Subjective assessment of body fat in live sheep

A consensus of expert opinion was used to provide both face and consensual validity to a list of potential indicators of sheep welfare. This approach was used as a first step in the identification of valid welfare indicators for sheep. The consensus methodology of the National Institute of Health, using pre-meeting consultation and focus group discussions, was used to ascertain the consensus opinion of a panel of sheep welfare experts. The Farm Animal Welfare Council's five freedoms were used as a framework to organise a list of current on-farm welfare issues for sheep. The five freedoms were also the welfare criterion used to identify potential on-farm welfare indicators for sheep. As a result, experts identified 193 welfare issues for sheep and lambs managed on farms across England and Wales. Subsequently, a combination of animal-(n 5 26), resource-(n 5 13) and management-(n 5 22) based indicators was suggested for (i) adult rams, (ii) adult ewes (male and female sheep, over 1 year old), (iii) growing lambs (male and female sheep, over 6 weeks to 1 year old) and (iv) young lambs (male and female lambs, 6 weeks old and under). The results from this study could therefore be used to inform the further development of valid methods of assessing the on-farm welfare of sheep.

Section: Welfare Issues Identifiedmentioning

confidence: 99%

Validating indicators of sheep welfare through a consensus of expert opinion

Phythian

Michalopoulou

Jones

et al. 2011

“…Ewe live weight (to the nearest 0.5 kg) and BCS (Russel et al, 1969) were recorded 1 week before mating, 6 weeks pre-lambing, 6 weeks post-lambing and at weaning. The permanent incisors of all ewes were assessed pre-mating for bite position, looseness, wear and general condition.…”

Section: Measurementsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparison of the longevity and lifetime performance of Scottish Blackface ewes and their crosses within hill sheep flocks

Annett

Carson

Dawson

et al. 2011

A study was undertaken to compare the longevity and lifetime lamb output of purebred Scottish Blackface (BF) ewes with a range of crossbred genotypes from Scottish BF dams. For up to five successive breeding seasons, 1143 Scottish BF, Swaledale 3 BF (SW 3 BF), North Country Cheviot 3 BF (CH 3 BF), Lleyn 3 BF (LL 3 BF) and Texel 3 BF (T 3 BF) ewes were mated to a range of sire breeds on six hill farms across Northern Ireland. Dentition and lamb output were recorded annually until completion of the study or until the ewe was removed due to death or culling. Timing of mortality and the main reason for culling were also recorded. When survival analysis was undertaken, SW 3 BF and CH 3 BF ewes had better longevity ( P , 0.05) than BF ewes due to their lower culling rate ( P , 0.01) and lower mortality rate ( P 5 0.06), respectively. The relative proportion of LL 3 BF and T 3 BF culled due to infertility was lower ( P , 0.05) than SW 3 BF and CH 3 BF, while a higher ( P , 0.05) proportion of LL 3 BF and T 3 BF ewes were culled for prolapses compared with the other breed crosses. SW 3 BF ewes had consistently higher bite scores ( P , 0.001) compared with BF, LL 3 BF and T 3 BF, indicating a greater prevalence and degree of overshoot. In ewes aged 5.5 years old, SW 3 BF also had a higher incidence of tooth loss ( P , 0.01) compared with the other breeds. However, the proportion of SW 3 BF culled due to poor teeth condition was lower ( P , 0.05) than BF. Across all breeds, the chances of surviving to their next mating were influenced by ewe breed ( P , 0.05), age at mating ( P , 0.001), body condition score at weaning ( P , 0.001), number of missing teeth ( P , 0.001) and average daily live weight gain per litter ( P , 0.05). The cumulative number and weight of lambs weaned per ewe over five successive matings was higher ( P , 0.05) for crossbred compared with pure BF ewes; however there were no differences in lifetime output between the different crossbred ewes studied. This study demonstrates that the higher lamb output of crossbred hill ewes does not compromise their longevity compared with pure Blackface, resulting in greater total lifetime production. When the crossbred ewes are sired by a second hill breed, longevity may be improved.

“…Lambs were slaughtered when they attained a fat class of 2 to 3 (on a scale of 0 to 5), which was manually assessed by skilled technicians according to the method described by Russel et al (1969). The lambs had access to food and water until roughly 1 h before slaughter, and were transported by truck to the abattoir 25 km from the experimental site.…”

Section: Slaughter Proceduresmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…At 24 h post mortem, the carcass was weighed, graded for conformation using the commercial 15-point scale, as described by Fisher et al (2000), and assessed for external fat using the commercial 5-point scale (Russel et al, 1969). Carcass morphology was assessed by measuring carcass length, width of buttock, chest depth according to Fisher and de Boer (1994), and thorax and shoulder width according to Laville et al (2002).…”

Section: Carcass Measurementsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparison of meat and carcass quality in organically reared and conventionally reared pasture-fed lambs

Prache

Philippe

Thomas

et al. 2011

The 'Organic' product label guarantees a production process that avoids the use of synthetic fertilisers, pesticides and hormones and minimises recourse to pharmaceuticals or veterinary drugs; however, the product's quality remains an issue that needs to be addressed in response to consumer demand. Consequently, this study was conducted to compare the sensory and nutritional qualities of meat and carcasses from pasture-fed lambs reared organically (O) or conventionally (C). Mean lamb growth profile was kept similar between the two treatments to avoid confounding effects with lamb age or weight at slaughter. The experiment was conducted over 3 years (2005 to 2007) with 12 O and 12 C lambs each year. The O and C treatments differed in the level of on-pasture mineral N fertilisation inducing a higher proportion of white clover in the organic pasture than the conventional pasture. Lambs were slaughtered when they attained a fat class of 2 to 3, and carcass and meat quality were evaluated. Lambs were slaughtered at an average weight and age of 35.3 kg and 156 days in the O treatment, respectively, and 35.2 kg and 155 days in the C treatment, respectively. Sensory evaluation indicated that loin chops from the O treatment had a higher level of abnormal fat odour compared with the C treatment. Carcasses from the O treatment had a softer subcutaneous fat one among 3 years (2007) compared to the C treatment. These results are probably due to a higher proportion of white clover in the diet. Organically reared lambs did offer the slight advantage of muscle fatty acid containing a higher level of stearic acid, which may have positive effects in the prevention of cardiovascular disease in humans. This may be the result of a higher rumen bio-hydrogenation of C18:3n-3 due to differences in the botanical composition between the O and the C pasture. Production system had no effect on the colour characteristics of the meat and subcutaneous fat, except lightness of subcutaneous dorsal fat, which was slightly higher in the O lambs. There were no differences between O and C lambs in terms of colour stability and lipid oxidation of the meat during the 6-day refrigerated storage under gas-permeable film.