The Influence of the Lambing Season on Awassi Sheep Milk Quality, Milk Productivity, and Biochemical Traits

Abstract

The current study was carried out from October 15, 2021, to June 15, 2022, in the area of animal production at the Agricultural Technical College, Northern Technical University, Mosul, Iraq. 24 Awassi ewes between the ages of 2-3, were employed in the study and split into two groups. In the first group, 12 ewes had winter lambs in December–January and 12 ewes had spring lambs in March–April. This was required to determine how the season affected some productive and biochemical blood features. The milk yield and its components of Awassi sheep, and some biochemical characteristics, as well as the number of somatic cells in milk, the estrus of the ewes were standardized using vaginal sponges. The season had a noticeable effect on milk production, as ewes with spring births produced significantly more milk in the second, fourth, eighth, and tenth weeks after birth. In the eighth and tenth week of the experiment, non-fat solids were consumed. Except for the fourth week of the trial, the number of somatic cells in the milk of spring-born ewes increased significantly (P0.05) in all other weeks of the study. The proportions of fat, protein, and solid non-fat percentages increased significantly. In addition to an increase in the number of somatic cells increased significantly and the incidence of mastitis in the milk of ewes with spring births.