Effect of Age at Weaning of Shropshire Lambs on Weight Gains and Carcass Score

Differences in the rate of gain from birth to 140 and 170 days of age for lambs weaned on grass-white clover pasture, at average ages of 10, 15 and 20 weeks, were not significant (P < 0.05) as measured by the linear and quadratic regressions. The average weights at weaning were 39, 54 and 66 pounds respectively. The rates of gain of the lambs were affected by type of birth, sex and year of rearing.The age at weaning, type of birth and year of rearing had insignificant effects on the commercial grades of the carcasses from wether lambs.None of the interaction effects for any of the response criteria studied reached statistical significance.The results indicate that certain advantages from early weaning of lambs on pasture with ample immature forage were realized without adversely affecting the performance of carcass grades.