Abstract Rendering male lambs short-scrotum interferes with testicular development and thermoregulation, has been proposed as a management tool to control reproduction. This study evaluated at the effect of timing procedure (birth or weaning) on growth rate, testis size, libido, ejaculate characteristics carcass traits in landrace hair sheep lambs. April- (n = 31) August-born 23) Barbados Black...

The objective of this study was to test the hypothesis that a combination of induced estrus (IE) and melatonin (MEL) would increase reproductive performance in breeds characterized by late maturity more than either IE or MEL alone. Spring-born Columbia (C; n = 161; 188 to 222 d range of age at breeding; 49 to 80 kg range of BW at breeding) and Targhee (T; n = 166; 183 to 210 d range of age at b...

Texel lambs are known to be more resistant to gastrointestinal nematode (GIN) infection than Suffolk lambs, with a greater ability to limit infection. The objectives of this study were to: 1) profile the whole transcriptome of abomasal lymph node tissue of GIN-free Texel and Suffolk lambs; 2) identify differentially expressed genes and characterize the immune-related biological pathways and net...

Lifetime production of first-generation 1/4 and 1/2 Finnsheep crossbred ewes from Rambouillet (R), Targhee (T) and Columbia (C) dams was compared with that from randomly selected purebred R, T and C ewes. All 1,190 ewes, representing nine breed groups, were managed under range conditions and mated annually to Suffolk rams. Lifetime production was evaluated as the total lamb and total wool produ...

Growth and carcass merit of Dorset-(DO) and Dorper-sired (DP) lambs were compared over 3 yr in matings with 50% Dorset, 25% Rambouillet, 25% Finnsheep ewes. The DP were slightly lighter (P = 0.09) at birth than the DO lambs. In the first year of the study, DP lambs produced by AI using imported South African sires were heavier than DO lambs when weaned at 60 d of age (21.7 vs. 19.5 kg; P = 0.05...

Effects of breed and sward surface height on ewe liveweight and body condition changes and on lamb liveweight gains during grazing in the spring and autumn were studied. The output per hectare in each season was also calculated. A total of 112 Gallega ewes (35Æ6 kg live weight) and 204 Latxa ewes (47Æ5 kg live weight) with their lambs were used during the spring (March–June) to study the effect...

A study was conducted to estimate heritabilities of, and genetic correlations among, body weight (WT) and testicular measurements - scrotal circumference (SC), testicular diameter (TD), testicular length (TL) and epididymal diameter (ED) - in ram lambs between 6, 9 and 12 months old, and relationship of the testicular traits with age at puberty in ewe lambs (AP). Two fat-tailed sheep breeds, th...

Protein oxidationM.longissimus dorsi andM. semimembranosuswas studied in ram lambs of Northeastern Bulgarian Fine Wool Breed and cross of this breed with Ile de France, reared and in doors and on pasture.The degree of protein oxidation is determined by measuring the content of carbonyls, formed during the storage of the investigated muscles at low temperatures(4˚С till6thday and -20˚С till90thd...

Data were collected on 130 intact male lambs fed diets based on roughages supplemented with fish meal, soybean meal, or corn gluten-blood meal and slaughtered at 43 kg live weight. A nonsupplemented group served as a control. The lambs represented Romanov (R), Finnsheep (F), a new breed developed in Canada (DLS), Coopworth (C), and Suffolk (S), three first crosses of DLS with R, F, and Booroola...

In this study, the potential association of PrP genotypes with ewe reproductive traits and lamb growth traits was investigated. Data were included on ewes and lambs of the INRA 401 breed from the Bourges-La Sapinière INRA experimental farm. This breed was chosen because of good breeding (prolificacy and maternal abilities) and carcass qualities, and the large number of available animals with pe...