ACTA VETERINARIA ET ZOOTECHNICA SINICA ›› 2013, Vol. 44 ›› Issue (7): 1078-1089.doi: 10.11843/j.issn.0366-6964.2013.07.013

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Effect of Early Weaning on Development of Digestive Organs of Barn Feeding Lambs

GUO Jiang-peng1,2, HAO Zheng-li2, LI Fa-di2,3*, MA You-ji2, PAN Jian-zhong2,4,ZHANG Yuan-xing2,5   

  1. (1. Beijing General Station of Animal Husbandry & Veterinary ServiceBeijing 100107, China;2. College of Animal Science and Technology, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou 730070,China; 3. Gansu Feed Engineer Technology Research Center, Lanzhou 730070, China; 4. Lanzhou Institute for Food and Drug Control, Lanzhou 730000, China; 5. Lanzhou ChaiTai Co., LTD., Lanzhou 730000, China)
  • Received:2012-08-06 Online:2013-07-23 Published:2013-07-23

Abstract:

The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of early weaning on the development of digestive organs of barn feeding lambs. Fifty-five male lambs (Gansu modern breeding sheep group, single lamb) were randomly assigned to 3 treatments with 15 (experimental group) or 25 (control group) each. 25 animals were not weaned during the experiment (control), 15 animals each were weaned at 28(A) or 42 d(B) of age. Supplementary feed were offered at 7 d of age for all the animals. 5 animals from treatments A or B were slaughtered at 0, 7 and 14 d after weaning accompanied by 5 animals from the control. The relative weight of liver and pancreas, compartments of stomach and intestines, and relative volume of compartments of stomach were determined, respectively. The results indicated that the relative weight of liver and pancreas (% live weight) were increased with age, and the range of increase in group B was greater than that in group A. Compared with the weaned day, the relative weight of reticulorumen (% live weight, % stomach weight) 7 days after weaning were increased by 107.28%, 16.22% and 40.39%, 13.24% in group A and B, respectively, 29.04%, 17.48% and 27.10%, 4.26% in control at the corresponding time, respectively. Compared with the weaned days, relative weight of abomasums (% live weight) in group A were increased 25.39% and 7.42% after weaned 7 and 14 d, respectively, but the animals in group B were significantly declined 78.16% and 65.37% at the corresponding day, respectively. The effect of weaning on the relative volume (% gastrointestinal tract capacity) in stomach and every compartments of stomach were significant, and more acceleration appeared in more early weaned animals. There weren’t significant influence on relative weight (% live weight, % intestinal weight) in every compartment of intestine with different weaned days (P>0.05). The results indicated that, 7 days after weaning, the relative weight of forestomach and reticulorumen (% stomach weight) in weaned groups were close to the adult sheep. Under feeding conditions, the supplementary feed were offered at 7 d after birth, the relative weight and volume of reticulorumen fully developed at the 35 or 28 d of age for barn feeding lambs. The early weaning can be implemented at 28 or 35 d of age.

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