Livestock Flashcards
Terminal Sire
A ram used to produce offspring with high growth rate and good carcass quality for slaughter
Commonage
Land where two or more farmers have rights to graze
A cast or draft ewe
A ewe whose fertility has declined due to the harsh conditions experienced in mountainous areas. It is sold to a lowland farmer where once on an improved plane of nutrition will continue to produce lambs for many years
Prolificacy is calculated as
The no. of lambs reared per ewe mated
Percentage kill out
The weight of the dressed carcass (without head, feet + internal organs) compared to the live slaughter weight
Seasonally polyoesteus
Sheep have many oestrus cycles during a set time of year
Short-day breeders
Sheep naturally come into oestrus during autumn as daylight decreases
Metabolisable energy
The energy from feed that an animal can convert into LWG, milk and wool
Maintenance diet
The amount of feed that allows an animal to maintain a constant body weight
Production diet
The extra amount of feed required to produce 1kg LWG, 1L of milk, 1kg of wool or to produce a calf or a lamb
Conformation
The shape of an animal and the distribution of a fat and muscle around its body
When are cows weaned off milk or milk replacer and onto concentrates and grass
6 weeks
Compensatory growth
The increase on growth rate that occurs following a period of restricted feeding
Continental beef breed finishing weight
700kg
British crossed beef breed finishing weight
600kg
