A comparison of the carcass composition of Texel lambs of different live conformation scores

Abstract

Conformation is often given high priority as a selection objective by pedigree breeders who consider this trait to be related to lean yield and distribution, despite experimental evidence to the contrary. The Texel crossbred lamb is known to have a high lean yield at a given liveweight and in considering the results of breed comparison trials Croston et al (1987) speculated that there may be variation between strains for this trait, possibly associated with differences in conformation. Support for this suggestion comes from the work of Leroy (1989) who reported that the Belgian Texel with a heavily muscled conformation (“double muscled”) had a higher killing-out proportion and lean yield than sheep with conventional shape. The aim of this trial was to investigate potential differences in the carcass traits of pure-bred Texel lambs of extreme versus conventional conformation