Thursday, March 28, 2024
Ruminants

The Reproductive Rate of Sheep and Goat

Regarding the reproductive rate of sheep and goat, as a ruminant farmer or an intending ruminant farmer, you need to be well aware of the reproductive rate of any ruminant animal you would like to go into as this will guide and enable you understand exactly what you are actually venturing into and how long it is going to take you before you can get back your return on investment.

I always advice farmers never to invest or venture into any kind of Agribusiness simply because they see their neighbors or friends doing it and they are turning out well, please understand that your expectations and the persons own are not the same.

Therefore always carry out a detailed research study of any form of agribusiness investment you wish to embark upon to know if it is something you would be willing to do before venturing into them.

The normal gestation period of sheep and goat is 5months. This means that there are some of them that could deliver twice a year. Commonly, a farmer should expect three deliveries in two years. Sheep do deliver twins commonly.

They occasionally deliver 3 or 4 lambs which is very rare. however, good female goat usually follow the trend of delivering one at the first year, 2 at the second year, 3 at the third year, 4 at the fourth delivery.

Some of them will maintain this for some time and when old, they begin to follow the same trend down, for instance 4,3,2,1 until their ability to reproduce is no longer economical.

Read Also:  The Reproductive Rate of Cattle

The Reproductive Rate of Sheep and Goat

The Reproductive Rate of Sheep and Goat

The length of the normal estrous cycle for sheep and goat is 17 days for sheep and 21 days for goats, although there is considerable variation due to breed differences, stage of the breeding season, and environmental stress in both farm animal species.

Breed, age, season, and presence of the male influence duration of estrus of sheep and goat. Both the ewe and the doe are spontaneous ovulators. The ewe normally ovulates near the end of estrus about 24 to 27 hours after the onset.

Most goat breeds ovulate between 24 and 36 hours after onset of estrus. The normal gestation length for both species is about 150 days; the length varies between breeds and individuals.

Conception rates are about 85% in mature sheep and goats in temperate zones during midbreeding season.

Meanwhile, Sheep and goats are produced in a wide range of production systems and climatic conditions and possess great genetic diversity in reproductive potentials.

Mean litter sizes range from near 1 to 3 or more, and patterns of seasonal reproduction are often strongly synchronised to local conditions. Thus, optimisation, rather than maximisation, of reproductive potentials is required, and optimum reproductive rates are often well below those which could be achieved.

However, changing employment patterns, increasing urbanisation, and emergence of new markets provide corresponding opportunities for sustainable intensification of small ruminant production, potentially requiring enhancements in reproductive potentials.

Heritabilities for most reproductive traits are less than those for many other traits, usually ranging from 0.05 to 0.15, and opportunities for within-breed selection are therefore limited.

Substantial changes in litter size or major changes in seasonal breeding patterns are thus best achieved by crossing of divergent breeds to rapidly reset genetic potentials for these traits, followed by within-breed selection to optimise reproductive potentials.

Various mutations influencing ovulation rate and litter size in sheep provide additional opportunities to rapidly adjust genetic potentials, but require careful breeding management. Comparable major genes have not yet been found in goats or for traits associated with breeding season.

Related: Effect of Tropical Climate on Animal Parasites, Vectors and Diseases

Reproductive System in Sheep and Goats

The Reproductive Rate of Sheep and Goat

1. Female Reproductive System

The reproductive tract of ewes and does is similar.  The female reproductive tract consists of the vulva labia, vagina (copulatory organ), cervix, body of the uterus, uterine horns, oviduct (also called Fallopian tube) and the ovary.

Ovaries: The ovaries contain the ova (eggs), and secrete female reproductive hormones (progesterone and estrogens).

Oviduct: The oviduct opens like a funnel (the infundibulum) near the ovary. The infundibulum receives ova released from the ovary and transports them to the site of fertilization in the oviduct.

The oviduct is involved in sperm transport to the site of fertilization, provides a proper environment for ova and sperm fertilization, and transports the subsequent embryo to the uterus.

Uterus: The uterus consists of two separate horns (coruna)In animals with multiple births, each horn can contain one or more fetuses. The uterus provides a proper environment for embryo development, supports development of the fetus (supplying nutrients, removing waste, and protecting the fetus), and transports the fetus out of the maternal body during birth.

Cervix: The cervix is the gateway to the uterus and is a muscular canal consisting of several folds of tissue referred to as rings. The cervix has relatively little smooth musculature. It participates in sperm transport, and during pregnancy, blocks bacterial invasion.

The mucus produced during pregnancy (also during the luteal phase) forms a plug that makes the opening through the cervix impermeable for micro-organisms and spermatozoa.

Vagina: This is the exterior portion of the female reproductive tract and is the site of semen deposition during natural mating.

Vulva: Barrier for preventing external contamination of the female reproductive tract.

2. Male Reproductive System

The male reproductive system consists of testicles, which produce sperm and sex hormones, a duct system for sperm transport, accessory sex glands, and the penis, or male organ of copulation, which deposits semen in the female.

Testes: The testes are paired organs which descend from the abdominal cavity during fetal development to lie in the scrotum. They produce the male gametes (spermatozoa) and secrete the male sex hormone, testosterone. Testosterone is essential for the development of male characteristics, maintaining normal sexual behavior and sperm production.

Scrotum: The scrotum is a muscular sac containing the testes. It supports and protects the testes and also plays a major role in temperature regulation. It maintains the temperature 3 to 5 C below body temperature for optimal function.

Single versus split scrotum: This could be breed-specific as in Somali goats. Some breeders consider the split scrotum as an undesirable trait and select against it. However, the important thing is to check if equalized testicles are present and sperm production is normal.

Vas deferens: The vas deferens is the duct that rises from the tail of the epididymis into the abdomen, where it joins the urethra at the neck of the bladder. It is often referred to as the spermatic cord. Removal of a section of the vas deferens in each testis is known as a vasectomy, preventing passage of sperm from the epididymis.

Accessory sex glands: The accessory sex glands include the bulbo-urethral, prostate, and seminal vesicle glands and the ampulla. Accessory glands secrete additional fluids, which when combined with the sperm and other secretions from the epididymis, form the semen.

Some of the secretions contain nutrients like fructose while others produce alkali secretion to raise the pH of the ejaculate. These secretions are added quickly and forcibly during the mating to propel sperm into the urethra.

Penis: This is the final part of the male reproductive tract and its function is to deposit semen into the vaginal tract of the female. At the end of the penis is a narrow tube called the urethral process (or ‘worm’) that sprays the semen in and around the cervix of the ewe/doe. The preputial sheath protects the penis, except during mating.

Read Also: 6 Health Benefits of Horny Goat Weed (Epimedium)

Effect of temperature on reproduction

  • Increased body temperature can lower the reproductive rate in ewes/does by decreasing ovulation rate, delaying heat cycles or by increasing embryonic mortality.
  • Heat stress in males affects the process of spermatogenesis and can render bucks and rams temporarily sterile for 6 to 10 weeks.
  • For these reasons, it is important to assist animals in maintaining body temperature, especially during times of the year when ambient temperature is high.
  • A simple provision of shade in range production systems could reduce the negative effect of heat.
  • Physiological mechanisms in the male assist in regulating temperature.

Factors affecting puberty

  • Several factors that are known to influence the age at puberty are as follows
    • Nutrition
    • Body weight
    • Breed
    • Season of birth
    • Growth rate
  • Nutrition is among the most significant factors influencing reproductive development and the onset of puberty.

The estrus cycle in ewes and does

Once puberty is reached, large domestic animals such as sheep and goats display a polyestrous (repeated reproductive cycles) pattern of reproductive activity. The estrus cycle, defined as the number of days between two consecutive periods of estrus (heat), is on average 17 days in ewes and 21 days in does.

  • The signs of estrus in the ewe are not obvious unless a ram is present.
  • As in the doe, the vulva is swollen and redder than usual, and there is a discharge of mucus but is difficult to see in a ewe with a tail or fleece.
  • All of the symptoms mentioned may not be exhibited by a doe or ewe in estrus.
  • The best confirmation of estrus is when the doe or ewe stands when being mounted. This is commonly called ‘standing heat.’
  • The duration of estrus is variable in that it is shorter in younger ewes and does but longer in older animals.
  • Normal duration will be 24 to 36 hours.

Measures of reproductive performance

Measures of reproduction commonly used in sheep and goats include age at puberty, age at first lambing/kidding, post-partum interval, parturition interval and fertility indices.

Age at puberty

  • It is difficult to have an accurate measure of puberty unless hormonal assays are done at certain intervals (biweekly).
  • On experimental stations, puberty may be recorded as the first behavioral estrus observed. This estrus is called pubertal estrus.
  • The manifestation is not strong and its duration is short, hence, requiring close attention for heat detection.

Age at first lambing/kidding

  • This trait can be recorded easily in a farmer’s flock. There is a big variation among production systems and breeds for this trait (12–24 months). It is usually late in animals living in harsh environments.
  • Ewes and does giving birth in the dry season have a longer interval compared to those lambing/kidding during the rainy season.
  • Ovarian activity in most tropical breeds commences after weaning. Suckling interferes with hypothalamic release of GnRH, provoking a marked suspension in the pulsatile LH release, resulting in extended postnatal anestrous.
  • Females at earlier parities take longer than older ones to return to reproductive status.

Parturition interval (Lambing/kidding interval)

  • This refers to the number of days between successive parturitions. It is called lambing interval in ewes and kidding interval in does.
  • Under normal circumstances (no drought), tropical sheep/goats should be lambing/kidding at least three times in 2 years. For this to be realized, lambing/kidding interval should not exceed 8 months (245 days).
  • As the major component of parturition interval is post-partum interval (PPI), accelerated lambing or kidding revolves around manipulating PPI because a shorter PPI will result in a shorter parturition interval.
  • Better nutrition and early weaning could impact this measure of reproductive performance.
  • Tests on an eight-month lambing interval under controlled mating in Horro sheep has shown acceptable results in both ewe and lamb performance.
  • One of the most important ways of increasing offtake rate is through reduction of the parturition interval and, if done with optimal input, this may help in meeting the growing demand of the export trade.

Fertility

  • Various definitions of fertility exist in literature such as conception rate, fecundity, prolificacy, birth rate, etc.
  • A general definition of fertility is the number of ewes lambing or does kidding divided by the number of ewes/does mated.
  • Fertility is affected by factors such as nutrition, age, diseases and season of mating. In most cases, there is a positive effect of supplementation.
  • Supplementation during the mating period (shortly before the mating period and afterwards) could increase the number of ova shed and improve embryo survival.
  • This practice is called flushing and is discussed in the nutrition and management sections.
  • Age of the ewe or doe is also an important factor.Fertility increases with age, and also starts to decline with old age.

Litter size (LS)

  • This is a combination of ovulation rate and embryo survival.
  • Litter size (LS) varies between 1.08 and 1.75 with average of 1.38.
  • A litter size of 1.93 has been reported in Boer goats. This is said to increase to 2.5 with selection.
  • Sheep and goats in the pastoral areas are known to give birth to singles only. This might be due to negative selection that has taken place in the environment.
  • Heritability estimates suggest the possibility of genetic improvement in LS through selection.

Seasonality of Breeding

  • Different sheep and goat breeds have developed in a wide range of environments and have consequently evolved a variety of reproductive strategies to suit these environments.
  • Local breeds of sheep and goats in tropical conditions are either non-seasonal breeders or exhibit only a weak seasonality of reproduction.
  • Females ovulate and exhibit estrus almost the whole year round, even though short periods of anovulation and anestrous are detected in some females.
  • Two main hypotheses can be raised to explain the near-absence of seasonality: either the females are insensitive to photoperiod, or the amplitude of the photoperiodic changes is too small to induce seasonality.

Read Also: Breeds of Sheep and Breed Characteristics for Selecting Sheep

Read Also: Operation and Maintenance for Comminutor and Grinder

Agric4Profits

Benadine Nonye is an agricultural consultant and a writer with over 12 years of professional experience in the agriculture industry. - National Diploma in Agricultural Technology - Bachelor's Degree in Agricultural Science - Master's Degree in Science Education... Visit My Websites On: 1. Agric4Profits.com - Your Comprehensive Practical Agricultural Knowledge and Farmer’s Guide Website! 2. WealthinWastes.com - For Effective Environmental Management through Proper Waste Management and Recycling Practices! Join Me On: Twitter: @benadinenonye - Instagram: benadinenonye - LinkedIn: benadinenonye - YouTube: Agric4Profits TV and WealthInWastes TV - Pinterest: BenadineNonye4u - Facebook: BenadineNonye

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