Hostname: page-component-848d4c4894-ttngx Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-05-22T01:24:58.827Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The effect in an intensive production system of type of cereal and time of weaning on the performance of lambs

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 September 2010

E. R. Ørskov ,
C. Fraser ,
J. C. Gill  and
Elizabeth L. Corse
E. R. Ørskov
Affiliation:
The Rowett Research Institute, Bucksburn, Aberdeen, AB2 9SB
C. Fraser
Affiliation:
The Rowett Research Institute, Bucksburn, Aberdeen, AB2 9SB
J. C. Gill
Affiliation:
The Rowett Research Institute, Bucksburn, Aberdeen, AB2 9SB
Elizabeth L. Corse
Affiliation:
The Rowett Research Institute, Bucksburn, Aberdeen, AB2 9SB
Get access

Summary

Two experiments were conducted to study the effect of type of cereal and time of weaning on the performance and voluntary intake of lambs.

In the first experiment 20 early-weaned entire male lambs were given diets ad libitum during the fattening period from 15 to 40 kg live weight. The diets were based on either kibbled maize or rolled barley. A high feed efficiency and growth rate were achieved with both diets and differences between them were not statistically significant. The growth rates were 428 and 430 g/day. The cold carcass weights at 40 kg live weight were 19·0 and 19·9 kg and the conversion ratios of dry matter to live-weight gain were 2·33 and 2·22 for the rolled barley and kibbled maize diets respectively.

In the second experiment a comparison was made of the performance of 36 sets of twin lambs, one of each set being weaned at either 6, 13 or 20 weeks of age and the other being left to suck the ewe outdoors. The lambs weaned at 6 weeks had better conversions of dry matter to live-weight gain than lambs weaned at 13 and 20 weeks. The respective conversions of dry matter to live-weight gain were 3·36, 5·64 and 5·52. The lambs weaned at either 13 or 20 weeks had a greater weight at weaning, a greater growth check at weaning and a lower rate of feed intake.

Type
Research Article
Information
Animal Production , Volume 13 , Issue 3 , August 1971 , pp. 485 - 492
Copyright
Copyright © British Society of Animal Science 1971

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

Andrews, R. P., Kay, M. and Ørskov, E. R. 1969. The effect of different dietary energy concentration on the voluntary intake and growth of intensively fed lambs. Anim. Prod. 11: 173–187.Google Scholar
Andrews, R. P. and Ørskov, E. R. 1970a. The nutrition of the early weaned lamb. I. The influence of protein concentration and feeding level on rate of gain in body weight. J. agric. Sci., Camb. 75: 11–18.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Andrews, R. P. and Ørskov, E. R. 1970b. The nutrition of the early weaned lamb. II. The effect of dietary protein concentration, feeding level and sex on body composition at two live weights. J. agric. Sci., Camb. 75: 19–29.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Andrews, R. P. and Ørskov, E. R. 1970C. A note on the effect of bulk density and digestibility on the voluntary intake of concentrate diets by sheep of two ages. J. Anim. Prod. 12: 335–338.Google Scholar
Armstrong, D. G., Blaxter, K. L. and Graham, N. MCC. 1960. Fat synthesis from glucose by sheep. Proc. Nutr. Soc. 19: XXI.Google Scholar
Hinds, F. S., Mansfield, M. E. and Lewis, J. M. 1960. Early weaning of lambs: A comparison of the performance of lambs weaned at six and nine weeks of age. J. Anim. Sci. 19: 1306.Google Scholar
Ørskov, E. R., Flatt, W. P. and Moe, P. W. 1968. Fermentation balance approach to estimate extent of fermentation and efficiency of volatile fatty acid formation in ruminants. J. Dairy Sci. 51: 1429–1435.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ørskov, E. R., Fraser, C. and Kay, R. N. B. 1969. Dietary factors influencing the digestion of starch in the rumen and small and large intestine of early weaned lambs. J. Nutr. 23: 217–226.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ørskov, E. R., Gill, J. C. and Corse, Elizabeth L. 1971. The fattening of crossbred hill lambs fed barley based concentrates with and without restricted amount of hay. Expl Husb. 20: 35–39.Google Scholar
Owen, J. B., Davies, D. A. R. and Ridgman, W. J. 1969. The control of voluntary intake in ruminants. Anim. Prod. 11: 511–520.Google Scholar