Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-v9fdk Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-09T16:12:11.346Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Lamb survival in two hill flocks

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 March 1959

A. F. Purser  and
G. B. Young
A. F. Purser
Affiliation:
A.R.C. Animal Breeding Research Organisation, Edinburgh, 9
G. B. Young
Affiliation:
A.R.C. Animal Breeding Research Organisation, Edinburgh, 9
Get access

Extract

The effects of birth weight, maternal age and parity on survival of single lambs have been studied in a Blackface and a Welsh Mountain flock.

In both flocks the maximum survival rate was found to occur among lambs with birth weights just above the mean. Mortality increased as lambs' birth weight increased or decreased from the optimum, but was especially heavy at the lower extreme of the range of birth weights.

Mortality decreased with age of dam to 14·3% for lambs from 4- to 6-year-old Blackface ewes and to 9·4% for lambs of 3- to 4-year-old Welsh ewes. Ewes having their first lambs gave mortality rates twice as great as for the mature ewes in the same flocks. The lower chances of survival of first born lambs irrespective of dam's age accounts for the apparent trend of mortality with maternal age in the Blackface.

Changes in mortality rates associated with variation in lamb's birth weight and with the age structure of the ewe flock were estimated. Possible means of improvement of survival rate are discussed.

Type
Research Article
Information
Animal Production , Volume 1 , Issue 1 , March 1959 , pp. 85 - 91
Copyright
Copyright © British Society of Animal Science 1959

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

REFERENCES

Berge, S., 1949. Svineavl. Grøndahl & Søns Forlag, Oslo.Google Scholar
Jespersen, J., & Clausen, H., 1950. Svineal og svinehold. Kandrup & Wunsch Bogtrykkeri, Copenhagen. 3rd ed.Google Scholar
Donald, H., & Purser, A., 1956. Competition in utero between twin lambs. J. agric. Sci., 48: 245.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fisher, R., & Yates, F., 1957. Statistical Tables for Biological, Agricultural and Medical Research. Oliver & Boyd, Edinburgh. 5th ed.Google Scholar
Fraccaro, M., 1956. A contribution to the study of birth weight based on an Italian sample. Ann. hum. Genet. (London.), 20: 282.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gibson, J., & McKeown, T., 1951. Observations on all births (23,970) in Birmingham, 1947. III. Survival. Brit. J. soc. Med., 5: 177.Google Scholar
Horsemann, H., 1950. Kindliche Masse und Neugeborenensterblichkeit. Naturwissenschafte., 18: 409.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hoversland, A., Safford, J., Van Horn, J., & Thomas, O., 1957. Factors associated with lamb mortality in range production. J. Anim.Sci., 16: 1108. (Soc. Proc.)Google Scholar
Karn, M., & Penrose, L., 1951. Birth weight and gestation time in relation to maternal age, parity and infant survival. Ann. Eugen. (Lond.)., 16: 147.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Moule, G., 1954. Observations on mortality amongst lambs in Queensland. Aust. vet. J., 30: 153.Google Scholar
Ragab, M., Asker, A., & Kadi, M., 1954. Some factors affecting mortality in Ossimi and Rahmani lambs. Indian J. vet. Sci., 24: 89.Google Scholar
Winters, L., Cummings, J., & Stewart, H., 1947. A study of factors affecting survival from birth to weaning and total weaning weight of the litter in swine. J. Anim. Sci., 6: 288.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed