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Dairy sheep farming and nutritionDairy sheep farming and nutrition
U. BernabucciU. BernabucciDepartment of Animal ProductionDepartment of Animal Production
University of Tuscia – ViterboUniversity of Tuscia – [email protected]@unitus.it
Main Dairy Sheep Breeds reared in Italy
Massese Breed
Sarda Breed
Comisana Breed
Department of Animal Production
See: http://www.ansi.okstate.edu/breeds/sheep/
O N D G F M A M G L A SM e si
Disp onib ilitàfo ra g g ie ra
Plurip a re
Prim ip a re asciut t a asciut taasciut t al a t t a z i o n e
l a t t a z i o n e
Schematic representation of the productive cycle of dairy sheep in Central Italy in relation with pasture availability
Dry Dry
Dry
Lactation
Lactation
Primiparous
Pluriparous
Months
Grazing forage
availability
J J J
Department of Animal Production
Structural characteristics Mean SDSheep flock size (adult heads) 303 (293)Farm size (total surface available-ha) 37 (38)Total land rent (%) 52 (37)Seasonal land rent (%) 24 (34)Annual land rent (%) 28 (34)Farm fragments (n°) 2,1 (1,0)Distance of fragments from farmcentre (Km)
1,4 (1,2)
Annual hay availability/sheep (Kg) 231 (165)Average stocking rate (maturesheep/ha)
8,7 (4,1)
Structural characteristics of dairy sheep farms
Department of Animal Production
Forages
PastureHay
Silage
Department of Animal Production
Forage management Forage management
in the dairy sheep farming systemin the dairy sheep farming system
Environmentand
landscape
Agronomicmanagement
Animalmanagement
Soil Characteristics
Agronomic operations
Grazing technique
Animalhealth
Quantity of
forage Biomass
Forage species
Climatic and topographic
condition
Animalpressure
Productivelevel
Quality of the animal
products
Forage quality
Forage sources for dairy sheep farming
Trifolium incarnatum L. + Avena sativa L.
Avena sativa L. + Vicia villosa Roth.
24%
Trifolium squarroso L.2%
Trifolium incarnatum L.58%
Medicago sativa L .11%
Festuca arundinacea Schreb . +
Dactilis glomerata L.+Phleum pratense L. +
Lotus corniculatum L. + Trifolium repens L.
2%
Medicago sativa L. + Festuca arundinacea
Schreb.
Medicago sativa L. + Dactilis glomerata L. + Lotus cornicolatus L .
3%
Perennial 2%
Annual 84%
Permanent 14%
Department of Animal Production
Forages
Pasture
Department of Animal Production
Ott Nov Dic Gen Feb Mar Apr Mag Giu Lug Ago Set
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
Gra
ss h
eigh
t (cm
)
Month
Grazing forage availability during the year estimated by grass height
Department of Animal Production
Schematic representation of the relative grazing forage utilisation in dairy sheep
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
% D
M
Hay Straw Grassland areas Silage Temporary grassland
% of grazed area / total usable area
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Jan Feb Mar Apr Maj Jun Jul Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec
Months
% h
ecta
re
Cereal strawpastures
Permanentgrassland pastures
Alfalfa praires
Annual mixedcrops
Annual clovercrops
Department of Animal Production
Variation of stocking rate during the year
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
18
Jan Feb Mar Apr Maj Jun Jul Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec
Months
Mat
ure
sh
ee
p /
he
ctar
e (
n°)
Department of Animal Production
DM CP NDF ADF ADL NSC FUMP/kg
Mixed 18.9 20.9 44.9 28.9 5.4 20.6 0.83 7.1 5.4 6.5 5.7 2.2 7.3 0.08
Gramineae 16.0 21.1 50.6 30.6 3.8 14.0 0.78 0.8 6.7 4.1 2.3 0.7 3.1 0.06
Clover 16.9 21.4 43.9 28.8 6.1 20.8 0.79 9.1 4.3 7.0 6.5 2.5 6.5 0.09
Mixed field 19.3 18.5 45.8 31.6 6.1 23.2 0.80 9.2 5.8 5.8 4.5 1.7 5.7 0.07
Nutritive value of pastures(% of DM; means ± SD)
Department of Animal Production
DM CP NDF ADF ADL NSC FUMP/kg
Mixed 18.9 20.9 44.9 28.9 5.4 20.6 0.83 7.1 5.4 6.5 5.7 2.2 7.3 0.08
Gramineae 16.0 21.1 50.6 30.6 3.8 14.0 0.78 0.8 6.7 4.1 2.3 0.7 3.1 0.06
Clover 16.9 21.4 43.9 28.8 6.1 20.8 0.79 9.1 4.3 7.0 6.5 2.5 6.5 0.09
Mixed field 19.3 18.5 45.8 31.6 6.1 23.2 0.80 9.2 5.8 5.8 4.5 1.7 5.7 0.07
Nutritive value of pastures (% of DM; means ± SD)
Department of Animal Production
Nutritive value of pasture during the year (% of DM; means ± SD)
DM CP NDF ADF ADL NSC FUMP/kg
Oct-Dec 19.4 22.4 45.0 28.7 4.8 16.8 0.83 6.1 4.0 4.9 5.6 2.2 6.7 0.05
Jen-Mar 19.1 22.6 42.2 26.5 4.9 21.7 0.85 7.0 4.9 5.6 4.7 2.1 7.1 0.06
Apr-Jun 16.9 18.4 47.1 31.7 6.7 21.8 0.77 9.3 5.1 7.4 5.9 1.9 6.3 0.09
Jul-Sept Grazing on straw:low energy and protein values
Department of Animal Production
Protein, NDF and forage unit for milk production contents of pasture
(% on DM)
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
55
60
65
26 - Gen 7 - Feb 20 - Feb 6 - Mar 6 - Apr 20 - Apr 4 - Mag 18 - Mag 6 - Giug 26 - Giug
Cru
de
pro
tein
si, N
DF
(%)
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
0.9
1.0
1.1
FU
MP
(U/k
g)
Department of Animal Production
Forages
Hay
Department of Animal Production
DM CP NDF ADF ADL NSC FUMP/kg
Italian 89.2 13.1 59.3 42.6 9.5 17.1 0.64ryegrass 4.6 3.3 7.2 4.8 2.3 6.3 0.07
Mixed 85.5 12.3 58.6 42.0 9.2 19.2 0.63 5,0 3.6 7.4 5.0 2.9 7.6 0.05
Alfalfa 88.1 17.8 54.9 39.8 10.3 16.2 0.65 4.2 2.6 7.5 5.3 3.0 6.3 0.07
Nutritive value of hays (% of DM; means ± SD)
Department of Animal Production
Forages
Silage
Department of Animal Production
DM CP NDF ADF ADL NSC FUMP pH NH3
Italian 33.0 9.8 56.1 43.3 7.0 21.7 0.65 4.5 9.8ryegrass 5.7 2.6 10.7 12.6 3.1 11.5 0.12 0.4 7.9
Corn 34.2 8.3 47.0 31.7 5.9 35.0 0.81 3.9 4.1 4.6 2.7 6.8 5.5 2.2 8.1 0.08 0.3 0.8
Clover 39.3 15.6 56.0 42.0 10.4 17.6 0.70 4.5 7.713.1 4.6 2.2 1.1 2.0 4.0 0.08 0.5 1.2
Alfalfa 37.4 15.9 56.3 41.7 9.2 16.2 0.66 4.4 5.7 14.2 4.4 4.4 3.1 2.0 4.8 0.06 0.5 1.3
NH3 = % NH3-N / Total - N
Nutritive value of silage (% of DM; means ± SD)
2025303540455055606570
Ott Nov Dic Gen Feb Mar Apr Mag Giu Lug Ago Set
Month
Pas
ture
, hay
(%)
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Sila
ge (%
)
Relative utilisation of forages in the diet of dairy sheep during the year
Hay Pasture Silage
Department of Animal Production
Concentrate utilisation
Department of Animal Production
200
250
300
350
400
450
500
Ott Nov Dic Gen Feb Mar Apr Mag Giu Lug Ago Set
Month
Con
cent
rate
(g/
head
/day
)
Concentrate fed during the year
No changes in characteristics just in the amount fed
Department of Animal Production
Requirements
Department of Animal Production
Requirements of energy and protein for dairy sheep
FUMP CP (g)40 kg of LW 0.53 8060 kg of LW 0.71 10480 kg of LW 0.88 122
FUMP = Fodder Unit for milk productionLW = Live weight
Maintenance
Department of Animal Production
Requirements of energy and protein for dairy sheep
Days before lambing Weight oflambs at birth 30-45 15-30 0-15
FUMP CP FUMP CP FUMP CP
4 0.07 32 0.17 62 0.31 79 6 0.10 48 0.27 88 0.46 110 8 0.12 65 0.36 114 0.56 142 10 0.14 76 0.38 140 0.64 173
FUMP = Fodder Unit for milk production; CP = crude protein (g)
Pregnancyvalues to be added to ‘Maintenance’
Requirements of energy and protein for dairy sheep
Milk composition Requirements per litre
Fat, % Protein, % FUMP CP
6.2 5.3 0.62 130 6.5 5.5 0.64 135 7.5 6.0 0.72 140 8.0 6.2 0.75 144
Lactationvalues to be added to ‘Maintenance’
FUMP = Fodder Unit for milk production; CP = crude protein (g)
Critical phases in the dairy sheep production system
Department of Animal Production
Oct Sept
Milk yield and energy requirements of dairy ewes
Lam
bs
0
300
600
900
1200
1500
1800
2100
0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350
Days in Milk
Milk
(g/
head
/day
)
0.00
0.50
1.00
1.50
2.00
2.50
Energy requirem
ents (F
UM
P/head/day)Milk
FUMP
Department of Animal Production
Pluripaorus: Early lactation and first 2 months of lactation
Primipaorus: Last phases of pregnancy:
- pasture availability Nutritive lack
- no in hay and silage use Rapid decline in milk yield
- no in concentrate use Decline in BCS
Ott Nov Dic Gen Feb Mar Apr Mag Giu Lug Ago SetMonth
MilkGrass
Department of Animal Production
Improve grazing management and hay and silage use
Possible solutions: - grazing time
- hay and silage use
- concentrate use
Example of diet: 2.0-3.0 kg of silage
0.5-1.0 kg of hay
0.4-0.8 kg of concentrate
Concentrate containing > 16% of CP
Department of Animal Production
End of lactation - SPRING:
- pasture availability
- pasture nutritive value Flushing is not necessary
- concentrates utilisation
Mating of pluripaorus ewes
Ott Nov Dic Gen Feb Mar Apr Mag Giu Lug Ago SetMonth
MilkGrass
Department of Animal Production
SUMMER and FALL:
- pasture availability Flushing for primiparous ewes
- pasture nutritive value Possible metabolic disorders
- concentrates utilisation Impairment of nutritional status
Mating of primipaorus ewesLast phase of pregnancy of pluriparous ewes
Ott Nov Dic Gen Feb Mar Apr Mag Giu Lug Ago Set
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
Gra
ss h
eigh
t (cm
)
Month
Grass
Department of Animal Production
Improve hay, silage and concentrate use
Possible solution: - utilisation of best hay
- utilisation of silage
- concentrate (Flashing)
Example of diet: 1.0-2.0 kg of silage
0.5-0.8 kg of hay
0.3-0.6 kg of concentrate
Concentrate containing > 13-14% of CP
Department of Animal Production
Some considerations
Improve grazing management;
Improve hay and silage use;When we feed silage (mais in particular) have to consider:
Silage = protein --- Pasture = protein
To formulate concentrates in relation with forage availability and characteristics (pasture in particular)
Low availability: 25% CP
High availability: 18% CP
NSC (Grain)
Department of Animal Production
Anyway, about forage it has to be considered possible environmental
impact:
Department of Animal Production
Major environmental impacts Major environmental impacts of semi-extensive dairy sheep farming systemof semi-extensive dairy sheep farming system
Grazing management
Grazing management
Grazing TechniquesGrazing Techniques
High stocking rateHigh stocking rate
High grazing pressure High grazing pressure
Continuous grazingContinuous grazing
Long grazing timeLong grazing time
Carrying capacityCarrying capacity
Annual cultivated forages (monoculture)
Annual cultivated forages (monoculture)
Influence on soil fertility and stability
Influence on soil fertility and stability
Influence on biodiversity
Influence on biodiversity
Foraging strategy
Foraging strategy
Grazing areas degradationGrazing areas degradationDepartment of Animal Production
Some considerations
To formulate particular concentrates in relation with the physiological phase (last
phase of pregnancy in particular)
Example of special concentrate
to prevent pregnancy toxaemia
Department of Animal Production
Animals, housing and feeding
40 healthy and dry Comisana ewes were used. The parity ranged from 2 to 5. Animals were split in two homogeneous groups of 20 by body score, parity and genetic capability for milk production.
The trial was performed under semi-extensive conditions.
The ewes were fed the same diet during the first 100 days of pregnancy:- hay: ad libitum basis;- pasture: 7 hours a day;- barley: 100 g head-1 d-1;- commercial mixed feed (CMF): 200 g head-1 d-1.
( 1 )
Department of Animal Production
Treatment
Fifty days before lambing to one of the two groups (T-group) 200 g head-1 d-1 of special CMF containing:
- 5% of Na-propionate- 3.5% of Ca-salts of LCFAs- 3% of sorbitol- 208 mg/kg of niacin,
was given in substitution of 200 g head-1 d-1 of traditional CMF.
The other 20 ewes (C-group) were not treated.
After lambing all ewes were fed the same diet.
( 2 )
Department of Animal Production
Body condition score (BCS)
1.7
1.8
1.9
2.0
2.1
2.2
2.3
-50 -40 -30 -20 -10 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
C-group T-group
Days from lambingDepartment of Animal Production
Plasma -OH butyrate (BOHB) and Non-Esterified Fatty Acids (NEFA)
(mmol/l)
0.20.30.40.50.60.70.80.91.01.11.2
-50 -45 -40 -35 -30 -25 -20 -15 -10 -5 0 5 10 15
C-BOHB T-BOHB C-NEFA T-NEFA
Days from lambingDepartment of Animal Production
Least-square means of plasma metabolites in the last 28 days of pregnancy in ewes fed (T-group) or not (C-group) a
special concentrate.
N. of lambs born/ewe 1 2Group C T C TN. of animals (7) (6) (13) (14)
Glucose (mmol/l) 2.41B 2.30B 1.97A 2.17B
-OH butyrate (mmol/l) 0.657A 0.514A 1.190B
0.682A
NEFA (mmol/l) 0.522A 0.397A 0.662B 0.555A
Ca (mmol/l) 2.46B 2.61B 2.39A
2.55B
Zn (mol/l) 15.21a 16.65b 15.89a 16.54b
Albumin (g/l) 32.8A 35.4B 33.6A
34.1AB
Bilirubine (mol/l) 4.13B 3.28A 4.45B
3.42A
a, b = P<0.05; A, B = P<0.01
Department of Animal Production
Least-square means of live weight at birth (LW0), live weight at 30 days of age (LW30) and average daily gain (ADG) of ewes’ offspring in ewes fed (T-group) or not (C-group) a
special concentrate.N. of lambs born/ewe 1 2Group C T C TN. of animals (7) (6) (13) (14)
LW0 (kg) 4.68B 4.92B 4.12A
4.18A
LW30 (kg) 13.57B 13.67B 12.59Aa 13.00Ab
ADG (kg) 0.296ab 0.291ab 0.282a 0.294b
a, b = P<0.05; A, B = P<0.01
Sex ratio was not different between groups.No differences were observed for LW0 between groups.The lower ADG was in C-groupTreatment allowed to maintain normal lamb ADG