Small ruminant Flashcards
For self-replacing flocks, there is a critical lambing percentage below which the flock does not generate sufficient replacement lambs to sustain the flock. What is it?
60-65%
What are some major factors affecting ewe oestrus?
- age (puberty at 165-483d)
- season
- body wgt
- nutrition/ management
- coumestan
What is the ovulation rate?
= # follicles ovulated by ewe in a cycle
What is current recommended BCS for ewes and rams at joining?
Ewes: 3
Rams: 3.5-4
What is Knob rot? How is it spread? Does it affect ewes?
Balanoposthitis (due to herpesvirus or mycoplasmas? Not really understood)
Between rams at joining (after mating a ewe that has recently be joined with an infected ram)
Ewes can get vulvitis/ vaginitis from it
What is an ideal scrotal size in a ram BSE?
<31cm
What is brucellosis? How is it spread?
How might you manage it?
- Testicular disease caused by brucella ovis-> granulomatous epipidymitis -> restricted sperm output and testicular atrophy
- Mating recently joined ewes and homosexual activity
- Sell or slaughter and replace; two flock system, test and slaughter
What is clover disease? What are the two types of disease it causes?
Failure of fertilization of female ewes with increased returns to service. Observed in sheep grazing pastures with high concentrations of plant isoflavone compounds which have oestrogenic activity.
- Temp clover disease: temp infertility. mucus in crevix and uterus become more fluid and impede sperm movement
- Perm clover disease: cystic glandular hyperplasia/ mucus change
What are some strategies to consider when dealing with clover disease?
Graze cattle instead
graze wethers instead of breeding ewes
reduce age of breeding flock (this has implications for fecundity though)
reduce stocking rate
avoid exposing ewes at joining time
pasture renovation/ improve soil fertility
What are the four most common causes of abortion outbreaks in ewes in southern Aust?
- onion grass poisoning
- campylobacter (fetus ssp fetus and jejuni)= vibriosis
- toxoplasma gondii
- listeriosis
How do ewes get campylobacter and what does it cause? Can it be treated/ managed?
Oral infection. Causes abortion in mid-late preg (>3months). Target lesions on liver.
Yes. Can try a/b (oxytetracycline). Also subdivide into smaller groups to minimise spread. There are also vaccines which cause long lasting immunity
What does toxoplasma gondii cause in pregnant ewes? How can it be managed?
If infected early, causes foetal death, resorption/ mummification
If infected later in gestation, possibly abortion or weak full term lambs or immune healthy lambs. Most commonly abortion in mid-late preg
- expose non-pregnant ewes to get long-lasting immunity
- coccidiostats in feed for susceptible ewes
- manage cat pop (keep the oldies around)
How might you manage listeriosis in breeding ewes?
Avoid grazing of severely water affected pastures, rotting vegetation
When is a BSE of a ram usually conducted with relation to breeding?
1 month prior
What is sperm motility?
Percentage of sperm actively moving forward
Rams fed on high protein diets are at risk of what in terms of reproductive abilities?
Ulceration caused by C. renale
What two bacteria are most often responsible for swelling/ inflammation of the scrotum?
Br.ovis and A. seminis
What breed of rams appear to be more resistant to infection with Brucella ovis?
Merino (cff. British breeds)
How might rams be infected with Br. ovis?
- Serving ewe at the same heat period as another infected ram
- Homosexual activity between rams
What is the incubation period of brucellosis?
8-12 weeks
How might brucellosis be controlled or eradicated from a flock?
Serological testing
Clinical examination +/- semen exam
hygiene
- in infected flocks, separate younger rams and mate them first. Make sure all rams entering flock are tested and are serologically negative
Hypoplastic testes may be due to what??
- Disturbances of descent
- An abnormal sex chromosome constitution
- Hormonal imbalance in the embryo
- Segmental aplasia of the mesonephric duct
- Chromosomal translocations causing misshapen testicles
- Inguinal hernia
- Poor nutrition and parasitism during dvpt.
What are two of the most common causes of testicular degeneration in rams?
Overheating and reduced efficiency of testicular cooling
arsenic poisoning and Vit A def also
At what age do sheep and goats reach puberty? What is the length of their respective oestrus cycles?
Sheep: 165-483d, 17d
Goats: 90-240d, 21d
How does oestrus activity get influenced by day length in seasonal breeders?
Increasing darkness ->increased melatnin from pineal gland -> increased GnRH from hyp ->increased FSH from ant pit
What is Ovastin?
Synthesized compounds used to increase number of twins and triplets. It induces antibodies to prevent negative feedback loop on hypothalamus
How do you administer Ovastin?
Need 2 initial doses 2 months and 1month pre-joining and a 12 monthly booster
What is regulin?
slow-release SC melatonin to bring seasonal breeds into oestrus
What are prostaglandins used for in small ruminants?
To return to oestrus (2-3 d later) Preg termination (used off label). Up to day 50 in sheep, and for entire pregnancy in goats (bc no placental prog)
What percentage of body weight should ewes reach by first breeding?
Merinos- 75%
Sheep meat breeds- 65%
Lamb neonatal mortality can be very high in pasture based systems. What are approximate percentages for singles and twins?
What is the most common cause of such deaths?
Singles: 10-20%
Twins: 20-30%
Starvation/ exposure / mismothering complex
Is seasonality in goats more pronounced at higher or lower altitudes?
Higher latitudes
What is the Ram/Buck effect?
Introduction of sexually active males to females after complete segregation to induce ovulation within 2-10 days.
Note: there is no oestrus with these early ovulations because the brain hasn’t been progesterone primed. Oestrus from male effect seen 19-23 days later
What is the ideal joining weight of an alpaca?
Should aim for 65% of mature body weight
~45kg at 1 year -> 70kg mature body weight
Describe the basics of follicular waves in alpacas and why this is of significance (3 main points).
- Follicular wave growth involves synchronous emergence of several follicles (waves every 12-22d)
- Consecutive follicular waves do not necessarily alternate between ovaries.
- A follicular wave emerges as soon as the dominant follicle starts to regress. Therefore, both regressing and emerging dominant follicles can be seen on the ovaries at the same time -> there is a DF considered capable of ovulation in either ovary most of the time -> repeated US need to establish phase of growth
What size does an alpaca ovary need to be to be considered cystic?
Over 12mm (7-12mm is the “sweet spot”)
Behavioural oestrus in alpacas is dependent on what?
Lack of progesterone (rather than presence of oestrogen)
What are some methods of pregnancy testing in alpacas?
- spit off test (reject male by spitting if they have a CL and elevated prog)
- elevated blood/milk prog (greater than 2ng/ml)
- transrectal/transabdominal US (foetal heartbeat form 25d)
- manual rectal palpation (35d onwards)
- transabdominal ballottement (8mo onwards)
What are the stages of gestation in an alpaca?
Stage 1: 1.5-2 hours
Stage 2: delivery of foetus (takes 30-45 mins, dam remains standing)
Stage 3: delivery of foetal membranes (1-4 hours)
***cria usually sits up in 10 mins
What is the interval from parturition to the resumption of ovarian follicular activity?
Usually 5-7 days (may be ready to ovulate by 10d post partum)