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Show POINTS IN SHEEP BREEDING Results of Experiments Conducted by Wisconsin Station Regarding Lamb Increase of Flocks. A few years ago tho Wisconsin experiment ex-periment station published the result af a se;ies of experiments It had been conducting In regard to the lamb Increase In-crease of farm flocks. With the Interest In-terest now being taken In sheep breeding, breed-ing, these will be worth recalling. The summnry of conclusions Is as follows: fol-lows: 1. From the breeding record of 614 ewes at this station we conclude that for such animals and condMons as ours the normal period of gestation ranges from 144 to 150 days after the date of service and that more ewes will lamb 140 days after service than at any other time. 2. There Is no appreciable difference differ-ence In the period of gestation for male and female offspring In sheep. 2. There Is an apparent r lation between be-tween tho duration of the period of gestation and the period required for I reaching maturity. Quick maturing breeds appear to carry their young for , a shorter period than those breeds re-! re-! quiring more time to mature. 4. Large lambs nre on the average curried In titero for nn appreciably longer period than small or medium lambs. I 6. Lambs dropped before the 144th and alter the H9ih day of pregnancy are lacking In strength and vitality nt ! birth. i 6. Shropshire ewes were more prolific pro-lific than any of the other breids and crosses except the fourth cross of Shropshire rams on a Merino ewe : foundation. i 7. From the data presented It Is apparent that twins are the normal nor-mal Increase for ewes of the mutton I type. 1 S. One year old rams are not so I prolific as those two or three years ! old. Kwes also average a larger per-j per-j rentage of lncrase In Iambs after they reach full maturity at three years j of age until after they are six years old, when the rate of increase diminishes. di-minishes. 9. The amount of service required of the ram In breeding has an influence influ-ence on the percentage Increase In offspring off-spring of the ewes that produce Iambs. Kwes bred early in the season of mating mat-ing to a single ram. dropped a larger percentage of lambs than those uear the latter end of the season. |
