# Presentation: 657299

## Small Ruminant

**Small Ruminant**
**Production **
**Systems**
- Stephan Wildeus
- Virginia State University

## Breed Resource Evaluation at Virginia State University

- Species comparison of meat goat and hair sheep breeds
- Evaluation of breed types within species
- Goats: Nubian, Spanish, Myotonic, Pygmy, Boer x Spanish, and Boer and Kiko terminal sire kids
- Sheep: Barbados Blackbelly, Katadhin, St. Croix

## Program history

- Initiated as Meat Goat Program in 1992
- Changed to Small Ruminant Program 1997
- introduced breeding flocks of Katahdin in 1997
- Barbados Blackbelly in 1998
- St. Croix hair sheep in 1999
- Emphasis on breed evaluation and forage-based, low-input production systems

## Animal resources : hair sheep

- Katahdin

- Barbados Blackbelly

- St. Croix

## Animal resources : goats

- Boer cross

- Myotonic

- Pygmy

- Spanish

**Reproductive ****performance in goats**

## Kidding performance of goat breeds under a forage-based, accelerated mating system (1996-2000)

|  | Myotonic | Nubian | Spanish |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Pregnancy rate, % | 66.1 | 76.5 | 79.9 |
| Kids born/doe kidding | 1.76 | 1.90 | 1.69 |
| Kids weaned/doe kidding | 1.28 | 1.01 | 1.32 |

## Effect of breeding season on pregnancy rate in meat goat breeds

## Effect of breeding season on prolificacy in meat goats during two breeding cycles

**Cycle 1**

**Cycle 2**

## Effect of breeding season on pregnancy rate in meat goat breeds

## Effect of breeding season on prolificacy in meat goats during two breeding cycles

**Cycle 1**

**Cycle 2**

## Reproductive performance in hair sheep

**Reproductive performance in hair sheep**

## Effect of breeding season on pregnancy rate in hair sheep breeds

## Effect of season and breed on pregnancy, lambing and weaning rate in hair sheep breeds

- Blackbelly

- Katahdin

- St. Croix

## Effect of breeding season on prolificacy in hair sheep

## Effect of production cycle on pregnancy rates

## Effect of production cycle on lamb weaned as % ewe body weight

## Estimated annualized performance under accelerated mating

|  | BB | KA | SC |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| lambs born/ewe lambing/yr | 2.36 | 2.49 | 2.77 |
| lambs weaned/ewe lambing/yr | 2.04 | 2.12 | 2.33 |
| % litter wt. weaned/yr | 63.0 | 63.2 | 61.7 |

## Effect of season on pregnancy rate of replacement ewes

- Reduced pregnancy rates in 11 mo old replacement ewes in July and March

**Nov**

**Nov**

**Jul**

**Jul**

**Mar**

**Mar**

**Nov**

## Forage-based feeding trials at VSU

**Forage-based feeding ****trials at VSU**

## Daily gain (lbs/d) in Spanish and Boer goats fed alfalfa hay diets in two different trials

|  | alfalfa | grass |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Spanish, 7 mo, conc.  
   @1.5% BW, 16.8% 
   CP , 102 days  | 0.302 | 0.172 |
| Boer, 10 mo, conc.
   @1% BW, 15.2% 
   CP, 84 days | 0.348 | 0.262 |
|  |  |  |

## Forage DMI in goats and hair sheep pen-fed fescue hay and 2% BW concentrate

## Body weight and daily gain in goats and hair sheep fed fescue hay and concentrate (2% BW)

|  | Goat | Sheep |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Starting wt, lb | 36.6 | 47.8 |
| Final wt, lb | 73.9 | 99.9 |
| Daily gain, lb | 0.236 | 0.320 |
|  |  |  |

## Live grade and ultrasonic backfat and rib eye in goats and hair sheep fed high forage diets

|  | Goat | Sheep |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Live grade | Choice 0 | Choice 30 |
| Backfat, cm | 0.18 | 0.42 |
| Rib eye area, cm2 | 8.58 | 11.39 |
|  |  |  |

## Nutritional quality of hay types and forage intake (Trial 2)

|  | Alfalfa | Fescue |
| --- | --- | --- |
| % protein | 16.3 | 13.5 |
| % NDF  | 51.0 | 56.1 |
| % ADF | 36.1 | 37.9 |
| % IVOMD | 55.2 | 45.2 |

## Growth rates of hair sheep lambs and meat goats kids fed alfalfa and grass hay (Trial 2)

## Starting and final weights, and daily gain in goats and hair sheep fed forage-based diets (Trial 2)

|  | Goat |  | Sheep |  |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|  | alfalfa | grass | alfalfa | grass |
| Starting wt, lb | 31.7 | 29.8 | 51.4 | 49.6 |
| Final wt, lb | 58.4 | 48.7 | 90.6 | 82.7 |
| Daily gain, lb | 0.271 | 0.194 | 0.401 | 0.324 |
| Live grade | Choice 
40 | Choice 
20 | Prime 40 | Prime
 20 |

## Trial A

- 36 weaned ewe and wether lambs (12/breed)
- Fescue pasture; **alfalfa hay**
- Hay group:  6 pens; 3 animal/pen balanced by breed
**0.75%** body wt concentrate supplement

## Trial B

- 72 weaned ewe and wether lambs (24/breed);
- Fescue pasture; **mixed grass hay**
- Hay group: 6 pens balanced by breed
- Concentrate supplementation at **1.5% body wt**
- Two levels of protein in concentrate (16.8% vs. 24.3%)

## Nutritional quality of pasture and hay

|  | Pasture | Alfalfa
hay | Grass
hay |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| % Crude protein | 12-17 | 16.6 | 15.1 |
| % NDF  | 66-69 | 60.3 | 67.6 |
| % ADF | 36-38 | 45.2 | 36.7 |
| % IVOMD | 34-60 | 57.6 | 54.2 |

## Body weight changes in three hair sheep breeds reared on pasture or in pens (Trial A)

- BB: 0.12 lb/d
- KA: 0.19 lb/d
- STX: 0.17 lb/d

## Carcass characteristics in three hair sheep breeds after forage feeding 

|  | Blackbelly | Katahdin | St. Croix |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Backfat, cm | 0.171 | 0.449 | 0.241 |
| REA, cm2 | 10.7 | 12.1 | 9.1 |
| Yield grade | 1.07 | 2.15 | 1.34 |
| Quality grade | 9.6 | 11.2 | 10.1 |
|  |  |  |  |

## Body weight changes in three hair sheep breeds reared on pasture or in pens (Trial B)

- BB: 0.16 lb/d
- KA: 0.24 lb/d
- STX: 0.19 lb/d

## Body weight, growth and DM intake in lambs fed alfalfa hay (17.6% CP) with no supplement

|  | BB | KA | SC |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Starting wt. (lb) | 52.4 | 80.5 | 64.2 |
| Final wt. (lb) | 64.4 | 98.6 | 80.5 |
| Daily gain (lb/d) | 0.192 | 0.289 | 0.259 |
| Intake (% body wt.) | 3.31 | 2.93 | 3.10 |
| Feed : gain | 10.53 | 9.11 | 8.73 |

## Nitrogen use efficiency in lambs fed alfalfa hay

|  | BB | KA | SC |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| N intake (g/d) | 24.1 | 33.6 | 25.5 |
| Absorbed N (% N intake) | 67.7 | 72.3 | 69.4 |
| Retained N (% N intake) | 11.3 | 16.1 | 8.9 |

## Growth of terminal sire Boer and Kiko crossbred kids

## Performance of terminal sire kids pen-fed grass hay diets

|  | supplement  level |  |  | sire breed |  |  | dam breed |  |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|  | 2% | 3% |  | Boer | Kiko |  | Myotonic | Spanish |
| Initial wt, kg | 15.1 | 15.0 |  | 15.8 | 14.3 |  | 14.7 | 15.4 |
| Final wt, kg | 25.0b | 28.4a |  | 27.0 | 26.4 |  | 25.8 | 27.6 |
| ADG, g/d | 101b | 137a |  | 114 | 122 |  | 113 | 124 |
| Live grade | Choice 23 | Choice 30 |  | Choice 34d | Choice 18c |  | Choice 34d | Choice 18c |
| a,bvalues with unlike superscripts in same row within main category differ (P<.001).
c,dvalues with unlike superscripts in same row within main category differ (P<.05). |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |

## Forage and total DMI of crossbred kids

## Gastrointestinal Parasitism

**Gastrointestinal Parasitism**

## Species differences in goats and hair sheep in mean FEC and PCV during the grazing season1

|  | goats | sheep | P |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| FEC, eggs/g | 669 | 376 | .001 |
| PCV, % | 26.5 | 31.9 | .001 |
| Deworming int., d | 32 | 143 | .001 |
| 1animals were dewormed at FEC composites of 1000 egp |  |  |  |

## Breed differences in goats and hair sheep in mean FEC and PCV during the grazing season1

|  | Myotonic | Nubian | Pygmy | Spanish |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| FEC, eggs/g | 412b | 1035a | 359b | 865a |
| PCV, % | 26.4b | 28.4a | 25.5c | 25.8bc |
| Deworming int., d | 44a | 26d | 32b | 27c |
| 1animals were dewormed at FEC composites of 1000 egp
 |  |  |  |  |

## Effect of breed and feeding system on changes in fecal egg counts in lambs (2001 data)

**deworm**

- breed x feeding system P<.05

## Effect of breed and feeding system on changes in packed blood cell volume (2001 data) 

**deworm**

- breed P<.01; feeding system P<.01

## Worm burden in three hair sheep breeds reared in pasture or in pens (2001 data)

|  |  | Abomasum
H contortus | Small intestine
Trichostrongyle spp. |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Breed
   Blackbelly
   Katahdin
   St. Croix |  | 
451
316
115 | 
139
568
144 |
| Management
   Pasture
   Pen |  | 
239
349 | 
413
154 |
| a,bvalues within main effect with unlike superscripts differ (P<0.05) |  |  |  |

## Changes in fecal egg count in three hair sheep breeds reared on pasture or in pens (2003 data)

## Changes in packed cell volume in three hair sheep breeds reared on pasture or in pens (2003 data)

## Worm burden in three hair sheep breeds reared in pasture or in pens (2003 data)

|  |  | Abomasum
H contortus | Small intestine
Trichostrongyle spp. |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Breed
   Blackbelly
   Katahdin
   St. Croix |  | 
240
233
160 | 
92
119
98 |
| Management
   Pasture
   Pen |  | 
310a
112b | 
131a
74b |
| a,bvalues within main effect with unlike superscripts differ (P<0.05) |  |  |  |

## Slide 48