Abstract
Simple SummaryCold stress is a major cause of mortality and morbidity in lambs, with negative implications on both lamb welfare and economics. A recent anecdotal trend has been the provision of insulating jackets to young stock on cattle farms, despite a lack of evidence for their effectiveness in the literature. This study aimed to document the use of similar insulating jackets in lambs to determine if they could reduce the effect of cold stress on lamb growth. Insulating lamb jackets were assessed on their effect on physiological parameters such as temperature and weight gain to determine if they provided an advantage to lamb production. This study found that the jackets had no significant effect on lamb average weight gain, live weight or estimated body temperature. However, jacketed lambs had significantly higher surface temperatures throughout the study.The majority of lamb losses occur within the first two weeks of life, with cold stress being a major cause of lamb morbidity and mortality. This study investigated the effect of insulating lamb jackets on newborn lambs. One hundred and four newborn lambs were randomly allocated by birth date to two treatment groups, (a) non-jacketed (n = 52) or (b) jacketed (n = 52), for fourteen days after birth. The live weights of lambs were recorded regularly up to 21 days, and average daily weight gains were calculated from these data. For the first two days after recruitment to the study, surface and body temperatures of lambs were also recorded. The jackets significantly increased the lambs’ surface temperatures, providing a warmer microclimate and reduced cold stress for jacketed lambs. There was no significant effect of the insulating jackets on estimated body temperatures, live weights or average daily weight gain of the lambs in this study. There were no detrimental effects of the jackets, and no rejection of lambs occurred.
Highlights
50% of lamb losses between scanning and weaning are due to death within the first 48 hours after birth, and a further 11% of lamb deaths occur between two and fourteen days of age [1]
There was no effect of the insulating jacket on the live weight (LW) of lambs at day 2, day 7, day 14 or day 21 (p = 0.743)
Despite the lack of significant differences in LW, the difference between the J and NJ groups increased with lamb age, rising from 0.05 kg (SED = 0.217) at day 2 to 0.44 kg (SED = 0.344) at day 21, being favourable for J lambs
Summary
50% of lamb losses between scanning and weaning are due to death within the first 48 hours after birth, and a further 11% of lamb deaths occur between two and fourteen days of age [1]. The rate of heat exchange between the skin and the environment is a function of surface area-tovolume ratio, such that the rate of exchange is greater in smaller lambs and increased cold resistance can be found in heavier lambs [5]. Wet lambs have been shown to become hypothermic in ambient temperatures as high as 15 ◦C whilst dry lambs are unlikely to become hypothermic unless temperatures are well below freezing point [7]. Exposure to both wind and wetness increases heat loss, with a greater effect in younger lambs [8]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
