Effect of concentrate supplement and sward height on twin-bearing ewe body condition and the performance of their offspring

Kerslake, J. I.; Kenyon, P. R.; St, Morris; Stafford, Kevin J.; Morel, P. C. H.

doi:10.1071/ea08041

Cited by 8 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 14 publications

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“…4 m troughs. An amount of 400 g/day was chosen because the previous research has shown that offering 400 g/day to twin-bearing ewes grazing a restricted herbage sward height increases lamb birth weight (Kerslake et al 2008), whereas offering 200 g/day did not . Throughout pregnancy, ewes were set stocked in two 2 .…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…From P102 until parturition, concentrate supplemented ewes were offered 400 g/day/ewe of sheep pellets (903 g/kg dry matter (DM), 141 g/kg DM crude protein (CP), 126 g/kg DM of lipid, calculated metabolizable energy (ME) content of 12·3 MJ/kg DM; Universal stock feed, Harvey Farms Ltd, Wanganui, New Zealand) in two 2·5×0·4 m troughs. An amount of 400 g/day was chosen because the previous research has shown that offering 400 g/day to twin-bearing ewes grazing a restricted herbage sward height increases lamb birth weight (Kerslake et al 2008), whereas offering 200 g/day did not (Kenyon et al 2005 a ). Throughout pregnancy, ewes were set stocked in two 2·0 ha paddocks at a rate of 17 ewes/ha.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The effect of offering concentrate supplement to twin- and triplet-bearing ewes grazing a 60 mm herbage sward height on lamb birth weight, heat production and post-natal growth

et al. 2009

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SU MMARYThe current study investigated the effect of offering concentrate supplement to ewes in late pregnancy on twin-and triplet-born lamb heat production at 24-36 h old and performance from birth until lactation day 94 (L94). Twin-(n=40) and triplet-bearing (n=28) ewes were grazed on a 60 mm sward height from day 70 of pregnancy (P70) until L94. From P100, half of the ewes from each litter size were offered 400 g/ewe/day of concentrate sheep pellets. Ewe liveweight and body condition were recorded on P50, 100, 130, 135 and 140. Ewe blood samples were also collected on P130, 135 and 140, and ewe herbage intake was estimated from P133-136 using the n-alkane method. Lamb measurements included liveweight and body size at birth, production of heat using indirect open-circuit calorimetry at 24-36 h old and liveweight at L94. Blood samples were also collected from lambs at 24-36 h old and directly before and after calorimetry measurements. While estimates of ewe herbage intake suggested that substitution of herbage for concentrate did not occur, offering concentrate supplement failed to improve ewe liveweight gain, or birth weight of lambs. Offering concentrate supplement, however, did have a positive effect (P<0 . 05) on the maximal amount of heat a tripletborn lamb can produce on a per kg of body weight basis (concentrate 21¡1 . 3 W/kg, non-concentrate 17¡0 . 6 W/kg). It also had a positive effect (P<0 . 05) on lamb square-root-transformed plasma gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT) concentrations, an indicator of colostrum uptake (concentrate 46¡3 . 1 U/l, non-concentrate 38¡2 . 9 U/l). Irrespective of lamb birth rank, offering concentrate supplement had a positive effect (P<0 . 01) on liveweight gain per day from birth until L94 (concentrate 261¡5 . 7 g/day, non-concentrate 239¡5 . 8 g/day), although there was no effect on the total weight of lamb reared/ewe. Supplementation with concentrate resulted in triplet-born lambs that produced more heat which may have positive effects on the ability of the newborn lamb to deal with cold stress and potentially its survival. Offering concentrate supplement also produced greater lamb growth in twin-and triplet-born lambs.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The effect of offering concentrate supplement to twin- and triplet-bearing ewes grazing a 60 mm herbage sward height on lamb birth weight, heat production and post-natal growth

et al. 2009

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“…The amount of 400 g/day was chosen because previous research has shown that offering 400 g/day to twin-bearing ewes grazing a restricted herbage sward height increases lamb birth weight (Kerslake et al 2008), whereas offering 200 g/day did not (Kenyon et al 2005b). During the concentrate feeding period, troughs were checked daily for residuals; however, there were none during the entire feeding period.…”

Section: Experimental Designmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…While offering concentrates to ewes grazing low-quality low herbage allowances in late pregnancy has been shown to have a positive effect on ewe and/or lamb performance (Hall et al 1992;Stephenson & Bird 1992;Banchero et al 2004), only a few studies have looked at offering concentrate on a high herbage allowance (Hinch et al 1996;Kerslake et al 2008Kerslake et al , 2009. The aim of this study was thus to investigate the effects of offering concentrate supplements during late pregnancy, to twin-and triplet-bearing ewes grazing a 6 cm sward height, on ewe and lamb performance.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Does offering concentrate supplement during late pregnancy affect twin- and triplet-bearing ewe and lamb performance?

Kerslake

Kenyon

Morris

et al. 2010

New Zealand Journal of Agricultural Research

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This study investigated the effect of offering concentrate supplement during late pregnancy on twin-and triplet-bearing ewe and lamb performance. Twin-(n 040) and triplet-bearing (n 020) ewes were grazed on a 6 cm herbage height from day 70 of pregnancy until parturition. From pregnancy day 102, half of the ewes from each litter size were offered 400 g/ewe per day of concentrate sheep pellets. From day 102 until day 145 of pregnancy, ewes offered concentrate gained 60 g more liveweight per day than ewes offered pasture only (PB 0.01). Ewes offered concentrate were also under less metabolic stress in late pregnancy, as indicated by lower (PB0.05) plasma beta-hydroxybutyrate (BOH) and non-esterified fatty acid (NEFA) concentrations. Offering concentrate increased lamb birth weight from 3.9 to 4.2 kg (PB 0.05) and tended to increase lamb plasma gamma-glutamyl-transferase (GGT) concentrations at age 24Á 36 h (P0 0.08). It had no effect, however, on lamb plasma glucose or immuno-globulin G (IgG) concentrations within 24Á36 h of age, lamb growth from birth until day 52 of lactation or lamb survival. Ewes offered concentrate reared a greater total weight of lamb to day 52 of lactation than ewes offered pasture only. The economic viability of offering a concentrate to these ewes grazing a 6 cm sward could not be established.

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“…E-mail: rene.corner@estendart.co.nz lamb birth weight than in mid pregnancy. In addition, offering ewes a concentrate supplement in late pregnancy can result in an increase in the birth weight of twin lambs (Banchero et al, 2007;Kerslake et al, 2008), further indicating the importance of late pregnancy nutrition from a birth weight perspective.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The effects of pasture availability for twin- and triplet-bearing ewes in mid and late pregnancy on ewe and lamb behaviour 12 to 24 h after birth

Corner

Kenyon

Stafford

et al. 2010

Animal

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This experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of offering ewes two different feeding levels, during mid and late pregnancy, on ewe and lamb behaviour 12 to 24 h after birth. Romney ewes, bearing twin (n = 80) or triplet foetuses (n = 56), were allocated to a pasture sward height of 2 or 4 cm between 70 and 107 days of pregnancy. In late pregnancy (day 107 to 147), half of the ewes were reallocated the alternate sward height, which produced four treatments: 2-2, 2-4, 4-2 and 4-4. Ewes were weighed on days 65, 92, 107 and 130 of pregnancy and lamb live weights were recorded 12 to 24 h after birth. Twelve to 24 h after birth the maternal behaviour score (MBS) of the ewes were determined, whilst their lambs were tagged. After the lambs were released, the behaviour of each ewe and her lambs was observed for 5 min. Ewe treatment and litter size had no effect on ewe MBS. However, as MBS increased (ewes stayed closer to lambs during tagging), ewes bleated less in a high-pitch and were quicker to make contact with their lamb. During the observation period, ewes in the 4-4 treatment had a greater percentage of their bleats in a low pitch (P < 0.05) than ewes in the 2-2 and 4-2 treatment (61.3% v. 41.3% and 38.8% low bleats, respectively) and more lambs born to 4-4 ewes (95%) bleated than lambs born to 2-2 ewes (84%; P < 0.05). However, lambs born to ewes in the 2-2 treatment bleated earlier than lambs in all other treatments (P < 0.05). Lambs born to 4-4 ewes were less likely (P < 0.05) to move towards their dam in order to make contact than lambs born to 2-2 or 4-2 ewes (3.1% v. 16.9% and 16.7%, respectively). These findings suggest that under the conditions of the present study, ewe nutrition had little effect on maternal behaviour. However, lambs born to ewes offered 2 cm pasture sward heights during mid and/or late pregnancy (2-2, 2-4 and 4-2 treatments) displayed behaviour that demonstrated greater 'need' whereas lambs born to ewes offered 4 cm during mid and late pregnancy sought less attention from their dam.

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Effect of concentrate supplement and sward height on twin-bearing ewe body condition and the performance of their offspring

Cited by 8 publications

References 14 publications

The effect of offering concentrate supplement to twin- and triplet-bearing ewes grazing a 60 mm herbage sward height on lamb birth weight, heat production and post-natal growth

The effect of offering concentrate supplement to twin- and triplet-bearing ewes grazing a 60 mm herbage sward height on lamb birth weight, heat production and post-natal growth

Does offering concentrate supplement during late pregnancy affect twin- and triplet-bearing ewe and lamb performance?

The effects of pasture availability for twin- and triplet-bearing ewes in mid and late pregnancy on ewe and lamb behaviour 12 to 24 h after birth

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