Members of the Performance Testing Division of the Merino Stud Breeders Association of South Africa select their young sheep according to a selection index, calculated from objective measurements of the following four characteristics body mass, clean fleece mass, fibre diameter…
The importance and problems of cattle production in Transkei are discussed in this paper. Findings show a situation of low levels of production and deteriorating natural resources owing to mismanagement and overstocking.
A survey of 468 lamb and sheep carcases of various breeds and crosses was conducted to investigate certain carcase characteristics. Carcases in each grade were divided into four mass groups, i.e. 10,1-15 kg; 15,1-20 kg; 20,1-25 kg and >25 kg…
A total of 104 carcases were selected on the market in three age groups and four mass classes representative of the six fat classes of the classification system for carcase evaluation. Four subcutaneous fat thickness measurements were taken on the…
The influence of fatness, conformation and carcase mass as individual predictors of carcase composition, was determined in 104 carcases which were fully dissected and of which carcase composition was determined. Chemical analysis was done on each carcase and…
A sample of 104 lamb and mutton carcases was selected on the market at an abattoir in three age groups and four mass classes representing five of the six fat classes of the classification system. The loin cut of the…
The accumulation and retention of copper (Cu) in the livers of Ile de France and South African Mutton Merino lambs were compared at four levels of dietary molybdenum (Mo) supplementation, viz. 0, 2, 4 and 8 mg Mo/ lamb/day in…
Karakul ewe lambs born to ewes which lambed in summer, winter and spring were randomly allocated to pen and veld nutrition. Age at sexual maturity and body mass every 14 days, as well as lambs born up to respectively 45,…
Thirty Karakul ram lambs, ten each born in summer, winter or spring were raised from birth to an age of 240 days with pen feeding to study the influence of season of birth on puberty and testis growth. During…
Twenty one pairs of twins, all progeny of one sire, of which one was a male and the other a female, were weighed monthly from 3 to 14 months of age. Scrotal circumference (SC) and testes v61ume (TV) in rams…
Scrotal circumference in young beef bulls: Relationships to growth traits The natural occurrence of oestrus in Boer goat does was recorded for the period 1980 - 1982. Although periods of complete anoestrus were never observed, it would appear that the…
An experiment was undertaken to determine the amount of surface area shrinkage and its effect on follicle density estimations in sheep skin samples. Two methods were compared, namely the traditional formalin fixation, dehydration and wax-embedding technique as compared…
An analysis of the pedigrees of a random sample of 100 South African-bred first-calf Jersey heifers registered in 1985 showed that most breeders have concentrated on a closely interrelated group of Marlu animals and their descendants. Of the 17 young…
A review is given of developments in poultry nutrition, with specific reference to aspects concerning the broiler industry. The role of fat in feeds and its influence on body composition are discussed. Attention is paid to the importance of…
An experiment was conducted to determine the feeding value of sweet white lupins (Lupinus albus variety Buttercup) for broilers up to 8 weeks of age. Two isocaloric and isonitrogenous starter (0 - 4 weeks) and finisher (4 - 8 weeks)…
A study was carried out to determine what contribution the consumption of sorghum beer strainings (SBS) could make towards animal nutrition. Sorghum beer strainings were analysed for starch, protein, fat, crude fibre, ash, minerals and phytate content on a dry…
Induced spawning procedures developed under local conditions in the Transvaal for the sharptooth catfish, Clarias gariepinus, using a combination of the chorionic gonadotrophin Chorulon with pituitary gland homogenate from the European common carp, Cyprinus carpio, or from C. gariepinus donors,…
Milk samples collected for analysis in the South African Milk Recording Scheme are routinely preserved by the addition of potassium dichromate. The influence of this preservative, the duration of storage temperatures (O °C or room temperature) and effect of temperature…
The Cedara dairy herd of 100 lactating Friesian cows was randomly subdivided into three treatments. A mineral supplement comprising a standard salt + dicalcium phoshate mixture (Treatment 1), the standard + 5% of a commercial trace-mineral premix (Treatment 2) and…
