Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-dlnhk Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-01T04:06:22.243Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The effects of quantity and distribution of milk substitute on the performance of artificially reared lambs to forty-eight days of age

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 September 2010

P. D. Penning ,
K. M. Cottrell  and
T. T. Treacher
P. D. Penning
Affiliation:
The Grassland Research Institute, Hurley, Maidenhead, Berks, SL6 SLR
K. M. Cottrell
Affiliation:
The Grassland Research Institute, Hurley, Maidenhead, Berks, SL6 SLR
T. T. Treacher
Affiliation:
The Grassland Research Institute, Hurley, Maidenhead, Berks, SL6 SLR
Get access

Summary

Twenty-seven groups of Finnish Landrace × Dorset Horn lambs, each of two males and two females, were offered daily quantities of 180, 248 or 343 g milk substitute dry matter (DM) for 21, 29 or 40 days. The environmental temperature was 18°C during the first 21 days of rearing, and concentrate pellets and clean water were always available. From 22 to 48 days of age the lambs were offered 150 g of hay per week.

For lambs offered 180 g milk substitute DM, increasing the number of days before weaning increased the daily live-weight gain over the 47-day experimental period. For daily allowances of 248 and 343 g of milk substitute, greater gains were effected only by delaying weaning from 21 to 29 days.

Increasing the daily allowance of milk substitute DM had little effect on the daily gain of lambs weaned after 21 days but increased gain by lambs weaned at 29 days. For lambs weaned after 40 days growth rate was increased only by the first increment of milk substitute DM. Intake of solid food began when the lambs were 3 weeks old and total intake of concentrates was inversely related to total quantity of milk substitute DM consumed and in general was less when weaning was later.

The overall efficiency of conversion of total DM consumed to live weight was positively related to total milk substitute DM consumed and tended to be greatest when weaning was later. A daily allowance of 180 g milk substitute DM for 21 days gave the lowest food cost per unit of live-weight gain.

The incidence of navel sucking is discussed.

Type
Research Article
Information
Animal Production , Volume 17 , Issue 2 , October 1973 , pp. 179 - 186
Copyright
Copyright © British Society of Animal Science 1973

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

Davies, D. A. R. 1970. Performance of lambs in artificial rearing systems. Anim. Prod. 12: 367 (Abstr.).Google Scholar
Davies, D. A. R. and Owen, J. B. 1967. The intensive rearing of lambs. 1. Some factors affecting performance in the liquid feeding period. Anim. Prod. 9: 501–507.Google Scholar
Hunter, G. L., Vosloo, L. P., Grobbelaar, J. and Van niekerk, C. H. 1972. Pre- and post-weaning performance of artificially reared lambs. S. Afr. J. Anim. Sci. 2: 75–78.Google Scholar
Molènat, G., Thèriez, M., and Aguer, D. 1971. Artificial rearing of lambs. 1. Determination of the minimum age at weaning for meat production. Annls Zootech. 20: 339–352.Google Scholar
Morgan, J. A. and Owen, J. B. 1972a. The nutrition of artificially reared lambs. 1. The effect of different feeding methods applied at three stages of growth. Anim. Prod. 15: 285–292.Google Scholar
Morgan, J. A. and Owen, J. B. 1972b. The nutrition of artificially reared lambs. 2. The effect of feed restriction at three stages of growth on growth and carcass composition. Anim. Prod. 15: 293–300.Google Scholar
Morgan, J. A. and Owen, J. B. 1973. The nutrition of artificially reared lambs. 3. The effect of sex on the performance and carcass composition of lambs subjected to different nutritional treatments. Anim. Prod. 16: 49–57.Google Scholar
Owen, J. B. 1969. The artificial rearing of lambs. Vet. Rec. 85: 372–374.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Owen, J. B. and Davies, D. A. R. 1970. Milk replacers in the artificial rearing of lambs. J. Sci. Fd Agric. 2: 340–341.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Owen, J. B., Davies, D. A. R., Miller, E. L. and Ridgman, W. J. 1967. The intensive rearing of lambs. 2. Voluntary food intake and performance on diets of varying oat husk and beef tallow content. Anim. Prod. 9: 509–520.Google Scholar
Owen, J. B., Davies, D. A. R. and Ridgman, W. J. 1969. The effects of varying the quantity and distribution of liquid feed in lambs reared artificially. Anim. Prod. 11: 1–9.Google Scholar
Penning, P. D. 1967. Artificial rearing of lambs. A. Rep. Grassld Res. Inst. 1966, pp. 86–92.Google Scholar
Treacher, T. T. and Penning, P. D. 1971. The development of an automatic system for rearing lambs artificially. Outl. Agric. 6: 227–231.CrossRefGoogle Scholar