1 / 20

Peter Bailey: Project Manager Red Meat Value Chain & Lamb Specialist

Managing Ewe Nutrition to Drive Lamb Growth Rates BestWool/BestLamb Conference Bendigo 26 July 2013. Peter Bailey: Project Manager Red Meat Value Chain & Lamb Specialist. Insert appropriate picture here. Aspirational Targets. Targeting 400 gLWG / day birth to weaning

amandla
Télécharger la présentation

Peter Bailey: Project Manager Red Meat Value Chain & Lamb Specialist

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Managing Ewe Nutrition to Drive Lamb Growth RatesBestWool/BestLamb Conference Bendigo 26 July 2013 Peter Bailey: Project Manager Red Meat Value Chain & Lamb Specialist Insert appropriate picture here

  2. Aspirational Targets • Targeting 400 gLWG / day birth to weaning • Ewe nutrition & lactation is key • Maternal Ewes • lamb weaning weight (> 40kgLW)!! • ewe efficiency (> 80%) ? • ewe kgLW / ha (> 600) ? • lamb CW / ha (> 400) ? • Merino Ewes • what are their desired targets?

  3. Benefits of 400 gLWG / day • Increased lamb vigour and survival • More lambs sold off mum (earlier less days on feed) • Higher dressing out % • Less animal health • Meet (spring) market premium • Improved feed utilisation • Align feed supply and demand profile • Lower (more efficient) cost of production • Free up feed for (more) ewes or other livestock enterprises

  4. Ewe Condition 3.0 (+ kgLW) • Why condition score & liveweight? • CS: 2.5 – 3.5 • LW: 50 – 80kgLW • Foetus: 0 – 4 lambs • Changes energy (feed) demand!

  5. Foetus and Mammary development

  6. Ewe Nutrition Mating to Lactation • Grazing strategies are key • rotation vs. set stocking

  7. Early – Mid Pregnancy Management • Time of mob stocking • allocate ram ratio to ewe mob size • no physical pressure • Nutrition • pasture cover not to drop below 1,200 kgDM pasture cover • underfeeding in first third of pregnancy reduces cotyledon numbers – lowers lamb birth weight • flush with a green pick and rising plane of nutrition • marginal decrease in CS 3.0 > 2.8 day 40 to 80? • animal health – vaccinations, drench

  8. Mid-Pregnancy Ewe Shearing? • An option worth considering? • Mid winter shearing between day 50 – 100 • pre-scanning • increase birth weights by up to 0.7 kgLW / lamb (up to 1.0 kgLW) • increased vigour, stored energy as fat reserves • Increased lamb survival & decreases lamb mortality by up to 3 % • easier lambing with less wool • Extra feed required 10 – 15 days • Positive affect on wool yield and quality • Must fit your enterprise mix

  9. Mid – Late Pregnancy Management • Time to change from rotation to set stocking • set stock 1 week pre-lambing • lower weaning weight of lamb when ewes set stocked 4 weeks prior to lambing (c/w 1 week) • Nutrition • gradual rising plane of nutrition • weaning weight increase 2 kg / 100 kgDM pasture cover increase (target > 1,200 kgDM / ha) • milk production peak and total • animal health pre – lamb vaccinations

  10. Understanding Ewe Milk Production • Understanding Ewe milk production • rising plane of nutrition from mid pregnancy (post scan) to lambing • 1.0 – 1.5 – 2.0 x maintenance • ewes lamb at CS 3.0+ • enhances lamb energy reserves (fat and glycogen) and vigour • over lambing pasture cover required > 1,300 kgDM/ha • minimum allowance offered 6 – 8 kgDM/day • eat 2.5 – 3.5 kgDM/day (3x maintenance) • health and mineral status • mastitis, milk fever

  11. Ewe Lactation Curve

  12. Pasture Allowance During Lactation

  13. Ewe Lactation • Daily milk production peaks at 2 – 3 weeks and produce • 2.5 kg milk/day (single lamb) • 3.5 kg milk/day (twin lambs) • 40 – 50 % milk produced in first 4 weeks of lactation • After which it declines by 19.0 – 26.0 g milk/day • By day 100 milk production is down to 0.0 – 0.5 kg milk/day • by then the ewe is competing for feed with lambs !

  14. Ewe Lactation • Ewes with twins produce 30 – 50 % more milk / lactation than singles • Each twin lamb receives only 60 % as much milk as a single lamb • Twin lambs forced to eat pasture at an earlier age • Total milk produced is influenced by management • genetics / breed • ewe condition / age • nutrition

  15. Ewe Milk energy Vs lamb Energy

  16. Lamb Nutritional Requirements • Understanding lamb nutritional requirements for 400 gm / day growth to weaning. As a guide: • milk consumed by lambs most important in first 6 weeks • transition from milk to pasture begins at 3 – 5 weeks of age • ME requirements • 6 weeks > 20 kgLW requires > 10.0 MJME/day • 8 weeks > 25 kgLW requires > 20.0 MJME/day • 12 weeks > 35 kgLW requires > 28.0 MJME/day

  17. Milk to Pasture Transition: Singles

  18. Milk to Pasture Transition: Twins

  19. Pre – Post Weaning Lamb Growth • Competition for feed between ewes and lambs begins 30 to 40 days after lambing commenced • Ewe lactation ends around day 80 – 100! • Why wean later than day 100 days? • short of feed – wean earlier < 1,000kgDM/ha ? • surplus of feed – wean later >1,400kgDM/ha ? • Compromise lamb growth: 50g – 350g/day!

  20. Summary • Understand the management requirements of the ewe and lamb from mating to weaning • Optimise ewe lactation through genetic selection and culling • Nutrition, feed quality, match feed supply and demand • Achieve 400 g/day lamb growth • Timeframe 100 days • Improved lamb survival and next years conception

More Related