IMPACT OF FEED SHORTAGE ON THE PERFORMANCE OF DESERT BARKI SHEEP AND GOATS UNDER ARID CONDITIONS: II. LONG FEED SHORTAGE FOR EWES AND EWE-LAMBS

Document Type : Original Article

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Animal production research institute (APRI), Dokki, Cairo, Egypt.

Abstract

The study investigates the effect of long feed shortage (LFS) on the performance of desert Barki ewes and ewe-lambs under arid conditions. The trial started January 2020 with 45 weaned Barki ewe-lambs and 30 ewes. The ewe-lambs were divided into two groups; control group (C; 15 ewe-lambs) and treatment group (T; 30 ewe-lambs).  The C group were fed Alfalfa hay and concentrates up to five months of age, while the T group was fed 50% of concentrates for three months (LFS). Where they showed significant losses of 11.1% in their body weight (BW). Followed by a compensatory feeding of 125% concentrates for three months, losses in their BW reduced to only 2.4%. The effect of the LFS on the reproductive traits was limited, except for BW at the1st estrus (2.9 kg less).
      For the first three months of lactation, thirty desert Barki ewes were fed individually on concentrates and Alfalfa hay. The treated ewes (T, 20) were fed on 50% concentrate as of NRC allowances (LFS). They lost 9.2 kg of their BW vs. 5.5 kg for the control (C, 10). Total milk yield over 12 weeks of lactation decreased significantly by 15%.                          Losses in BW increased with the advance of the FS period. Most important, losses in BW recovered fast with feed availability, reflecting the capacity of desert Barki sheep to compensate losses in their BW. A vital character which had been developed naturally by the desert animals over centuries of adaptation to arid conditions.

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