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Artificial rearing as a system for evaluating male lambs

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 September 2010

D. A. R. Davies ,
J. B. Owen  and
J. L. Read
D. A. R. Davies
Affiliation:
Department of Applied Biology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge
J. B. Owen
Affiliation:
Department of Applied Biology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge
J. L. Read
Affiliation:
Meat and Livestock Commission, P.O. Box 44, Queensway House, Bletchley, Milton Keynes, MK2 2EF
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Abstract

The use of an artificial rearing system to provide controlled environment conditions for performance testing of male lambs was investigated in two trials. A sample of lambs from 5 fat-lamb sire breeds was included.

Performance during the initial restricted milk-feeding period was uniform but large differences in solid food intake gave variable performance in the adjustment period immediately following weaning. Lambs were evaluated from 40 days onwards in terms of growth rate and efficiency of food conversion. Some breed differences were significant and the variation within groups was sufficiently high to suggest that performance might be improved by within-group selection.

Estimates from Trial 2 show that food conversion efficiency was related to growth rate, but early and late performance in the evaluation period were not correlated (r = 0·12, 0·16 and 0·14 for growth rate, food intake and efficiency, respectively). Some refinements of the method are suggested, and it is concluded that the system could provide suitable conditions for testing male lambs at an early age without the variable influence of the dam.

Type
Research Article
Information
Animal Production , Volume 26 , Issue 1 , February 1978 , pp. 31 - 38
Copyright
Copyright © British Society of Animal Science 1978

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References

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