (NEFA). After lambing all ewes and their lambs were turned out to graze together on a ryegrass sward. The lambs were weighed at birth and at weekly intervals thereafter until 12 weeks post partum. The lucerne silage offered had a higher dry matter (DM) content than the red clover and ryegrass silages (367, 305 and 314 g DM per kg fresh matter, respectively; P < 0·001). Forage type significantly affected crude protein (CP) concentration (240, 215 and 182 g CP per kg DM for lucerne, red clover and ryegrass silages, respectively) and metabolizable energy (ME) density (11·1, 11·6 and 10·8 MJ ME per kg DM respectively). Ewes offered the legume silages had higher intakes of DM, CP and ME than ewes offered ryegrass silage (P < 0·05), which was reflected in higher ewe live-weight gain (P < 0·05) but not in litter birth weight (P > 0·05). Silage treatment affected serum concentrations of TP, albumin, globulins and urea during the last 4 weeks of pregnancy (P < 0·05). Lambs born from ewes offered lucerne and red clover silages prior to lambing had higher growth rates from birth to 3 weeks of age than those from ewes offered ryegrass silage (320, 323 and 282 g/day, respectively; P < 0·05). Lamb live weight at 12 weeks of age was higher for lambs from ewes that had been offered the red clover silage, at 29·1 kg compared with 26·7 and 27·1 kg for lambs from ewes previously offered lucerne and ryegrass silages (P < 0·05). In conclusion, the results showed that red clover and lucerne silages are better able to meet nutrient requirements of ewes in late pregnancy than grass silage.

Keywords

ewesgrowthlambslucerneTrifolium pratense
Type
Research Article
Information
Animal Science , Volume 81 , Issue 2 , October 2005 , pp. 271 - 282
Copyright
Copyright © British Society of Animal Science 2005

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Agricultural and Food Research Council. 1993. Energy and protein requirements of ruminants. An advisory manual prepared by the AFRC Technical Committee on Responses to Nutrients. CAB International, Wallingford, Oxon.Google Scholar
Campling, R. C. 1984. Lucerne, red clover and other forage legumes: feeding value and animal production. In Forage legumes (ed. Thomson D. J.), British Grassland Society occasional symposium no. 16, pp. 140–146. The British Grassland Society, Hurley, Maidenhead.Google Scholar
Chapple, D. G., Wheeler, K. P. A. and Perrott, G. 1998. Evaluation of sugar beet feeds and maize distillers' dark grain as supplements for pregnant ewes fed straw-based diets. Proceedings of the British Society of Animal Science, p. 102.Google Scholar
Donald, H. P. and Russell, W. S. 1970. The relationship between live weight of ewe at mating and weight of newborn lamb. Animal Production 12: 273–280.Google Scholar
Everts, H. 1990a. Feeding strategy during pregnancy for ewes with a large litter size. 1. Effect of quantity and composition of concentrates on intake and reproductive performance. Netherlands Journal of Agricultural Science 38: 527–540.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Everts, H. 1990b. Feeding strategy during pregnancy for ewes with a large litter size. 2. Effect on blood parameters and energy status. Netherlands Journal of Agricultural Science 38: 541–554.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Frame, J., Charlton, J. F. L. and Laidlaw, A. S. 1998. Temperate forage legumes. CAB International, Wallingford, Oxon.Google Scholar
Fraser, M. D., Fychan, R. and Jones, R. 2000. Voluntary intake, digestiblity and nitrogen utilization by sheep fed ensiled forage legumes. Grass and Forage Science 55: 271–279.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Frutos, P., Buratovich, O., Giráldez, F. J., Mantecón, A. R. and Wright, I. A. 1998. Effects on maternal and foetal traits of feeding supplement to grazing pregnant ewes. Animal Science 66: 667–673.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Holmes, W. 1989. Grass – its production and utilization. Blackwell Scientific Publications, British Grassland Society, Oxford.Google Scholar
Jamot, J. and Grenet, E. 1991. Microscopic investigation of changes in histology and digestibility in the rumen of a forage grass and a forage legume during the 1st growth stage. Reproduction, Nutrition, Development 31: 441–450.Google Scholar
Jones, D. I. H. and Hayward, M. V. 1975. The effect of pepsin pre-treatment of herbage on the prediction of dry matter digestibility from solubility in fungal enzyme solutions. Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture 26: 711–718.Google Scholar
Kaneko, J. J. 1989. Clinical biochemistry of domestic animals. Academic Press, London, UK.Google Scholar
Kenward, M. G. 1987. A method for comparing profiles of repeated measurements. Applied Statistics 36: 296–308.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Khalaf, A. M., Doxey, D. L., Baxter, J. T., Black, W. J. M., Fitzsimons, J. and Ferguson, J. A. 1979. Late pregnancy ewe feeding and lamb performance in early life. 1. Pregnancy feeding levels and perinatal lamb mortality. Animal Production 29: 393–399.Google Scholar
Lawes Agricultural Trust. 2002. GenStat VI release 6·1. Rothamsted Experimental Station, Harpenden.Google Scholar
Lindsay, D. B. 1978. The effect of feeding pattern and sampling procedure on blood parameters. British Society of Animal Production occasional publication no. 1, pp. 99–120.Google Scholar
McDonald, P., Edwards, R. A., Greenhalgh, J. F. D. and Morgan, C. A. 1995. Animal nutrition. Longman Group Ltd, Essex.Google Scholar
McNeill, D. M., Kelly, R. W. and Williams, I. H. 1997. The partition of nutrients in ewes maintained in a moderate compared with a lean body condition in late pregnancy. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 48: 743–752.Google Scholar
Meat Livestock Commission. 1981. Feeding the ewe. Sheep Improvement Services, Meat Livestock Commission, Milton Keynes.Google Scholar
Meat Livestock Commission. 1983. Getting ewes ready for tupping. In Sheep management matters, no. 1. Meat Livestock Commission, Milton Keynes.Google Scholar
Merry, R. J., Dhanoa, M. S. and Theodorou, M. K. 1995. Use of freshly cultured lactic acid bacteria as silage inoculants. Grass and Forage Science 50: 112–123.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food. 1986. The analysis of agricultural materials. Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, reference book 427. Her Majesty's Stationery Office, London.Google Scholar
Molina, E., Ferret, A., Caja, G., Calsamiglia, S., Such, X. and Gasa, J. 2001. Comparison of voluntary food intake, apparent digestibility, digesta kinetics and digestive tract content in Manchega and Lacauna dairy sheep in late pregnancy and early and mid lactation. Animal Science 72: 209–221.Google Scholar
Moorby, J. M., Dewhurst, R. J., Evans, R. T. and Fisher, W. J. 2002. Effects of level of concentrate feeding during the second gestation of Holstein-Friesian dairy cows. 2. Nitrogen balance and plasma metabolites. Journal of Dairy Science 85: 178–189.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
O'doherty, J. V. 1994. Alternative methods of forage supplementation and their effects on ewe and lamb performance. Ph. D. thesis, University of Dublin.Google Scholar
O'Doherty, J. V. and Crosby, T. F. 1996. The effects of feeding grass silage and molassed sugar-beet pulp either separately or as an ensiled mixture on the nutritional status and colostrum production of twin-bearing pregnant ewes. Irish Journal of Agricultural and Food Research 35: 99–112.Google Scholar
O'Doherty, J. V. and Crosby, T. F. 1998. Blood metabolite concentrations in late pregnant ewes as indicators of nutritional status. Animal Science 66: 675–683.Google Scholar
Orr, R. J. and Treacher, T. T. 1989. The effect of concentrate level on the intake of grass silages by ewes in late pregnancy. Animal Production 48: 109–120.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Patterson, D. S. P. 1963. some observations on the estimation of non-esterified fatty acid concentrations in cow and sheep plasma. Research in Veterinary Science 4: 230–237.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Paul, C., Auerbach, H. and Schild, G. -J. 2002. Intake of legume silages by sheep. Landbauforschung Völkenrode, Sonderheft 234: 33–38.Google Scholar
Prewitt, L. R., Kertz, A. F., Lane, A. G., Campbell, J. R. and Weinman, D. E. 1971. Effects of dietary protein on blood, urine, and milk composition. American Journal of Veterinary Research 32: 393–397.Google ScholarPubMed
Reid, R. L. and Hinks, N. T. 1962. Studies on the carbohydrate metabolism of sheep. XVII. Feed requirements and voluntary feed intake in late pregnancy, with particular reference to prevention of hypoglycaemia and hyperketonaemia. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 13: 1092–1111.Google Scholar
Robinson, J. J. 1983. Nutrient requirement of the breeding ewe. In Recent advances in animal nutrition (ed. Haresign, W.), pp. 143–161. Butterworths, London.Google Scholar
Robinson, J. J. 1985. Nutritional requirements of the pregnant and lactating ewe. In Genetics of reproduction in sheep (ed. Land, R. B. and Robinson, D. W.), pp. 361–371. Butterworths, London.Google Scholar
Robinson, J. J. 1987. Energy and protein requirements of the ewe. In Recent advances in animal nutrition; studies in the agricultural and food sciences (ed. Haresign, W. and Cole, D. J. A.), pp. 187–204. Butterworths, London.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Robinson, J. J. and Forbes, T. J. 1968. The effect of protein intake during gestation on ewe and lamb performance. Animal Production 10: 297–309.Google Scholar
Robinson, J. J., Rooke, J. A. and McEvoy, T. G. 2002. Nutrition for conception and pregnancy. In Sheep nutrition (ed. Freer, M. and Dove, H.), pp. 189–211. CABI Publishing, Wallingford, Oxon.Google Scholar
Russel, A. J. F. 1984. Means of assessing the adequacy of nutrition of pregnant ewes. Livestock Production Science 11: 429–436.Google Scholar
Russel, A. J. F. 1985. Farm practice: nutrition of the pregnant ewe. In Practice January(7): 23–28.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Schmidt, S. R. and Keith, R. K. 1983. Effects of diet and energy intake on kinetics of glucose metabolism in steers. Journal of Nutrition 113: 2155–2165.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sheehan, W., Lawlor, M. J. and Bath, I. H. 1979. Silage intakes in relation to the energy requirements of ewes in late pregnancy. Irish Journal of Agricultural Research 18: 97–103.Google Scholar
Sormunen-Cristian, R. and Jauhiainen, L. 2001. Comparison of hay and silage for pregnant and lactating Finnish Landrace ewes. Small Ruminant Research 39: 47–57.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sykes, A. R. and Thompson, R. 1978. The relationship between serum albumin concentration and protein loss in pregnant sheep. Journal of Agricultural Science, Cambridge 91: 173–179.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thomas, T. A. 1977. An automated procedure for the determination of soluble carbohydrates in herbage. Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture 28: 639–642.Google Scholar
Treacher, T. T. 1970. Effects of nutrition in late pregnancy on subsequent milk production in ewes. Animal Production 12: 23–36.Google Scholar
Ulyatt, M. J., Dellow, D. W., John, A., Reid, C. S. W. and Waghorn, G. C. 1986. Contribution of chewing during eating and rumination to the clearance of digesta from the ruminoreticulum. In Control of digestion and metabolism in ruminants (ed. Milligan L. P., Grovum W. L. and Dobson A.), proceedings of the VIth international symposium on ruminant physiology, Banff, Canada pp. 498–515. Prentice Hall, Englewoods Cliffs, USA.Google Scholar
Van Soest, P. J., Robertson, J. B. and Lewis, B. A. 1991. Methods for dietary fiber, neutral detergent fiber, and nonstarch polysaccharides in relation to animal nutrition. Journal of Dairy Science 74: 3583–3597.Google Scholar
Waghorn, G. C., Shelton, I. D. and Thomas, V. J. 1989. Particle breakdown and rumen digestion of fresh ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) and lucerne (Medicago sativa L.) fed to cow during a restricited feeding period. British Journal of Nutrition 61: 409–423.Google Scholar
Zhu, W. -J., Kinston-Smith, A. H., Tronscoso, D., Merry, R. J., Davies, D. R., Pichard, G., Thomas, H. and Theodorou, M. K. 1999. Evidence of a role for plant proteases in the degradation of herbage proteins in the rumen. Journal of Dairy Science 82: 261–265.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed