Effects of certain environmental factors on growth performances of Kivircik lambs

Abstract

Determining the growth performance of lambs is essential for producers to supply the lamb meat with the features demanded by the market as soon as possible. Therefore, the study aimed to determine the effect of year, birth type and sex of lamb on body weight and various body measurements of Kivircik lambs. Live weights of 612 Kivircik lambs (299 males and 313 females) were used in the study, which were born in 2014, 2015 and 2016. Body measurements of 47 male lambs and 50 female lambs, randomly selected from 508 lambs born in 2014 and 2016, were used in the study. Birth year had significant effect on both live weights and body measurements of lambs in various growth periods. Single born and male lambs are significantly superior in both live weight and body measurements over female and twin born lambs. This situation results in being preferred for both meat production and breeding purposes more than their opponents. In order to have a more productive herd structure, female and twin lambs should be reared according to their needs for a better growth performance. Rump height of single born lambs and chest depth of male lambs were higher than their counterparts throughout the study. Therefore, these two body measurements can be used as reliable parameters for investigation of growth performance of Kivircik lambs.