Studies on the Possibility of Improving Lamb Production by Two-way and Three-way Crossbreeding with German Black-Headed Mutton, Kıvırcık and Chios Sheep Breeds 2. Fattening and Carcass Characteristics of Lambs

Authors: MUSTAFA ÖZCAN, AHMET ALTINEL, ALPER YILMAZ, VEDAT AKGÜNDÜZ

Abstract: The aim of this study was to compare the fattening and carcass traits of lambs which were produced by two-way and three-way crossbreeding studies with Kıvırcık sheep, the predominant breed in the Marmara region, Chios sheep, the most prolific breed in the region and German Black-Headed Mutton (GBM) which has been found to be the mutton breed which exhibits the best adaptation to the environmental conditions of the Marmara region. It was determined that two-way and three-way crossbred lambs were similar with regard to fattening and carcass traits, and both showed better performance than Kıvırcık lambs. The crossbred lambs exhibited faster weight gain and consumed less feed per unit weight gain during the fattening program, yielding better quality carcasses than the Kıvırcık lambs. With this study, it was concluded that the meat production of lambs could be increased by the use of GBM rams and two-way or three-way crossbreeding studies in the region.

Keywords: Lamb, Crossbreeding, Fattening, Carcass characteristics

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