Small Ruminant -sheep Flashcards
What breed of sheep form South Africa holds fat in its tail
Van Rooy fat tail sheep
What is the difference between hair and wool
Wool is thinner
Wool animals first appeared in Spain in the Middle Ages
What are the uses of sheep
Meat
Diary
Wool
Australian Merinos are raised for?
Wool
South African mutton Marino are raised for?
Meat and wool
Manchega and Friesian sheep are raised for?
Dairy
Dorper and Suffolk sheep are raised for ?
Meat
What is the single largest cost to sheep farming
Nutrition
T/F: sheep raised on range conditions have all their nutritional needs met?
False
Poor nutrition -> high mortality
Rangeland has low nutritional value
Haired sheep breed that has a white body and black head
Dorper
When does the daily consumption of water increase for a sheep?
Summer
Lactation and gestation
_______________ in sheep can lead to reduced growth, poor fertility, and decreased wool production
Energy deficiency
For sheep, is the quality or quantity of protein more important
Quantity
- > green pastures provide adequate amount for sheep
- > dried, mature pastures do not
Most minerals and vitamins can be met with normal grazing for sheep. However, __________ may be important to suppplemtn in winter and ____________ may be needed for sheep in confinement
VitA; VitD
In normal conditions, 90% of ewes have a body condition score of _________
2-4
What weight changes are seen in a ewe through the year?
Slight rise during early-mid gestation
Steep increase during late gestation
Steep fall after lambing
Falls during lactation further
Starts to return to normal at weaning
What is flushing the ewe??
Increase BW prior to breeding
Increase ovulation rate
Increase lambing rate
What is the ewe fed to “flush” her?
Good quality pasture
OR
Supplemental feeding with grain or pellets
Lamb death can usually be attributed to ________________ during gestation and lactation
Poor maternal nutrition
In the first 15weeks of gestation, the ewe should be fed how?
Under normal conditions
Close to maintenance
Based on pasture
Minimal supplementation
In the last 6weeks of gestation, the ewe should be fed how?
Need supplementation
High energy needs
Critical period of growth -> 70% of fetal growth
At the time of parturition the ewe should be fed??
Good quality forage
Supplementation -> onset of lactation
How much higher are the energy needs of a lactating ewe compared to that of the maintenance weight
2-3x
Milk production usually peaks around ______ weeks post-parturition
3
The ewe can produce between ______ and _______ lbs of milk per day
3-6
Lambing in the spring, the ewe will be feeding on ________ and should be supplemented with _________
Pasture, grain
Lambing in the fall, the ewe will be feeding on ________ and should be supplemented with _________
Forage; grain
What are the advantages of flushing in sheep production?
Increase BW prior to breeding
Increase ovulation rate
Increase lambing rate
Young lambs should be fed what?
Need colostrum, milk, or milk replacer
Have a non-functional rumen
Why is colostrum important to the lamb?
Trasfter passive immunity
Immunoglobulin from the Dam to the lamb-> disease tolerance
Naturally, labs are weaned around ______ days
60
Artificially reared lambs can be weaned as early as _______ days
30
Recently weaned labs need what sort of feed?
High energy
18-19% CP
How are most lambs finished in the US??
Enter feedlot at 60-90lbs or 5-6months
Good quality pasture followed by short feedlot phase
Hay supplemented with grain
Replacement ewes are normally bred for the first time so they can lamb at how many years
1 or 2 yrs
What are the advantages to breeding replacement ewes at 7-8months?
Reduce maintenance cost
Shortens generation interval
Increase productive lifetime
Early selection
How long is gestation in a sheep?
5months
If a ewe is fed on a higher plane of nutrition, it will accelerate the maturity of the ewe, how can this be acheived?
Introduce starter rations with cereals
Target is 0.5lb/day (this is not possible on forage alone)
What would be an advantage to breeding repleacement ewes at 2 yrs old?
Can be done under range conditions
Limited supplementation except during winter
High quality nutrition is not as critical in this system as in breeding at younger ages
How does the wight of a repleacment lamb compare to a yearling ram
Yearling almost double
Is pasture sufficient enough feed for rams?
Yearlings cannot
Supplement
- hay
- cereal (winter and on poor quality pasture)
Mature rams can
A ram lamb is fed _________lb of feed per day and a yearling ram is fed ________ lb of feed per day
5-5.5
6.5-7
Nutriton related problems are associated to what in sheep
Feed and environmental stress
Enterotoxemia in sheep is AKA ______________ and is caused by _________
Overeating / pulpy kidney disease
Clostridium perfringens type D
What is the pathogenesis of overeating disese?
Under certain conditions (like stress) -> rapid growth of bacteria -> toxin release
-> eneroclolitis and increase permeability of blood vessels
Swelling of lungs and kidney
What sheep are more prone to getting enterotoxemia ?
Larger or fast-gaining lambs
Sheep
Loss of appetite
Abdominal discomfort (kicking at belly and arching the back)
Profuse diarrhea
Sudden death
Enterotoxemia
Diagnosis can be confirmed at necropsy and by glucosuria
How is enterotoxemia prevented/treated?
Prevent - vaccination
Treat
- C and D antitoxin
- thiamin (vit B1) IM
- replace fluids IV or SQ
Lambs
Depressed
Off feed
Abdomen distended
Bladder rupture
Urinate calculli
-if urethra has ruptured, swelling along the penis will also be observed
How can a urniary calculli be prevented?
Maintain Ca:P, ideally 2:1
Cool, clean water
Adequate water space for all animals
Addition of salt or trace mineral -> increase water uptake
Add 0.5% ammonium chloride to ration to acidity urine
A fetal prolapse in sheep can be associated with?
Genetics
Feeding pelleted rations
Rustiness of ration -> coughing
Short or docked tails
Urinary calculli are associated wth?
Ramon’s in a drylot/feedlot
What disease follows nutritional problems in lambs and leads to diarrhea and sudden death
Enterotoxemia
Sheep
Lethargic Reduced appetite Poor quality would Open fleece Small size and poor body condition
Cobalt deficiency
A cobalt deficiency is commonly observed in _________ during what time of the year?
Lambs in late summer / fall
Often complicated by parasitic gastroenteritis
Treatment for cobalt deficiency
IM vit B12
Drenching with 1mg/kg of cobalt sulphate
Retail bolus of cobalt (expensive)
______ deficiency is common when sheep graze pastures low in this nutrient but more often high in iron
Copper
Lamb
Hind leg weakness
Poor wool quality
Anemia
Poor bone mineralization
Copper deficiency
Treatment of copper deficiency ?
Injection of copper heptonate
Supplement copper oxide
What breed is more sensitive to copper poisoning
North Ronaldsay
Have adapted to low copper by digests of seaweed -> if moved to pasture -> toxicity
Feeding grain treated with propionic acid may increase the risk of what disease
Selenium and vitE deficiency
Aka white muscle disease
How is white muscle disease prevented
Feed medication
Periodic drenching
Se injection
Free access licks/minerals
