■繁殖力已成为绵羊养殖的重要育种目标,以提高农场的盈利能力。随着遗传学和管理实践的改进,产仔数增加,三胞胎出生的羔羊在农场的比例也有所增加。然而,三胞胎羔羊的死亡率高于单胎和双胎羔羊,和额外的管理投入可能需要支持生存。这项研究的目的是确定影响管理实践的因素,这些因素被认为对英国(UK)的商业农民的三胞胎羔羊生存很重要,爱尔兰(IRE)新西兰(NZ)。
■制定了一项在线调查,并向每个国家的农民传播,关注农民人口统计数据,羊群特性,管理实践和生产成果。共有448户农民完成了调查,来自英国(n=168),IRE(n=218),和NZ(n=62)。
■受访者有更大的群体,扫描和产仔百分比高于英国和IRE的全国平均水平。羊群内出生的三胞胎的平均百分比是9%,在英国,羔羊在扫描和羔羊之间的损失是14%,IRE的15%,新西兰受访者为25%(P=0.063)。总的来说,所有受访者中有60%报告在室内羔羊,而40%在室外羔羊,然而,新西兰农民几乎只在户外睡觉,而英国和IRE农民在这两个系统中都产仔(P<0.001)。新西兰农民更有可能用母羊饲养所有三胞胎羔羊,而英国和IRE农民更有可能用另一只母羊或人工将羔羊移到后面(P<0.001)。在这项研究中,影响受访者三胞胎羔羊管理实践的因素是受访者的原籍国,羊群大小,年龄,和性别。总的来说,年轻的受访者(P<0.001),和女性受访者(P<0.05),更有可能从事被认为可以促进三胞胎羔羊更好生存的管理活动,分别与老年人和男性受访者进行比较。这些做法与受访者报告的更好的羔羊存活率相关,但当羊群大小增加时,不太可能进行(P<0.001)。
■这项调查的结果突出了改善三胞胎羔羊生存所需的未来优先事项或沟通策略。
UNASSIGNED: Prolificacy has become an important breeding goal in sheep farming to increase farm profitability. With the adoption of improved genetics and management practices leading to increased lambing percentages, the proportion of triplet-born lambs has also increased on farms. However, mortality rates of triplet lambs are higher than for single- and twin-born lambs, and additional management inputs may be needed to support survival. The aim of this study was to identify factors that affect management practices that are considered important for triplet lamb survival by commercial farmers from the United Kingdom (UK), the Ireland (IRE), and New Zealand (NZ).
UNASSIGNED: An online survey was developed and disseminated to farmers in each country, focusing on farmer demographics, flock characteristics, management practices and production outcomes. A total of 448 farmers completed the survey, from the UK (n = 168), IRE (n = 218), and NZ (n = 62).
UNASSIGNED: Respondents had larger flocks, higher scanning and lambing percentages than the country average for the UK and IRE. The mean percentage of triplet litters born within flocks was 9%, and lambs lost between scanning and lambing were 14% for UK, 15% for IRE, and 25% for NZ respondents (P = 0.063). Overall, 60% of all respondents reported to lamb indoors and 40% lambed outdoors, however NZ farmers almost exclusively lambed outdoors, whereas UK and IRE farmers lambed in both systems (P < 0.001). NZ farmers were more likely to rear all triplet lambs with the ewe, whereas UK and IRE farmers were more likely to remove a lamb to rear by another ewe or artificially (P < 0.001). Factors that influenced triplet lamb management practices of respondents in this study were respondent country of origin, flock size, age, and gender. In general, younger respondents (P < 0.001), and female respondents (P < 0.05), were more likely to engage in management activities that were considered to promote better triplet lamb survival, compared to older and male respondents respectively. These practices were associated with better lamb survival reported by respondents but were less likely to be carried out when flock size increased (P < 0.001).
UNASSIGNED: The results of this survey highlight future priorities or communication strategies needed to improve triplet lamb survival.