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Awassi dairy sheep farmers in the Middle East are facing high feed costs, particularly during the milk production season, along with large fluctuation in grain and straw prices. Incorporating agro-industrial byproducts into the diet of Awassi dairy sheep can help to balance diets and decrease costs. But it may affect milk quality through changes in the fatty acid profile. Six experimental diets were compared to a control diet in the research station of the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) in Tal Hadya, Syria. Milking Awassi ewes (n = 56) were used to test six experimental diets, in which supplements comprised molasses, sugar beet pulp, or cotton seed cake to a traditional control diet contained barley, wheat bran, and barley straw. Milk samples were collected on a weekly basis from April to June. The daily milk production and fat content were enhanced in diets containing urea-treated wheat straw (P

The objective of the study was to assess the effect of fresh bergamot pulp in lactating goat diets to determine its effects on milk and suckling kid fatty acid composition. Eighteen pregnant does were randomly assigned to two groups of two different diets: alfalfa hay (1 kg/head/day), supplemented with commercial concentrate (1 kg/head/day–Control diet) or the same concetrate (700 g/head/day) supplemented with fresh bergamot pulp (2 kg/head/day–FBP diet). Kids were reared in individual pens and fed on their mother’s milk. At 45 days of age, kids were slaughtered. Rumenic acid was higher in milk and in meat from animals from FBP group than Control one (P

Productive performance, rumen fermentation and oxidative status of sheep fed diets supplemented with coffee pulp ensiled with 5% molasses were evaluated. Thirty-four Blackbelly cross-breed sheep, 6 months old, mean weight 21.2 ± 0.63 kg, were assigned to three treatments T0: control treatment ( n = 11), T1: treatment with 8% coffee pulp in the diet ( n = 12), and T2: treatment with 16% coffee pulp in the diet ( n = 11). Coffee pulp at the levels evaluated did not affect daily weight gain, feed intake, and feed conversion ( P > 0.05). However, water intake, acetic acid, butyric acid, and total volatile fatty acids significantly increased ( P P > 0.05) were observed in the antioxidant capacity of the sheep's plasma; however, lipid peroxidation was lower for sheep fed with 16% coffee pulp. The present study concluded that a supplemented sheep diet with coffee pulp up to 16% coffee pulp did not affect their productive parameters but reduced oxidative stress.

In this research, the nutritive values of three date palm ( Phoenix dactylifera ) by-products (DPB) called Lerd, Pit and Pulp in South-east of Iran were evaluated. The chemical compositions of all DPB samples were evaluated by laboratory analysis. An in vitro digestibility study was done to determine digestibility coefficients of dry matter (DMD), organic matter (OMD), and also digestible organic matter in dry matter (DOMD) to estimate the metabolizable energy (ME) content of DPB samples. In addition, dry matter (DM) and crude protein (CP) disappearance of samples were determined by an in situ method at 0, 3, 6, 12, 24, 48 and 72 h and their kinetics were described using the equation p = a + b (1 − e − ct ). The nutritive value index (NIV) of DPB samples was calculated using the equation: NIV = a + 0.4 b + 200 c . The mean values of the DM, OM, CP, ADF and NDF were 948.8, 909.7, 80.04, 590.0 and 800.0 g/kg DM for Lerd; 960.4, 933.9, 61.6, 529.7 and 640.0 g/kg DM for Pit; 964.7, 929.4, 78.2, 494.3 and 625.0 g/kg DM for Pulp respectively. In this study the average DMD, OMD, DOMD and metabolizable energy of DPB differed significantly ( P

Twenty goats, aged 7 months and weighing between 13 and 18 kg, were given diets containing 0, 20, 40 and 60% coffee pulp and hay ad libitum for 20 weeks. Metabolizable energy (ME) intake of the goats was estimated in vitro during 12- and 8-week periods and related to liveweight gain in a regression involving 40 sets of data. A maintenance requirement of 556 kJ ME kg−0.75 day−1 was calculated, which was similar to some reports in the literature but exceeded others by 20%. Less variable was energy cost of gain which was estimated at 27.9 kJ ME per g. Efficiency of utilization of ME for growth was 35.8%. Values reported here are useful for feeding Kenyan goats under confinement.

The objective of this paper was to assess the plasma antioxidant status ewes under high ambient temperature fed seaweed Ascophyllum nodosum (AG), flaxseed (FS) and their combination (FS + AG) measured by the Antioxidant/Oxidant Balance (AOB). The experiment lasted 30 day and involved thirty-two late-lactation Comisana ewes, divided into four balanced groups of eight each, and exposed to high ambient temperature. The ewes in each group were individually fed twice daily and received 1.8 kg per day of oat hay. Results showed that ewes fed the combination of flaxseed and A. nodosum displayed the highest AOB value at day 30 of high ambient temperature exposure; moreover, they displayed lower rectal temperature than ewes fed A. nodosum alone, and lower concentrations of heat shock protein 70. These data demonstrated that supplementation of diet with A. nodosum in combination with flaxseed can protect ewes from the excessive oxidative imbalance caused by high ambient temperature.

The present paper outlines ways of non-surgical collection and semi-laparoscopic transfer of caprine embryos. Two different ways of embryo cryo-preservation by way of vitrification are described; the open pulled straw (OPS) procedure, known to be well suited and the solid surface procedure called for in situations where contact between embryos and non-sterile liquid nitrogen is to be avoided. Based on 13 transfers of OPS-vitrified and 9 transfers of solid surface-vitrified blastocysts (2 blastocysts/recipient) it was shown that either procedure is applicable (54% vs. 56% pregnancy- and 39% vs. 44% kidding rate). Furthermore the experiment showed that warming of vitrified embryos may be accomplished by one-step procedure (88% transferable post-warming embryos), opening up the possibility to transfer vitrified embryos under field conditions.

This paper assesses biodiversity in the goat and investigates whether there is some peculiarity in this biodiversity as compared to other species. The paper depends mainly on published databases and reviews. In 1999, there were over 710 million goats in the world in a total of 570 breeds. Developing countries harbour 96% of the world goat population, but only 60% of the breeds. An index of the number of breeds per million of population was used to compare degree of biodiversity in different livestock species. This index for the goat was 0.8 as compared to 1.2 for sheep, 0.9 for cattle and 0.5 for buffalo. The highest proportion of breeds without reported population size is in the goat. Percentage of goat breeds not at risk was calculated as 41 as compared to 64 in buffalo, 36 for cattle, 39 for sheep, 21 for pig, 11 for ass, 25 for horse and 69 for camel and dromedary, while breed extinction percentage was 3, 0, 17, 12, 23, 6, 11 and 0, respectively. In terms of performance traits, Europe has the heaviest goat breeds with largest litter size and milk production, while Latin America and the Caribbean scored lowest in all these performance traits. Among-breed variability was lowest in Europe and highest in Africa. It is concluded that according to available information, biodiversity in the goat is within the range of that in other farm animal species. Many goat breeds are not characterized because most goats and breeds are in developing countries and/or under extensive production systems where characterization becomes more demanding.

The Red Maasai are indigenous sheep breeds known for their adaptability in arid and semi-arid environments while the Dorper is known for its good mutton production. A field experiment cross breeding program for the two breeds was set up in 2003 to exploit these traits. In this paper, we present the genetic parameters for birth weight (BWT), weaning weight (WWT) and weight at nine months (MWT) for pure Red Maasai (RRRR), pure Dorper (DDDD), 75% Dorper (DDDR) and 50% Dorper (DDRR) breeds. The genetic parameters were estimated by fitting four different multivariate animal models while ignoring or including maternal effects. The model with the lowest Akaike’s Information Criterion (AIC) was chosen as the best model for the estimation of genetic parameters. The average annual genetic gain of the studied traits for each breed group was estimated by regressing the estimated breeding values on year of birth. Records from 5442 lambs recorded over a period of 17 years (2003-2019) were used in this analysis. The breed group, sex, type of birth, season of birth and age of the dam significantly (P

Even though mohair production in Argentina is well known, data about fibre production from double-coated regional native goats—generically referred to as Patagonian Cashmere-remains scarce. The aim of this paper was to determine the production of down fibres and to assess the quality and variability of the fleece characteristics of the Northern Patagonian Creole goats. From late winter to early spring of 2005–2008, 2397 fibre samples were collected from five areas of NW Neuquen in Northern Patagonia. The average of down fibre diameter (DFD), down fibre length (DFL), down weights (DW) yields to dehairing (Y%), ratio of coarse fibre length (CFL) on down fibre length (DFL) (R:CFL/DFL), crimp/cm and the degree of curvature (C°) of the fibre were measured. For DFD an average of 20.4 ± 3.6 μm, DFL of 7.9 ± 3.2 cm and C° of 38.1 ± 5.8°/mm, a Y% of 32.5 ± 13.9% and a DW of 255.7 ± 66.0 g were obtained. In an attempt to reduce the variability of the fibre variables studied, locality, herds, age, fleece types and fineness were included as external effects in ANOVA. All the variables measured were greatly affected by style: long cashmere (LC) was the most frequent style (41.5%) followed by cashgora (CG) (22.2%). The most common grade of fineness (57.5%) was >19.0 μm, indicating that 42.5% of the fibre was below 19 μm in DFD. The other variables were significantly different within LC, short cashmere (SC) and intermediate cashmere (IC) styles when the grade of fineness was compared. The styles with lustre effect (CG and L) showed very low crimp as compared to the other styles. Taking styles as numerical, a Spearman's rank correlation coefficient (rs) was calculated with numerical grade of fineness (rs = 0.45), DFD (rs = 0.58), DFL (rs = 0.56) Y% (rs = 0.61), R: CFL/DFL (rs = −0.60); DW (rs = 0.56); C°/mm (rs = −0.27). It was concluded that the classification by styles and fineness could determine more than 42% of fleece complies with the cashmere textile industry requirements.

Suffolk breed is known to display a clear seasonal reproductive response orchestrated by the significant annual variation in photoperiod related to its latitude of origin. However, in the low latitudes of the tropical and subtropical environments the magnitude and timing of these responses in Suffolk rams has been poorly investigated. This study aimed to quantify changes on andrological parameters in Suffolk rams kept under natural light/dark cycle and climate in the south of Brazil (25°25′40′′ S, 49°16′23′′ W). Rams were monitored during 1 year for testicular size, seminal parameters and serum testosterone. From autumn to winter, under shortening daylength, rams underwent a significant gonadal involution. Testicular size increased in spring and reached a peak in summer, similar to the latitude of which this breed originates. Parallel to scrotal circumference, other parameters such as testicular volume, serum testosterone concentration, ejaculate volume and sperm concentration followed a seasonal profile. Testosterone levels followed the same seasonal pattern as testicular size. Ejaculate volume was significantly lower during autumn and winter and higher values of sperm concentration were detected in spring. Furthermore, there were no significant changes in spermatozoa defects, motility, weave motion or vigor between seasons. In this paper we analyze the impact of seasonality over testis function in Suffolk rams at lower latitudes.

Use of electronic identification (e-ID) of caprine breeding stock, based on radio frequency passive transponders, is compulsory in most EU countries and it is foreseen as a powerful tool for the improvement of the goat industry. This paper compares the performances of the most used e-ID devices (i.e., ear tags, injects, boluses and leg tags) with plastic ear tags in goats. Ear dimensions, environment and ear tag features result in variable retention and readability of visual and e-ID ear tags in goats. Light and high quality button ear tags provide suitable results under intensive conditions but they are not fully satisfactory under extensive conditions. Injectable transponders have been also evaluated in different body sites (ear base, armpit, groin, tail, pastern and intraperitoneal) of goats. Main drawbacks of injects are migration and retrieval at slaughter, but injection in the armpit is suitable for goats under harsh conditions (i.e., game and feral goats) and carcass traceability. Injection in the pastern has the advantage of not letting carcass residues, although readability is compromised by the small size of the transponders used and is not recommended for most on-farm applications. Performances of e-ID rumen boluses vary by bolus features and goat breed. Research showed that denser boluses than in sheep (>3.3) and high quality transponders allow >98% readability in goats. Leg tags are only recommended for adult dairy goats under intensive conditions. Dynamic reading efficiency strongly depends on the position of the antenna and on the type of e-ID device, which becomes an issue of major relevance when different e-ID device types are in use in the same herd for management and performance recording.

The income of the nomads in Kerman Province depends mainly on Raeini goats that produce meat, milk and cashmere. This paper assesses the cashmere quality and its variation in Raeini herds to determine the scope for improvement. In April 2010 fleece weights (FW) and midside fleece samples were taken from a total of 686 male and female cashmere goats of 1, 2 and 3 years of age belonging to 29 herds. The herds were randomly chosen in the summer grazing area of nomads within 20 km of the city of Baft, province of Kerman, South of Iran, the main cashmere producing area in Iran. Cashmere yield (CY) was determined from the weight of dehaired cashmere to weight of shorn fiber. Cashmere fibers were analyzed using an OFDA instrument. A general mixed linear model including sex, age and sex by age interaction as fixed effects and herd as random effect was used to analyze the data and measure the relationships between different cashmere characteristics and fleece attributes. The overall means ± standard deviations were for fleece weights (FW) 507 ± 183 g, cashmere yield (CY) 56.5 ± 12.2%, mean fiber diameter (MFD) 19.7 ± 1.5 μm, fiber diameter standard deviation (FDSD) 4.5 ± 0.6 μm, fiber curvature (FC) 62.9 ± 8.5°/mm and staple length (SL) 54.2 ± 7.0 mm, respectively. Herd effect was significant for all traits except for SL and sex by age effect was only significant for MFD. One year old males and females had finer cashmere than older goats. FW and FDSD were higher in males and CY and FC was higher in young animals. Pearson correlation between MFD and FC, FDSD and MFD, MFD and FW was −0.647, 0.399 and 0.211 respectively. Raeini cashmere is white, has an excellent SL and FC but is relatively coarse. Given the differences between and within herds there seems to be substantial scope to improve the commercial value of Raeini cashmere. Fil: Ansari-Renani, Hamid R. Animal Science Research Institute; Irán Fil: Mueller, Joaquin Pablo. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Bariloche; Argentina Fil: Rischkowsky, Barbara. International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas; Siria Fil: Seyed Momend, S.M. Agriculture and Natural Resources Research Center; Irán Fil: Alipour, O. Livestock Office of Agriculture Department of Baft; Irán Fil: Ehsani, M. Agriculture and Natural Resources Research Center; Irán Fil: Moradi, Sepehr. University of Zanjan. Agriculture College. Animal Science Department; Irán. Animal Science Research Institute; Irán.

Fostering is a process used by sheep farmers for the rearing of abandoned lambs or in the incidence of triplets, providing the surplus lamb a surrogate ewe. Historically, research has assessed the varying success rates of different fostering methods and evaluated them using the latency to accept the alien lamb. There are no current studies on the frequency of use of the different methods, nor the farmers’ perception of the effects of the methods on ewe behaviour and welfare. The aim of the survey was to identify which fostering methods are currently in use in the UK and to gain an insight into farmers’ attitudes towards them, in relation to the ewe's behaviour and welfare. Data were collected using paper and online questionnaires that were distributed with the help of stakeholders such as the English Beef and Lamb Executive (EBLEX) and at events such as the Royal Show and the NSA Sheep event. Seventy five farmers responded and results showed that they used birth fluids and restraint more often than other methods. Farmers believed that restraint methods can have negative welfare implications as determined by the ewe's behaviour and the lamb growth rate. There was also a significant relationship between the foster method and breed type. The farmers also suggested that the birth fluid method was preferred by the animals compared to all of the other methods as it was less disruptive and restricting to the ewes. Exploratory Factor Analysis identified two main factors influencing the farmers’ choice of foster methods; these were the ‘ewes health and welfare’ and ‘the farmers previous knowledge and success of the method’. The former had a significantly greater influence than the latter signifying that farmers are concerned for the animal's welfare during this process. Overall, farmers acknowledged that the selection of the appropriate foster method is a means to increase lamb productivity which can influence their return. They also recognised that the display of positive or negative ewe behaviours plays a vital role in the selection process of the fostering technique.

The objectives of this paper were to analyze the dynamics of gastrointestinal helminthiasis in Saanen goats maintained in organic and conventional milk production systems during pregnancy, parturition and lactation. In the conventional system, the animals were kept under continuous grazing and dewormed monthly. In the organic system, no anthelminthics were used, the animals were kept under rotational grazing and separated by age. The goats in the organic systemic had higher fecal egg counts (p 0.05) during lactation. The peripartum period was a risk factor for the occurrence of clinical parasitism in animals with a greater predisposition in the herd, thereby increasing the infestation of pastures. In the conventional system, even with monthly deworming, the animals were moderately infected, thus demonstrating the possibility that helminth resistance or high reinfection rates might develop. Although no anthelminthics were used in the animals raised in the organic system, they showed a moderate degree of infection, thus indicating that management might be present a viable option for sustained helminth control.

Made available in DSpace on 2013-09-27T14:53:35Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 WOS000292445000018.pdf: 159060 bytes, checksum: ba52293118f64e763ee5cca8e34ada05 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011-06-01 Made available in DSpace on 2013-09-30T18:03:34Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 WOS000292445000018.pdf: 159060 bytes, checksum: ba52293118f64e763ee5cca8e34ada05 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011-06-01 Submitted by Vitor Silverio Rodrigues (vitorsrodrigues@reitoria.unesp.br) on 2014-05-20T13:19:11Z No. of bitstreams: 1 WOS000292445000018.pdf: 159060 bytes, checksum: ba52293118f64e763ee5cca8e34ada05 (MD5) Made available in DSpace on 2014-05-20T13:19:11Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 WOS000292445000018.pdf: 159060 bytes, checksum: ba52293118f64e763ee5cca8e34ada05 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011-06-01 A main purpose of a mathematical nutrition model (a.k.a., feeding systems) is to provide a mathematical approach for determining the amount and composition of the diet necessary for a certain level of animal productive performance. Therefore, feeding systems should be able to predict voluntary feed intake and to partition nutrients into different productive functions and performances. In the last decades, several feeding systems for goats have been developed. The objective of this paper is to compare and evaluate the main goat feeding systems (AFRC, CSIRO, NRC, and SRNS), using data of individual growing goat kids from seven studies conducted in Brazil. The feeding systems were evaluated by regressing the residuals (observed minus predicted) on the predicted values centered on their means. The comparisons showed that these systems differ in their approach for estimating dry matter intake (DMI) and energy requirements for growing goats. The AFRC system was the most accurate for predicting DMI (mean bias = 91 g/d, P < 0.001; linear bias 0.874). The average ADG accounted for a large part of the bias in the prediction of DMI by CSIRO, NRC, and, mainly, AFRC systems. The CSIRO model gave the most accurate predictions of ADG when observed DMI was used as input in the models (mean bias 12 g/d, P < 0.001; linear bias -0.229). while the AFRC was the most accurate when predicted DMI was used (mean bias 8g/d. P > 0.1; linear bias -0.347). (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. Univ Estadual Paulista, UNESP, Dept Zootecnia, BR-14884900 São Paulo, Brazil Ohio State Univ, Dept Anim Sci, Columbus, OH 43210 USA Univ Sassari, Dipartimento Sci Zootecn, I-07100 Sassari, Italy Univ Estadual Paulista, UNESP, Dept Zootecnia, BR-14884900 São Paulo, Brazil

Commercial small dairy goat producers, exploiting European breeds and selling fluid milk, concentrate in the southeastern and southern States of Brazil. They are in need to access improved germplasm due to government regulations banning imports of living material. This paper reports the actions taken, the difficulties encountered and the preliminary results of a Dairy Goat Breeding Plan started in 2005 by EMBRAPA Goats and Sheep, the Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Food and the Association of Goats and Sheep Breeders of Minas Gerais States. The plan’s objective was to address the needed access to improved germplasm claimed by farmers, through conducting progeny tests. Participatory and community work took place to organize/implement the plan. A professional milk recording institution was recruited by farmers to collect individual milk records in the associated farms where bucks are progeny-tested. Selection criteria mainly designed to respond to the market demand, focused on milk yields, lactation lengths and reproductive characteristics. Twenty bucks of Saanen, French Alpine and Anglo-Nubian breeds are being tested through artificial insemination in 22 herds. Until August 2010, the databank contained 7872 milk test days. The averages for total milk yield in a complete lactation, milk yield in 305 days of lactation, lactation length and average daily yield were 768 ± 16 kg, 676 ± 10 kg, 278 ± 4 days and 2.75 ± 0.01 kg/day, respectively. Herd effects were found important (P < 0.01) with a wide range of averages in milk production which justifies well the progeny test to suit germplasm for also a wide range of environments. Breed effects were also important in differentiating total milk yields in a complete lactation (P < 0.01) with Saanen goats having significantly greater yields than Alpine and crossbred goats. Linear and quadratic age effects were significant in changing milk yields. The establishment and implementation of the plan confronted difficulties that were not insurmountable and offered important lessons learned and recommendations for similar engagements for smallholder dairy goat production systems elsewhere. These included: (1) careful identification and involvement of stakeholders considering the enabling conditions needed and sustainability, (2) engagement

This paper presents the analysis of 3525 production records of mixed age Romney ewes in a fleece weight selected (HF) or random control (RC) flock over 11 years. HF ewes were significantly (P

The aim of this paper was studying the phenotypic and genetic relationships between udder morphology traits and udder health in dairy sheep. From 2000 to 2008 udder traits, somatic cell count (SCC) and clinical mastitis cases were recorded in an experimental flock consisting each year of around 900 ewes. A logistic regression was performed to evaluate the risk for a ewe of showing either a mastitis or at least 2 daily SCC records greater than 1 × 106 cells/ml in one of its lactations as function of udder traits scored in 1st lactation. 1587 individual udder scores and 39,950 SCC daily records were used for the analysis. Secondly, genetic correlation between lactation mean of somatic cell score and udder traits were estimated by a REML method applied to four bi-trait animal models, using data from 2251 primiparous ewes. Logistic regression results indicated that the risk of mastitis or high SCC values during the productive life increased as the cistern height increased and the degree of udder suspension and udder depth decreased. This suggests that the appraisal of the udder is a useful tool for culling decision aimed at increasing the sanitary status of the flock. The genetic correlation between lactation SCS and udder traits were favourable for udder depth (−0.50 ± 0.12), teat placement (0.39 ± 0.011) and degree of udder suspension (−0.42 ± 0.011) and closed to zero for the degree of separation of the two halves. Thus selection for udder morphology, already implemented in some dairy sheep breeds with the aim of improving machine milkability, will lead to a favourable correlated genetic response on SCC.

The use of exotic dairy goats in breeding programmes for smallholder production systems is popular in Eastern Africa. However, information on the performance of exotic breeds within these systems is scarce. This paper presents information on performance of Toggenburg dairy goats under smallholder production systems in a medium to high agricultural potential environment in Kenya under a community-based set-up as part of the characterization of its adaptive and productive attributes. Environmental factors affecting growth of 646 goats born in the environment, and fertility and milk production of 160 does from 1997 to 2005 were evaluated. Genetic parameters were also estimated for early growth traits. The average birth weight (BW) for 607 kids was 3.27 kg. Corrected weaning weights (CW), and average daily gain to weaning (ADG) for 646 kids were 19.12 kg and 136 g/day, respectively. The results indicated that the smallholder farmers were able to maintain comparably high levels of milk production in the first three parities (LMY), with yields of 475 ± 9 l in 201 days for 160 does in the first parity, 507 ± 9 l in 264 days from 130 does in the second parity and 513 ± 13 l in 296 days for 82 does in the third parity. Kidding intervals though initially long decreased with time to reasonable levels (302 ± 117 days). The heritability estimates obtained were low (0.23 ± 0.13 for BW, 0.18 ± 0.11 for CW and 0.14 ± 0.11 for ADG). Genetic correlations between the traits were also low. Genetic and phenotypic trends indicated little change in BW, CW and LMY over the years. The phenotypic trend in the kidding interval showed a reducing interval over time. The results demonstrated that the Toggenburg goats were able to perform and thrive reasonably well under the low-input farming conditions.

The new tendency in livestock production systems invites all people involved in ruminant management to pass from intensive to semi-extensive and extensive systems. To accomplish this goal a deep knowledge in several aspects of the animal behaviour and nutrition is needed. The availability of energy is the main limiting factor in animal production for an efficient utilization of resources and for the achievement of acceptable levels of animal performance compatible with resource preservation. This paper deals with the assessment of the energy requirements of goats with particular reference to the free-ranging animal. As a first step, a headline is dedicated to bring the digestion capacity to light with some very particular characteristics in goats. It makes reference to the energy requirements for maintenance and lactation. Attention is paid to the efficiency with which the animal utilizes the available energy of feeds in these processes. Data are given for the energy cost of the two main activities in grazing: eating and walking. Emphasis is placed on the estimation of total energy expenditure of goats in open range including methods (factorial and isotopic) and the information that, to our knowledge, has appeared in the literature. Applications of direct estimations seem a better approach than to use theoretical values to get energy expenditure in grazing animals. Further investigation is needed to develop and improve new and existing techniques to quantify the total energy expenditure of animals in grazing systems.

This paper updates our knowledge on the effects of the botanical composition and management of Mediterranean pastures on the fatty acid composition of sheep milk and cheese. It focuses on the effects of the forage species and its phenological phase on: (i) the fatty acid profile of the forage, and (ii) the milk fatty acid composition. Here we refer specifically to putatively beneficial fatty acids (mono- and poly-unsaturated fatty acids (PUFA)), including conjugated linoleic acid (CLA, C18:2 c-9, t-11) and vaccenic acid (C18:1 t-11). A database was set up compiled from the results of various studies carried out by our research group and this was statistically analysed. Both the forage species ( P < 0.05) and its phenological phase (P < 0.08) affected the content of linoleic acid, a precursor of CLA in the forage. The PUFA level in milk was higher in ewes grazing pure legumes and grass–legume mixtures than in those grazing pure grass pastures. When the pasture mixture also contained a daisy plant (Chrysanthemum coronarium ), the CLA and vaccenic acid levels were even higher. Linoleic (C18:2; c-9, c-12) linolenic (C18:3; c-9, c-12, c-15) CLA (C18:2; c-9, t-11) and vaccenic acid (C18:1; t-11) levels in milk decreased from the vegetative (early-mid lactation) to the reproductive phase (late lactation). The � 9 desaturase activity (estimate by C14:1/C14:0 ratio), which is involved in the conversion of vaccenic acid to CLA in the mammary gland, supports the hypothesis that the lower the substrate supply the higher the endogenous CLA synthesis. Finally, no marked differences were found in the fatty acid composition of milk and cheese from dairy sheep. Guidelines for managing the nutrition of grazing sheep to increase the unsaturated fatty acid content in milk are discussed. © 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Six first cross (F1) Red Maasai × Dorper rams were mated to both Red Maasai (R) and Dorper (D) ewes to produce 1342 double backcross progeny (672 3/4 D/1/4 R and 670 3/4 R/1/4 D lambs born alive). These six double backcross resource families are being used to identify quantitative trait loci controlling resistance to gastro-intestinal (GI) nematode parasites (particularly Haemonchus contortus). This paper reports the phenotypic performance of the double backcross progeny relative to the performance of straight bred Red Maasai (158 born) and Dorper (131 born) lambs evaluated at pasture from birth to 6 months of age. Resistance to GI nematode parasites was assessed in terms of faecal egg counts (FEC), while resilience (tolerance) was assessed in terms of blood packed red cell volume (PCV). The R and 3/4 R lambs were consistently more resistant (lower FEC) and resilient (higher PCV) than the D and 3/4 D lambs and these differences were significant for lambs from 3 to 6 months of age. The difference between the backcrosses for both FEC and PCV was about a half of the difference between the straightbred R and D lambs indicating additive gene action. The D lambs were consistently significantly heavier than the R lambs at all sampling times from birth to 6 months with the difference increasing from a 52% advantage at birth (3.72 versus 2.44 kg, respectively) to a 86% advantage for 6-month-old lambs (23.1 versus 12.4 kg, respectively). The 3/4 D lambs were also significantly heavier than the 3/4 R at all sampling times and this difference was about a half that between the D and R lambs (5.1 ± 0.2 versus 10.7 ± 0.5 kg, respectively for 6-month-old lambs). For pre-weaning mortality there was a significant (P

Objective of this paper is to describe the challenges associated with the implementation of the control programme of Caprine arthritis encephalitis virus infections in goats in South Tyrol, Italy. From 2007 to 2010, a total of 72,714 goats older than 6 months were serologically tested by means of an ELISA for the presence of Caprine arthritis encephalitis virus antibodies. Seropositive animals were culled. In total, 2576 goats were found to be positive in 2007, 657 goats in 2008, 329 goats in 2009 and 196 goats in 2010. Prevalence of seropositive animals decreased from 14% in 2007 to 1% in 2010. Prevalence of herds with seropositive animals decreased from 32% in 2007 to 6% in 2010. The programme did not disturb the future of the local breed ‘Passeirer Mountain Goat’, although the quality of the breed was considered to have decreased, as the highest rates of infection were recorded in herds with high pedigree goats. Price of animals for slaughter decreased by 50%, due to the surplus of available animals. Trading activities had nearly stopped, as only few herds were fulfilling the requirements of the programme regarding movements of animals to markets. All possible results of the serological test should be explained to farmers, in order to maintain their confidence in the programme and their cooperation.

Today, extensive systems of small ruminants production are considered the most appropriate choice from the ecological, social and economic points of view for the provision of animal products in the arid lands of Mediterranean ecosystems. An efficient utilization of available resources requires a deep knowledge of feeding behavior, digestive and metabolic processes, nutritive value of feeds and nutrient/energy requirements. Energy availability is the biggest limiting factor in the animal production systems. This paper deals with the assessment of the energy requirements of goats. Emphasis is given to problems involved in predicting total energy expenditure of animals in free-living conditions. Particular attention is paid to the CO2-entry rate technique (CERT), where the production of CO2 of the free-ranging animal can be measured using NaH13CO3. Our calorimetric results suggest that maintenance requirements (MEm) of goat may vary from 401 to 443 kJ kg−0.75 per day. An average value of 422 kJ kg−0.75 per day for castrated adult males, growing females and lactating goats has been proposed. Also, a requirement of 4.20 MJ ME kg−1 of 4% fat-corrected milk produced was calculated. Average values for km and kl were 0.75 and 0.67, respectively. The energy costs of the main physical activities (walking and eating) have been determined as well. Estimates of the energy cost of walking were 3.35, 31.7 and −13.2 J kg−1 BW m−1 for horizontal, ascending and descending movement, respectively. Energy cost of eating ranged from 9.02 J kg−1 BW g−1 DM for roughages to 1.55 J kg−1 BW g−1 DM for concentrates. The usual procedure to predict the total energy expenditure by grazing animals is the factorial method, whereby the increase in energy expenditure above that measured in confinement is quantitatively estimated from calorimetric determination of the energy cost of various activities. For a direct estimation of total energy expenditure in the free-ranging animal the CERT has been used. The entry rate of bicarbonate (production of CO2) was calculated from the infusion rate and the measured dilution of the isotope at equilibrium in saliva. A respiratory quotient (RQ) value was assumed, based on feeding level (or productive status), to estimate heat production (HP). So far, only a few studies have used 13C to estimate the energy expenditure of ruminants, and only two studies have addressed free-ranging goats. The method has also been used to determine the effect of cold exposure and stocking rate on total HP. Further investigation is needed to develop and improve new and existing techniques to quantify the total energy expenditure of animals in open range systems.

Sheep production has been taking place on the hills and uplands of England for many centuries and has made a major contribution to environmental and social development and sustainability in these areas. Traditionally, hill farms have provided the crossbred breeding stock for the upland areas, older “cast” ewes for further breeding on improved grazing and naturally reared lamb meat. Under current economic conditions, there is a severe lack of profitability in these units with consequent reduction in sheep and shepherd numbers on the hills. Factors involved in the loss of profitability include persistently poor lamb prices and increased disease risk. Furthermore, 2012 will see the end of many of the current subsidy schemes and from 2010 there will also be the requirement for electronic tagging which requires extra expenses and administrative efforts. The only “growth industry” on this type of land seems to be grouse-shooting, which has low personnel requirement and few long-term social benefits. This paper reviews factors involved in this de-population of the hills, using examples from the Cheviot Hills of Northern England in particular, over the last 20 years and comments on the economic and management requirements necessary for continued sheep farming in these areas, as well as the animal welfare and social effects the trend for lower stock numbers will result in.

The accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in 1986 resulted in levels of radiocaesium in animal-derived food products above national intervention limits in a number of countries. In upland areas of the United Kingdom (UK) radiocaesium activity concentrations in the meat of some sheep exceeds (in 1998) the local intervention limit of 1000 Bq kg−1 and measures are still in place to restrict the entry of such animals into the human food chain. The use of many established countermeasure techniques is difficult due to the nature of animal management in the affected areas. This paper describes a study to develop and test a bolus containing the radiocaesium binder ammonium ferric hexacyanoferrate (AFCF) suitable for administration to small lambs of hill-sheep breeds used in the UK. It was found that a bolus 14 mm × 50 mm in size, and containing 20% AFCF, could be safely administered to lambs of 10 kg. An increase in the AFCF content above 20% resulted in too rapid a breakdown of the bolus. Administration of three boli per lamb reduced the 137 Cs activity concentration in muscle by circa 50% between 3 and 8 weeks following administration of the boli. After 12 weeks the reduction in the 137 Cs activity concentration was 30%. We conclude that the AFCF bolus developed could be effectively used to reduce the radiocaesium activity concentration in lambs within hill and upland areas of the UK.

Increased ewe prolificacy and lambing rates, under certain conditions of sheep husbandry, may be economical and desirable. This paper reports on the effects of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) and phenobarbital (PB) on fertility and lambing rate in fat-tailed Ghezel sheep. One-hundred and five cyclic ewes (1.5 to 7.5 years of age) were randomly allotted to seven groups. Estrus was synchronized with two intramuscular injections of a prostaglandin F2α analogue (PGF2α), eight days apart. Four groups were randomly assigned to the hCG and three groups to PB experiments. Twenty-four hours after the second injection of PGF2α, the ewes in four groups were injected (i.m.), either with 1 ml normal saline (control) or with 125, 250 or 500 IU hCG. Prolificacy of the ewes which conceived at first estrus increased in ewes receiving 500 IU of hCG, as compared with control group (an increase of 0.5 lamb/ewe) but fertility and lambing rate decreased in hCG-treated groups (P

Seasonal variations in the volume of milk in Norwegian goat dairy farming complicate the production of brand goat cheeses. In the specialised goat dairy farming system most kids are culled shortly after birth without utilising the meat. In this paper the farm economics of an alternative system with altered period of kidding (currently from January to March) combined with the production of meat and cashmere fibre, is examined. May kidding combined with raising the kids for 8 or 20 months yielded the most promising economical return. Raising the kids for 1 year is also profitable when kidding takes place in February while December kidding seems to perform best with the present system of culling the kids right after birth. Cashmere fibre production seems to be profitable on Norwegian dairy goat farms and fibre and meat could become an option in countries seeking to improve incomes on dairy goat farms. Compared to the present system the changes would also be favourable from an animal welfare point of view.

The purpose of this paper is to review the several differences in physico-chemical, medical, nutritional, biological, radioactivity and immunological aspects of goat and sheep milk. It also deals with changes in milk constituents due to heat treatments as well as dairy products produced from these species to focus international attention on the dairy products which can be produced a large scale in many countries.

Herbage intake (HI) was estimated with two procedures: (a) with the n -alkanes method (HI al ), which combines the use of odd-chain n -alkanes, naturally occurring in plants, and dosed even-chain n -alkanes, as internal and external markers, respectively; (b) with the ratio between faecal excretion, estimated with chromium sesquioxide (Cr 2 O 3 ), and the herbage indigestibility, estimated in vitro (HI Cr ). The two techniques were compared in an indoor experiment and under grazing conditions. In the indoor trial, 12 wethers were fed 40 g dry matter (DM) kg −1 BW 0.75 day −1 of one of the following diets: herbage only (diet H); herbage plus maize (diet M; 26% of DM intake); herbage plus maize plus maize gluten meal (diet MG; 13% of DM intake each). Each wether was dosed once a day for 12 days with the external indicators impregnated on paper and inserted in gelatine capsules: n -dotriacontane, C 32 , 600 mg day −1 ; Cr 2 O 3 , 500 mg day −1 . In the second experiment, six adult, lactating ewes grazing the pasture used for the indoor trial were divided into groups of three receiving 700 g day −1 of two different supplements: maize (diet M) or a 50:50 mix of maize and maize gluten meal (diet MG). The external indicators (Cr 2 O 3 and C 32 ) were administered for 8 consecutive days. The trial was repeated four times with the same procedure between 10th and the 40th day after lambing. Recoveries of Cr 2 O 3 , C 32 and herbage n -alkanes ( n -hentriacontane, C 31 , and n -tritriacontane, C 33 ) were incomplete, with lower values for the natural n -alkanes than the dosed n -alkane (Cr 2 O 3 , 94.9 ± 5.5%; C 31 , 86.7 ± 8.7%; C 32 , 89.6 ± 8.5%; C 33 , 85.1 ± 9.9%). Therefore, HI Cr gave an overestimate of the true herbage intake of 5.5% and HI al an underestimate of 3.0%, with a significant discrepancy between methods (803 vs. 733 g organic matter (OM) day −1 ), not affected by diet. In the grazing trial, HI Cr was higher than HI al , but the difference between methods (1503 vs. 1273 g OM day −1 ) was higher than that obtained in the indoor experiment and was influenced by diet (380 g OM day −1 vs. 81 g OM day −1 with diet M and diet MG, respectively). A possible explanation of the different results obtained indoor or at pasture is discussed.

Seasonal growth and shedding of cashmere fibre makes total fleece weight measurements difficult to interpret in relation to environmental and experimental variables. In studies of the effects of nutrition and photoperiod on cashmere growth, a technique has been developed which provides statistically analysable values for growth rates, maximum fibre length, length of growing period, and for dates of initiation and cessation of cashmere fibre growth. This method requires the measurement of cashmere length at monthly intervals at three sites (shoulder, midside and hip) on the goat. The model assumes that once initiated, the rate of cashmere length increase was linear until cessation, and that the initiation of growth occurs at a fixed time controlled by photoperiod. This paper provides a method for quantitative estimation of the dates of initiation and cessation of fibre growth, and for determining the linear rates of cashmere and hair fibre growth. The method involves the measurement of cashmere fibre length at 28 day intervals over the period of growth, and calculation of rate of cashmere growth from the linear portion of the graph relating length and date of sampling. Extrapolation of this line to time 0 provides an estimate of initiation date. Cessation date is then calculated as the date where maximum length observed intersects this linear plot, and the period of growth estimated as the difference between initiation and cessation dates. This simple model was found to closely fit observed data from individuals or groups of goats and, with the appropriate measures of variation, permits statistical comparisons of these values between individuals or groups.

This paper reports threshold values of leucocyte count, lactose and chloride contents in relation to California mastitis test (CMT) of milk samples of mastitic and non-mastitic goats. CMT, leucocyte count, lactose and chloride contents of milk were analysed in 204 caprine milk samples collected 4–8 weeks post-parturition. A milk sample was considered mastitic when it had a CMT score of ≥ 1 + in association with threshold values of two of three parameters: leucocyte count (≥ 0.63 millions/ml), lactose ( ⩽ 4.33%) and chloride contents (≥ 0.109%). Leucocyte counts with nil, trace and 1 + CMT reaction, respectively, varied from 0.07–0.81 (mean 0.279 ± 0.013), 0.09–0.81 (mean 0.417 ± 0.039) and 0.31–2.13 (mean 0.812±0.054) million/ml. Lactose contents with nil and trace CMT reaction, respectively, varied from 4.18–5.59% (mean 4.73±0.35) and 4.06–4.78% (mean 4.52±0.089). Chloride contents with nil and trace CMT reaction, respectively, varied from 0.065–0.130% (mean 0.103±0.001) and 0.035–0.115% (mean 0.103±0.003). From 67 milk samples with nil and trace CMT reaction, 26.9% had Micrococcus sp., Staphylococcus aureus, Citrobacter and Escherichia coli which showed that mere isolation of bacteria was not sufficient to incriminate with mastitis unless the milk also had inflammatory parameters. Validity of different tests in relation to CMT showed that false % was lowest for leucocyte count (7.l), followed by lactose contents (11.8 ), suggesting that these tests had better predictive values than chloride contents. The best correlation was between CMT and leucocyte count, followed by CMT and lactose content. The results indicated that lactose test could be a useful, quick and readily available tool for routine checking of udder health under Indian rural conditions.

In the previous paper (Zachara et al., 1992), we have shown that Deposel (barium selenate) injected to ewes before the breeding season was effective in raising the selenium (Se) concentration and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity in blood components of ewes, and in maintaining them at adequate levels during pregnancy and lactation. Lambs born from these ewes were weighed after birth and a month later. After 2 and 6 weeks blood samples from lambs were taken for Se, GSH-Px and creatine kinase (CPK) measurements. A month after lambing, wool was also collected for Se analysis. The birth weight and weight gain during the first month of life were identical in both flocks and equal to 4.4 kg and 221 g/day, respectively. Whole blood and plasma Se concentrations in the lambs of the experimental flock were 164 and 43.8 ng/ml, respectively, 2 weeks after lambing, and 137 and 39 ng/ml, respectively, at 6 weeks. Whole blood and plasma Se concentrations in the lambs of the untreated flock were highly deficient and significantly lower, being 28.0 and 10.0 ng/ml, respectively (P

An attempt was made to collect all published species comparisons of overall digestive capacity of goats with sheep, cattle and buffalo. Statistical analyses were carried out on all data sets resulting from in vivo estimates based on total faecal collection and on part of these data sets classified as category I. Excluded from category I were data sets from papers in which species and diet effects were confounded, in which proper handling of orts (if any) was not evident, and/or which showed clear inconsistencies in the presented results. From 92 sources, 342, 45 and 9 (218, 34 and 1 category I) data sets comparing overall feed digestibility (i.e., of organic matter, dry matter, energy or total nutrients) in goats with sheep, cattle and buffalo, respectively, were collected. In category I data sets, overall feed digestibility was significantly higher in goats compared with sheep but the difference was very small (+0.8 percentage units). The difference was not significantly affected by species-average digestibility or crude fibre content but was increased at low crude protein content in the diet. In category I data sets, overall feed digestibility was significantly lower in goats compared with cattle (−2.7 percentage units). The difference was not significantly affected by species-average digestibility or crude fibre content but increased with decreasing crude protein content of the diet. It is concluded that the slightly higher overall feed digestibility in goats compared with sheep is of no practical significance with the possible exception of diets very low in crude protein content. On the other hand, overall feed digestibility is lower in goats compared to cattle and the difference tends to be larger in low protein diets.

Ninety adult, castrated cashmere goats, typical of animals kept for commercial cashmere production in southern Australia, were slaughtered at a commercial abattoir and carcasses boned out at a commercial boning works. Liveweights ranged from 27.5 to 79.0 kg and hot carcass weight from 12.1 and 32.6 kg. Hot carcass weight increased 427 g for every 1 kg increase in liveweight. GR tissue depth ranged from 3.4 to 11.0 mm (mean 6.4 mm). Goats weighing > 44 kg liveweight with body condition scores > 2 produced carcasses weighing more than 20 kg and had boneless meat yields of 64.2 ± 0.1% (mean ± SE) hot carcass weight and 66.8 ± 0.2% of cold carcass weight. Boneless meat yield declined to 61.1% of hot carcass weight for hot carcasses weighing 13.8 kg. Boneless goat meat increased 307 g and 670 g for every 1 kg increase in liveweight and hot carcass weight respectively. As hot carcass weight increased, boneless meat: bone ratios increased from 1.98 to 2.39 and fat trim from 2.2% to 6.6%. Boneless goat meat accounted for 95.8% of the total wholesale value and the fillet (mean weight 172 g) an additional 2.9%. Regression equations indicated liveweight and hot carcass weight were excellent predictors (r ≥ 0.99) of boneless goat meat yields. The accuracy and use of carcass length, GR tissue depth and body condition score in precision of prediction equations are discussed. Economic value was related directly to liveweight and carcass weight (r ≥ 0.99). The paper discusses the scope that exists for processors of boneless goat meat to encourage supply of heavier adult goats in good body condition.

This paper focuses on some parameters of udder characteristics of Toggenburg goats estimated by Least Square procedures. Principles of udder changes are described. Results were high heritabilities for some udder characteristics and significant correlations between them. Udder characteristics were based on measurements and proposed for breeding. Udder measurements taken for selection may have efficient effects. Most udder characteristics had significant correlations with 180-day milk yield. Path analysis showed that their coefficients to 180-day milk yields were higher than the coefficients of body weight, milk components and body score to 180-day milk yield. It could be important to use udder characteristics in breeding practice.