Early weaning and concentrate supplementation strategies for lamb production on Tifton-85 pasture

Revista Brasileira de Zootecnia

Silva, Marina Gabriela Berchiol da⁴  Fernandes, Sergio Rodrigo¹  Silva, Cláudio José Araújo da²  McMannus, Concepta³  Monteiro, Alda Lúcia Gomes²  Prado, Odilei Rogerio²  Gilaverte, Susana²  Poli, César Henrique Espírito Candal³ 

[1] Universidade Federal do Paraná, Palotina, Brasil;Universidade Federal do Paraná, Curitiba, Brasil;Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brasil;Universidade Estadual Paulista Júlio de Mesquita Filho, Botucatu, Brasil

关键词: average daily gain;    creep feeding;    leaf:stem ratio;    productivity;    stocking rateIntroductionThe increasing demand for lamb meat has led to the development of high-productivity and profitable lamb meat production systems;   

DOI  :  10.1590/S1516-35982014000800005

学科分类：兽医学

来源: Universidade Federal de Vicosa

【 摘 要 】

The influence of early weaning and concentrate supplementation strategies on sward characteristics, forage chemical composition and lamb productivity were evaluated in four production systems on Tifton-85 pasture: suckling lambs not supplemented until slaughter; suckling lambs supplemented with concentrate in creep feeding until slaughter; early-weaned lambs not supplemented until slaughter; and early-weaned lambs supplemented with concentrate until slaughter. Structural, morphological and productive characteristics of pasture were measured. The forage was chemically analyzed to estimate its composition. Lambs average daily gain and productivity were calculated. Sward height, forage and morphological components mass were lower in systems without weaning. Forage production was higher in systems with supplementation. Higher levels of neutral and acid detergent fiber were observed in forage ingested by lambs in creep feeding and by weaned and unsupplemented lambs. Average daily gain was higher for lambs in creep feeding (275 g/d) and lower for the weaned and unsupplemented animals (57 g/d). Productivity was higher for weaned and supplemented lambs (21 kg lamb body weight, BW gain/ha/d). Lower productivity was observed in systems without supplementation (5 kg lamb BW gain/ha/d on average). Ewes modify the sward conditions improving the pasture characteristics and the quality of forage produced. Changes in sward conditions affect the chemical composition of forage ingested by lambs. Early weaning may be an alternative to maximize pasture utilization in small areas. Concentrate supplementation may increase lamb performance and productivity in grazing systems. If the objective is to improve lamb individual performance, creep feeding should be used.

【 授权许可】

Unknown