Search

Castrated Angora kids ( n = 210, initial BW = 25.4 ± 4.0 kg) approximately 7 months of age were used in two consecutive years (2002 and 2003) to evaluate three production systems and coats in terms of animal performance, carcass traits, mohair production and quality, and production costs. In both years, half the animals were assigned to an innovative feeding system (RF) that consisted of an open-sided barn having a raised, slatted floor, and the remaining goats were assigned in equal numbers to traditional feedlot (FL) and pasture (P) systems. Half the goats in each system were fitted with coats. Treatments and coat groups were blocked by body weight. The FL and RF goats had ad libitum access to rations formulated to produce high and moderate growth rates, respectively. Goats in the P treatment were supplemented three times a week to produce moderate growth. After shearing, fleeces were weighed and fully characterized using objective measurements. In 2002 (only), the goats were slaughtered and carcass traits were measured. The rations and supplements were formulated to produce weight gains and fleece weights that should have ranked FL > RF ≥ P. In fact, the FL and RF goats gained faster and grew more than the P goats. Overall gain rates were 124, 61, and 135 g/day for FL, P, and RF, respectively, while corresponding shorn body weights were 37, 30, and 38 kg. The larger animals in the FL and RF systems produced more mohair than goats in the P system (3.3 kg versus 2.8 kg, greasy). Mohair from RF goats was coarser than that from P goats (31.5 μm versus 29.6 μm) and contained lower curvature (18.8°/mm versus 20.6°/mm). System did not affect any of the other measured traits including scoured yield, mohair production efficiency (mohair production/kg BW), medullation, staple length, or any of the measures of trait variability (CV). System had no effect on dressing percentage but the consistent trend for carcass weight, back fat thickness, and body wall thickness, was consistent with live weights, FL = RF > P. As planned, coated produced higher yielding (74% versus 71%) fleeces compared to those from uncoated animals. Coats did not affect any other measured trait. Fiber and meat production were most expensive in the RF system and least expensive in the P system. Even with coats, mohair produced in the FL and P systems was not clean enough to qualify for the hand spinner niche market. The RF coated fleeces exhibited exceptional visual cleanliness that permitted them to be sold for several multiples of the prevailing mohair commodity price.

An innovative lamb-feeding facility with a raised-slatted floor (RF) was designed and built for the purposes of concurrently producing high-quality, high-value wool and large, lean lamb carcasses. A ration was formulated to provide a low rate of gain in order that lambs attained slaughter weight (59 kg) when they were approximately 12 month of age because a 12-month fleece is a prerequisite for high value in the targeted hand spinning niche wool market. A study was conducted to compare production and quality of wool and meat and associated economics of feeding lambs housed in the RF system versus two conventional systems, a feedlot (FL) and supplementation on pasture (P). For this purpose, 143 5-month-old, male, castrated Rambouillet lambs were obtained and assigned to a production system. Half of the lambs in the RF and FL systems were fitted with protective coats. As planned, daily gain was greater and days to slaughter were less in the FL versus the RF system, with P being intermediate. Final shorn bodyweights were similar in each system, but RF dressing percentage was considerably lower than those in the FL and P systems. This anomaly was likely due to the greater gut fill of RF lambs compared to those in the other two systems. Leaner carcasses were produced in the RF and P systems compared to the FL system. The RF fleeces were heavier than those produced in the FL system with P fleeces being intermediate. Average fiber diameter and variability did not differ among treatments. Though considerably longer than FL staples, wool produced in the RF system was more uniform (CV%) in terms of fiber diameter measured along the staple length. Importantly, coats did not affect rates of gain in either the FL or RF system and had minimal effects on other measured properties. Coated fleeces were only arithmetically higher yielding than uncoated fleeces (55.2% versus 53.4%), but the coated fleeces were visually cleaner and brighter than uncoated fleeces, which is very important for the targeted niche market. Price obtained for coated RF wool sold into a niche market was five times higher than conventionally marketed FL and P wool prices. Net income per head was negative for all three systems (−US$ 0.11, −US$ 2.20, and −US$ 5.57 per head for FL, P, and RF, respectively). In this study, the substantially higher returns from the niche wool market did not compensate fully for the extra cost of production and the extra effort required for niche marketing.

Two hundred castrated male Angora goats (18 mo of age) were divided equally between rangeland sites in the oak savannah of the Edwards Plateau (EP) and the mixed-brush shrublands of the South Texas Plains (STP) for 5 yr to study influence of environment and age on body weight (BW), mohair production, and mohair fiber characteristics. Goats were grazed on rangeland typical of the respective regions and were given typical management that included shearing in February and July or August of each year. Shorn goats were weighed and individual fleeces were measured for grease weight (GFW), clean yield (CMFP), average fiber diameter (AFD), and proportion of medullated fibers, med (MFP) and kemp (KFP). Rainfall and maximum and minimum temperatures were recorded daily at each site. The AFD (P = .01) and its associated SD (P < .001) and kemp levels (P = .03) were all higher at the STP than at the EP site (39.4 vs 37.9 microns, 10.4 vs 11.1 microns, and .80 vs .68%, respectively). Angora goats at EP weighed less (38.1 vs 41.7 kg, P = .03), and sheared less (1.90 vs 2.22 kg, P = .01), finer (36.4 vs 39.3 microns, P < .001), and less kempy (.52 vs .84%, P < .001) mohair at the February shearing than at the August shearing. No seasonal differences in body weight or in mohair production or quality were apparent at STP. The proportions of total variation in grease mohair production (30.6%), CMFP (22.2%), and AFD (15.7%) due to year effects were two to three times greater at STP than at EP. In contrast, year effects were responsible for only a small proportion (2.2 to 4.6%) of the variation in medullated fibers. The effects of rainfall accumulation within specific 6-mo growing periods were positive for BW, GFW, CFW, AFD, SD of AFD and MFP and negative for CMFP and KFP. Only the rainfall effects on SD of AFD and medullated fibers were significant (P < .05). The effects of age were positive for BW (P < .001), CMFP (P = .046), AFD (P < .001), MFP (P = .014), and KFP (P = .084) and negative for GFW (P = .046) and CFW (P = .107). This study documents influence of environment and age of goats on body weight, mohair production, and fiber characteristics.

A grazing study was conducted over 4 yr to determine the effects of stocking rate and supplemental feeding levels on intake, and BW and body condition changes by adult beef cows. Stocking rates were 12.3, 16.5, and 24.7 animal units/(100 ha.yr). Supplemental feed treatments included a negative control (NC) and 300 g/(cow.d) of CP with either 2 (L), 4 (M), or 8 (H) Mcal/(cow.d) of DE from early December to late March. Groups fed supplements (L, M, and H) lost less BW from fall to spring (P < .01) and reciprocally gained less BW from spring to weaning (P < .01) than NC cows. The L cows tended (P = .14) to lose less BW between fall and spring than M and H cows. Treatment effects on condition score were similar to those for BW change. Forage intake, estimated by measurements of fecal output, was greater by supplemented cows (P = .02); L was greater than M and H (P = .004). Increased stocking rate correlated with increased fall-to-spring BW losses (P < .002), spring-to-weaning BW gains (P < .0001), and decreased winter forage intake (P < .005). These data provide quantitative bases for the effects of stocking rate and supplemental feeding on BW and condition dynamics. Low-level feeding of a high-protein supplement can increase intake of dormant range forage, thereby increasing nutrient intake. High-level feeding of low-protein supplements seems to increase nutrient status primarily by providing supplemental nutrients. Increasing stocking rate to the reported extremes decreased forage intake and resulted in unfavorable BW and condition changes.

Angora and Spanish goats (Capra bircus) were exposed to ashe (Juniperus ashei Buchholz) female, ashe male, redberry (Juniperus pinchotti Sudw.) female and redberry male branches in cafeteria style feeding trials. Preferences were consistent across seasons (except winter). Spanish goats generally consumed more juniper than Angoras. Both breeds preferred ashe over redberry juniper and female over male plants. Concentrations of volatile oils varied significantly between species of juniper and among seasons, but not between sexes. Concentrations of total oils were greater in the spring and summer than in the fall and winter. Concentrations of sabinine+beta-pinene were greater in redberry than ashe for all seasons. Concentrations of myrcene were significantly greater for redberry during the spring and summer. Significant correlation of oil concentration with grams of juniper consumed indicated that specific oils were influencing preference for juniper. Correlations were similar for Angora and Spanish goats, indicating no differences between goat breeds in sensitivity to oils.