Rib Eye Research Articles

Phenotypic association between residual feed intake and carcass traits of young nelore bulls

The purpose of this study was to estimate the phenotypic associations between residual food intake (RFI) and carcass traits, evaluated by ultrasonography, of young Nellore bulls. Information about 53 young Nelore bulls, pure origin (PO), participants in the Individual Performance Test of Nelore Bulls, carried out at the Capim Branco experimental farm of the Federal University of Uberlândia (UFU) were used for this purpose. It was evaluated the characteristics of residual feed intake (RFI), rib eye area (REA), marbling (MAR) and fat thickness (FT). In order to estimate the Spearman and Pearson correlation coefficients, the SAS program was used. Regarding the influence of the RFI classes (low RFI, medium RFI and high RFI) on carcass traits, an out analysis of variance was carried out using the least squares method. It was verified that there was no phenotypic association between RFI and the characteristics of REA and MAR, but the relation between FT and the phenotypic association revealed a medium magnitude. However, when evaluating the RFI classes, it was observed that there were no significant differences of the RFI classes with the carcass traits (REA, FT and MAR). It is recommended that new studies are carried out to verify if the selection for RFI does not result in damages to the finishing of carcass in Nelore cattle.

Growth and Chevon Characteristics of Indigenous Breeds of Goat (Buck) in Nigeria

A trial was conducted at the Sheep and Goat Unit of Teaching and Research Farm of the University of Ibadan, Ibadan to evaluate the effect of breeds on growth, carcass characteristics and meat yield of indigenous goats (bucks) in Nigeria. Fifteen growing bucks: five each of Sahel bucks-SB, West African Dwarf bucks (WADB) and Red Sokoto bucks(RSB) weighing 9.8±0.2, 10.0±0.4 and 9.9±0.3, respectively were fed isocaloric diet for 90 days. The experiment was laid out in a complete randomized design. Final Body Weight (FBW), Average Daily Weight Gain (ADWG) and Feed Conversion Ratio (FCR) were measured using standard procedures. Three bucks per breed were thereafter sacrificed and Dressing Percentage (DP), Meat yield, Rib eye area (REA) and Water holding capacity (WHC) were determined. The Final Body Weight of 16.1kg in Sahel bucks and 17.5kg Red Sokoto bucks were similar but significantly lower than 20.3kg of West African Dwarf bucks. Also, the Feed Conversion Ratio of 10.4 for the Sahel bucks and 9.8 of Red Sokoto bucks were significantly higher than 7.3 of West African Dwarf bucks. The Dressing Percentage was highest in West African Dwarf bucks (46.6%) and least in Sahel bucks (33.5%). West African Dwarf bucks yielded more meat lean (67.4%) and were comparatively higher than Sahel bucks (60.1%) and Red Sokoto bucks (61.5%). The Rib eye area (cm2) was also higher in West African Dwarf bucks (1.4) compared to Sahel bucks (1.1) and Red Sokoto bucks (1.1).

Accuracy verification of measurement of beef rib eye area and judgment of BMS by image analysis using MIJ camera

Accuracy verification of measurement of beef rib eye area and judgment of BMS by image analysis using MIJ camera

The effect of slaughter age and sex class to carcass characteristic of Red Brahman Crossbred Cattle

This research was conducted to examine the effect of slaughter age and sex class to carcass characteristic from Red Brahman Crossbred Cattle. The research materials were 126 heads (grouped by slaughter age (<1,5 years, 2-2,5 years, and 3 years) and sex class (bull and steer)) with taken from KASA Company, rested for 12-24 hours, and slaughtered in AM FARM abattoir with halal MUI slaughter methods. The research method was used field experiment. The data of research were analysis by using Complete Randomized Factorial Design (2X3) and Duncan Multiple Range Test if there were differences. Parameters of carcass characteristic were slaughter weight, hot carcass weight, dressing percentage, carcass components percentage (meat, bone, fat), MBR, MFR, rib eyes area, and 12th fat thickness of ribs. The results of this research showed that slaughter age and sex class has significantly (P<0,05) affect to slaughter weight and hot carcass weight. Interactions of slaughter age and sex class has significantly (P<0,05) affect dressing percentage, bone and meat percentage, MBR and MFR, and has not significant (P>0,05) rib eyes area and fat thickness. From these results, it can be concluded that slaughter age and sex class affect carcass characteristics of Red Brahman Crossbred Cattle.

EFFECT OF DIFFERENT PROTEIN LEVELS ON GROWTH PERFORMANCE, CARCASS TRAIT, DIGESTIBILITY AND SOME BLOOD BIEOCHEMICAL PARAMETERS IN AWASSI LAMBS

Twenty one Awassi lambs (4 month old and 23.59 ± 031 kg body weight) were used to investigate the effect of different levels of protein on growth, carcass traits, body composition, digestibility and some blood parameters. The lambs were divided equally and randomly and penned individually into three treatment groups, and fed ad lib on low protein (129.1 T1) medium protein (140.6 T2) and high protein (151.1 T3, g/kg DM). After 72 days of fattening, 5 lambs from each treatment were chosen randomly and slaughtered. The result showed that lambs fed on T3 diet had significantly (P&lt;0.05) higher daily gain (210.83 g), better feed efficiency (4.8 kg/kg), higher dressing percentage (51.67 %), and rib eye area muscle (12.05 cm2) than those fed in T2 and T3, as well as digestibility coefficient of dry matter, organic matter, crude protein, and total digestible nutrient (TDN) was also numerically higher in group fed (151.1 g/kg DM) as compared with lambs received low or medium level of protein. It could be concluded that the high dietary protein level produce the better performance, carcass traits and nutrient digestion of lambs.

A COMPARATIVE STUDTY ON GROWTH, CARCASS TRAITS AND BODY COMPOSITION OF AWASSI AND KARADI LAMBS RAISED UNDER TWO LEVELS OF FEEDING AND SLAUGHTERED AT DIFFERENT WEIGHTS: 1- GROWTH PERFORMANCE AND CARCASS TRAITS

Sixteen weaned (3.5-4 months) entire male lambs from each of Awassi and Karadi were weighed and randomly divided equally into two groups to receive concentrate (16% crude protein and 2769 kcal energy) either ad libitum or 3% of their body weights, and to be slaughtered at 36 or 44 kg. Results revealed that overall means of daily gain in weight, dressing percentage based on slaughter and empty body weight, rib eye area and fat thickness were 0.258±0.01 kg, 46.54± 0.49%, 54.35 ± 0.40%, 14.98 ±0.44 cm2 and 2.86 ± 0.12 mm, respectively. It seems that Awassi lambs significantly surpass Karadi lambs in dressing percentage based on slaughter weight and had thicker subcutaneous fat, only. Also, lambs fed ad lib excell significantly those lambs fed 3% in daily gain in weight, dressing percentage based on slaughter weight, and fat thickness. Lambs slaughtered at 44 kg had significantly higher dressing percentage, rib eye area and fat thickness.

A comparison of Nellore and Nellore-cross entire male cattle finished in a feedlot in a tropical area of Brazil with respect to carcass characteristics and meat quality after ageing either with or without 60 days of prior frozen storage

Context The use of crosses between Bos taurus and Bos indicus has boosted cattle production in tropical areas of Brazil, improving carcass and meat standards. However, there is little information on Canchim animals crossed with Nellore. Additionally, freezing is a preservation method frequently used by consumers, which allows meat to be preserved for a prolonged period, but little is known regarding this effect in meat frozen for 60 days from crossbred animals. Aims The present study sought to evaluate the carcass performance and characteristics, and the effects of freezing prior to ageing on the meat of animals from different genetic groups finished in a feedlot. Methods A total of 26 male cattle were used, consisting of Angus × Nellore (AAN), Canchim × Nellore (CAN) and Nellore (NEL), finished in feedlot. The carcasses were evaluated after slaughter. The steaks (Longissimus thoracis) were submitted to freezing for 0, 30 and 60 days before ageing, and were then aged for 1, 7 and 14 days. Key results Consumption and performance was greater for AAN and CAN animals. The AAN and CAN crossbred cattle presented higher final liveweight, hot carcass weight, dressing-out percentage and rib eye area. Freezing did not affect the meat luminosity, and it reduced the shear force and the purge at 14 days of ageing when frozen for 30 and 60 days. Conclusions The crossbreed between Canchim × Nellore animals is an alternative for termination in a feedlot. Meats frozen before ageing were more tender. Implications Crossbred animals have better carcass performance and characteristics and the pre-freezing process yielded more tender meat. The Canchim is an alternative for crossing with pure Bos indicus animals.

Growth Performance, Carcass Characteristics And Cost of Gain of Awassi And Karadi Lambs Slaughtered at Different Weight

The study was carried out to investigate the effect of slaughter weights on growth performance, carcass characteristics and cost of gain of Awassi and Karadi ram lambs. Fifteen male lambs from either Karadi or Awassi were randomly blocked by live weight into three different slaughter weight groups (30, 40 and 50kg). Each lamb was kept in individual pen and offered an iso energetic and iso nitrogenous concentrate diet ad libitum. Lambs were slaughtered once they reached a target weight. Results reported the weight at slaughter increased for both breeds, there were significant reductions in average daily gain, bone percent, lean: fat ratio and increase in rib eye area, feed conversion ratio, fat tail weight and fat thickness. Moreover, Awassi lambs had a higher (p&lt;0.01) dressing percentage 1 (49.41±0.32vs.47.69±0.66%) and 2 (58.32±0.45 vs. 56.06±0.51%), fat thickness (3.10±0.24 vs. 2.46±0.15mm) and loin percentage (8.74±0.11 vs. 8.11±0.07%) than Karadi lambs. In contrast, Karadi lambs had a higher (p&lt;0.01) proportion of bone and lean: fat ratio and lower (p&lt;0.01) proportion of fat than Awassi lambs. There was no significant differences in daily weight gains, rib eye area, the empty body weight, fat tail weight and shrinkage percent between breeds. In conclusion, the optimal slaughter weight is 40kg for both Awassi and Karadi lambs and cost of gain of Awassi lambs was lower than Karadi lambs and from economic trends lambs slaughtered at 30kg had higher profit potential

153 Differences in Health and Carcass Characteristics of Yearling Steers That Received Free-choice Garlic-infused Mineral Supplements

Abstract Garlic products have been reported to have antimicrobial effects and may trigger anemia in horses, but their direct impact on feedlot cattle has not been detailed. With increased free-choice feeding of garlic-infused mineral supplements to beef cattle, it is important to evaluate this strategy’s impact on the animals’ health and the potential impact on carcass qualities. This 2-yr study recruited 208 crossbred feedlot steers in a supplementation trial using a completely randomized design. Each year, 104 steers were assigned to 1 of 4 groups that received either non-garlic mineral supplement (MS), MS + 0.3% garlic-oil-based premix (GOil), MS + 2.5% garlic powder (LGP), MS + 5% garlic powder (HGP). Feed and supplements were provided on an ad-lib basis and were measured for each steer with automatic feeding units. The study evaluated health indicators such as blood parameters and internal parasites. At harvest, carcass characteristics (including the incidence of liver abscesses) were assessed for all steers. The groups consumed between 156 and 208 g/d of the supplement over the two years, with the MS group having a lower overall supplement intake than other groups. The average daily consumption of garlic products in GOil, LGP, and HGP were approximately 0.6g/d, 5.2g/d, and 10.1g/d, respectively. There was no difference in total fecal egg counts (P = 0.45) among the groups. There was no association between the treatment groups and incidences of liver abscess scores (P = 0.10) nor carcass grade outcomes (P = 0.84). Further, there were no differences in hot carcass weight (P = 0.90), rib eye area (P = 0.34) and carcass backfat thickness (P = 0.99). All blood parameters evaluated were within normal ranges for all groups. The results suggest that infusing commercial garlic products into mineral supplements is not associated with undesirable effects on cattle health or carcass characteristics.

Meat quality of lambs fed phytogenic additives

The study was developed in the Sheep Production Laboratory of the Department of Animal Science, College of Agricultural and Veterinary Sciences, São Paulo State University, Jaboticabal, SP, Brazil. Thirty-two non-castrated Ile de France lambs weighing 20.0 ± 0.2 kg received 4 diets with a roughage: concentrate ratio of 40: 60. The experimental treatments consisted of D1: corn silage + concentrate; D2: corn silage + concentrate + 30 mg rosemary extract kg body weight1; D3: corn silage + concentrate + 30 mg green tea extract kg body weight-1; and D4: corn silage + concentrate + 30 mg oregano extract kg body weight-1, up to 35.0 ± 0.2 kg body weight. The objectives were to evaluate rib eye area, cholesterol content, lipid oxidation, qualitative parameters, as well as perform sensory analysis, centesimal composition, and fatty acid profile of the meat. The experimental design was completely randomized with four treatments and eight replicates. The treatments were compared by Tukey’s test through the SAS software (Statistical Analysis System Institute [SAS], 2003). Inclusion of phytogenic additives into the diets did not affect the qualitative parameters cholesterol content, lipid oxidation, and centesimal composition (except for protein content, which was lower in D2, 22.57%, compared to D1, 25.62%), as well as meat fatty acid profile (except for C18: 1n7 cis-vaccenic). The use of phytogenic additives provided suitable qualitative parameters.

PSXV-2 The relationship of quantitative and qualitative indicators of meat productivity in Kazakh white-headed bulls

Abstract Lifetime assessment and selection of animals based on meat quality indicators is difficult. For this purpose, the analysis of the correlation between the main features of the breeding value of Kazakh white-headed bulls and quantitative and qualitative indicators of meat productivity was carried out. Bulls (n = 12) was slaughtered at the age of 15 months. The results show that the live weight with an average strength correlates with carcass weight (r=0.61; P &amp;lt; 0.05), with rib eye area (r=0.46), and the weight of visceralfat (r=0.51). It should also be noted the positive relationship of weight growth with the dry matter content in minced meat (r=0.46), which is realized due to fat deposition in the carcass (r=0.52). The lifetime assessment of the body conformation score is on average positively correlated with the content of dry matter (r=0.54) and protein (r=0.55) in m. longissimus dorsi. There is a positive correlation of the height in the sacrum with carcass weight (r=0.44), with the content of dry matter and protein in m. longissimus dorsi (r=0.46), with the concentration of monounsaturated fatty acids in meat (r=0.43), as well as a negative relationship (r=-0.43) of the height in the sacrum with the content of non-essential amino acids in meat. The content of monounsaturated fatty acids is significantly (P &amp;lt; 0.05) determined by the growth weight (r=0.67) and carcass weight (r=0.67). A strong negative relationship (r=-0.61...-0.71) was found between the slaughter indicators and the content of polyunsaturated fatty acids. Thus, the high growth rate negatively affects the quality of beef lipids. There is an inversely proportional relationship between the weight of visceral fat and intramuscular fat (r=-0.79; P &amp;lt; 0.01), which indicates a divergent lipogenesis in the body. The rib eye area weakly correlates with the biological value of beef. This research was performed with financial support from the project of RAS 0526-2021-0001.

The Water–Economy Nexus of Beef Produced from Different Cattle Breeds

The sustainable use of water, or any other natural resource for that matter, is not the only factor that should be considered in terms of sustainability, as social equity and economic prosperity are equally important. The objective of this study was to analyse different breeds of beef cattle, following the same production method, in terms of their water footprint and economic value addition for different links in the value chain. A bottom-up approach was applied to identify the breed with the best economic water consumption in terms of beef production. The results indicated that the total WF/kg carcass revealed notable differences between the various breeds. The Bonsmara had the smallest WF/kg carcass, while the Limousin had the largest. The WF/kg of beef for the different cuts (rib eye, topside, and flank) showed large variations between the breeds and between the different cuts of beef from the same breed. In terms of the economic water consumption, the Angus consumed between 4% and 25% less water per rand of economic value addition than the Bonsmara, Simmentaler, Simbra, Limousin, Afrikaner, and Brahman. When the economic water consumption of the individual value links was considered, it was found that Bonsmara had the best figures for cow–calf production, while the Limousin and Simmentaler were the best in terms of feedlot finishing and processing, respectively. These contradicting results showed the importance of a bottom-up approach to ensure that the fallacy of division does not occur and, secondly, that possible problem areas in the value chain are identified and addressed separately.

Effect of Hemi-Castration on the Productivity, Histological Characteristics, and Economic Efficacy of Korean Beef Cattle.

Simple SummarySteers and bulls exhibit clear differences and corresponding disadvantages. We evaluated that the effect of hemi-castration on the growth performance, serum testosterone levels, carcass traits, histological characteristics, and economic efficacy of Korean beef cattle (Hanwoo) to determine if hemi-castration can compensate for the disadvantages of steers and bulls. Results show that hemi-castration achieve better average daily gain and carcass weight than castration, but it lowers the marbling score and auction prices; thereby negatively affecting net income. This is due to the constant release of testosterone from one testicle. Based on the findings of this study, castration is essential to produce high-quality beef because the level of serum testosterone secreted in hemi-castration can inhibit fat development as much as in bulls.We evaluated the growth performance, serum testosterone, carcass traits, histological characteristics, and economic efficacy of castrated and hemi-castrated Korean beef cattle. Thirty-two Hanwoo calves (Initial body weight: 148.4 ± 19.8 kg) were randomly assigned into the castrated Hanwoo (CH) and hemi-castrated Hanwoo (HH) group. The experiment lasted 18 months; the animals were all slaughtered on the same day. Final body weight and average daily gain (ADG) tended to increase in the HH group compared to the CH group. Testosterone concentration was higher in HH group (5.27–14.27 ng/dL) than in the CH group (0.47–0.70 ng/dL) during the whole experimental period after castration (p < 0.05). Rib eye area was 17.08 cm2 wider in HH group than in CH group, but marbling score was improved by 3.33 in CH group compared to HH group (p < 0.01). Deposition area of adipocytes in Longissimus dorsi were higher in CH group than in HH group (p < 0.001). Net income per head was 1760 US dollar higher in the CH group than in the HH group (p < 0.04). Thus, our findings suggest that hemi-castration had positive effects on the increase in ADG and meat yield traits, with negative effects on marbling and profitability.

Genomic Prediction Using LD-Based Haplotypes Inferred From High-Density Chip and Imputed Sequence Variants in Chinese Simmental Beef Cattle.

A haplotype is defined as a combination of alleles at adjacent loci belonging to the same chromosome that can be transmitted as a unit. In this study, we used both the Illumina BovineHD chip (HD chip) and imputed whole-genome sequence (WGS) data to explore haploblocks and assess haplotype effects, and the haploblocks were defined based on the different LD thresholds. The accuracies of genomic prediction (GP) for dressing percentage (DP), meat percentage (MP), and rib eye roll weight (RERW) based on haplotype were investigated and compared for both data sets in Chinese Simmental beef cattle. The accuracies of GP using the entire imputed WGS data were lower than those using the HD chip data in all cases. For DP and MP, the accuracy of GP using haploblock approaches outperformed the individual single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) approach (GBLUP_In_Block) at specific LD levels. Hotelling’s test confirmed that GP using LD-based haplotypes from WGS data can significantly increase the accuracies of GP for RERW, compared with the individual SNP approach (∼1.4 and 1.9% for GHBLUP and GHBLUP+GBLUP, respectively). We found that the accuracies using haploblock approach varied with different LD thresholds. The LD thresholds (r2 ≥ 0.5) were optimal for most scenarios. Our results suggested that LD-based haploblock approach can improve accuracy of genomic prediction for carcass traits using both HD chip and imputed WGS data under the optimal LD thresholds in Chinese Simmental beef cattle.

Genomic prediction with non-additive effects in beef cattle: stability of variance component and genetic effect estimates against population size

BackgroundGenomic prediction is now an essential technology for genetic improvement in animal and plant breeding. Whereas emphasis has been placed on predicting the breeding values, the prediction of non-additive genetic effects has also been of interest. In this study, we assessed the potential of genomic prediction using non-additive effects for phenotypic prediction in Japanese Black, a beef cattle breed. In addition, we examined the stability of variance component and genetic effect estimates against population size by subsampling with different sample sizes.ResultsRecords of six carcass traits, namely, carcass weight, rib eye area, rib thickness, subcutaneous fat thickness, yield rate and beef marbling score, for 9850 animals were used for analyses. As the non-additive genetic effects, dominance, additive-by-additive, additive-by-dominance and dominance-by-dominance effects were considered. The covariance structures of these genetic effects were defined using genome-wide SNPs. Using single-trait animal models with different combinations of genetic effects, it was found that 12.6–19.5 % of phenotypic variance were occupied by the additive-by-additive variance, whereas little dominance variance was observed. In cross-validation, adding the additive-by-additive effects had little influence on predictive accuracy and bias. Subsampling analyses showed that estimation of the additive-by-additive effects was highly variable when phenotypes were not available. On the other hand, the estimates of the additive-by-additive variance components were less affected by reduction of the population size.ConclusionsThe six carcass traits of Japanese Black cattle showed moderate or relatively high levels of additive-by-additive variance components, although incorporating the additive-by-additive effects did not improve the predictive accuracy. Subsampling analysis suggested that estimation of the additive-by-additive effects was highly reliant on the phenotypic values of the animals to be estimated, as supported by low off-diagonal values of the relationship matrix. On the other hand, estimates of the additive-by-additive variance components were relatively stable against reduction of the population size compared with the estimates of the corresponding genetic effects.

The Water Footprint of Primary and Secondary Processing of Beef from Different Cattle Breeds: A Value Fraction Allocation Model

The high water intake and wastewater discharge of slaughterhouses have been a concern for many years. One neglected factor in previous research is allocating the water footprint (WF) to beef production’s different products and by-products. The objective of this article was to estimate the WF of different cattle breeds at a slaughterhouse and cutting plant and allocate it according to the different cuts (products) and by-products of beef based on the value fraction of each. The results indicated a negative relationship between the carcass weight and the processing WF when the different breeds were compared. Regarding a specific cut of beef, a kilogram of rib eye from the heaviest breed had a processing WF of 614.57 L/kg, compared to the 919.91 L/kg for the rib eye of the lightest breed. A comparison of the different cuts indicated that high-value cuts had higher WFs than low-value cuts. The difference between a kilogram of rib eye and flank was 426.26 L/kg for the heaviest breed and 637.86 L/kg for the lightest breed. An option to reduce the processing WF of beef is to lessen the WF by slaughtering heavier animals. This will require no extra investment from the slaughterhouse. At the same time, the returns should increase as the average production inputs per kilogram of output (carcass) should reduce, as the slaughterhouse will process more kilograms.

Using Deep Learning Neural Network in Artificial Intelligence Technology to Classify Beef Cuts

The objective of this research was to evaluate the deep learning neural network in artificial intelligence (AI) technologies to rapidly classify seven different beef cuts (bone in rib eye steak, boneless rib eye steak, chuck steak, flank steak, New York strip, short rib, and tenderloin). Color images of beef samples were acquired from a laboratory-based computer vision system and collected from the Internet (Google Images) platforms. A total of 1,113 beef cut images were used as training, validation, and testing data subsets for this project. The model developed from the deep learning neural network algorithm was able to classify certain beef cuts (flank steak and tenderloin) up to 100% accuracy. Two pretrained convolution neutral network (CNN) models Visual Geometry Group (VGG16) and Inception ResNet V2 were used to train, validate, and test these models in classifying beef cut images. An image augmentation technique was incorporated in the convolution neutral network models for avoiding the overfitting problems, which demonstrated an improvement in the performance of the image classifier model. The VGG16 model outperformed the Inception ResNet V2 model. The VGG16 model coupled with data augmentation technique was able to achieve the highest accuracy of 98.6% on 116 test images, whereas Inception ResNet V2 accomplished a maximum accuracy of 95.7% on the same test images. Based on the performance metrics of both models, deep learning technology evidently showed a promising effort for beef cuts recognition in the meat science industry.

Evaluating the effects of finishing diet and feeding location on sheep performance, carcass characteristics, and internal parasites.

A 3 yr experiment was conducted to evaluate the influence of diet and feeding location on animal performance, carcass characteristics, whole blood counts, and internal parasite burden of lambs assigned to 1 of 4 treatments: 1) confinement fed 71% alfalfa, 18% barley pellet, 5% molasses, 0.013% Bovatec, 6.1% vitamin/mineral package diet (CALF), 2) confinement fed 60% barley, 26% alfalfa pellet, 4% molasses, 2.5% soybean-hi pro, 0.016% Bovatec, 7.4% vitamin/mineral package diet (CBAR), 3) field fed 71% alfalfa, 18% barley pellet, 5% molasses, 0.013% Bovatec, 6.1% vitamin/mineral package diet (FALF), and 4) field fed 60% barley, 26% alfalfa pellet, 4% molasses, 2.5% soybean-hi pro, 0.016% Bovatec, 7.4% vitamin/mineral package diet (FBAR). A year × location interaction was detected for ending body weight (BW), average daily gain (ADG), and dry matter intake (DMI); therefore results are presented by year. In all years, cost of gain and DMI were greater for CALF and FALF than for CBAR and FBAR feed treatments (p ≤ 0.03). In yr 2 and 3 field treatments had greater ending BW and ADG than confinement treatments. For all years, diet did not affect ending BW or ADG. In yr 1 dressing percent and rib eye area were greater for field finished lambs than confinement finished (p ≤ 0.02) and Warner-Bratzler shear force was greater for CALF and FALF (p = 0.03). In yr 2 lambs in FALF and FBAR treatments had greater leg scores and conformation than CALF and CBAR (p = 0.09). In yr 1, FALF had a greater small intestine total worm count than all other treatments. In yr 1, ending Trichostrongyle type egg counts were greater for FALF (p = 0.05). In yr 2, ending Nematodirus spp. egg counts were greater for FALF and lowest for CBAR (p < 0.01). Abomasum Teladorsagia circumcinta worm burden was greater in CALF than all other treatments (p = 0.07) in yr 2. While field finishing lambs with a grain- or forage-based diet we conclude that it is possible to produce a quality lamb product without adverse effects to animal performance, carcass quality or increasing parasite burdens.

Polymorphism of the gene GDF9 in sheep of Prikatun type of Altai Mountains breedand its correlation with indices of meat rate productivity

In recent decades in many countries of the world the development of sheep farming is determined by the efficiency of mutton production. One of the promising areas of selection improvement of sheep breeds of meat and meat &amp; wool productivity is an application of molecular-genetic methods. To obtain high-quality mutton it is advisable to use the Altai Mountains sheep breed, which features by high energy of growth of young animals and their adaptability to all-year-round pasture management. One of the candidate genes responsible for sheep meat productivity is the gene of growth differentiation factor -GDF9 (growth differentia­tion factor 9). The article presents the results of research of polymorphism of the gene GDF9 and its relation with the parameters of meat productivity in young sheep of Altai Mountains breed. It was found that the rams-carriers of AA genotype outperformed their peers of AG and GG genotypes in terms of pre-slaughter weight, carcass weight, meat yield and meat content ratio by 1.62 and 7.01 kg, 1.34 and 3.98 kg (P&lt;0.05), 1.21 and 1.86 abs. percent, 0.16 and 0.39 units (P&lt;0.05) accordingly. The muscle tissue of rams of the desired genotype featured the highest content of protein, fat and, accordingly, energy value in comparison with AG and GG genotypes. The animals of AA genotype had the largest area of a rib eye and diameter of muscle fibers. The superiority over other genotypes achieved 1.55 cm 2 and 1.98 microns in average. In addition the higher number of inter-fiber and inter-bundle inclusions of fat and lower content of connective tissue stipulated higher marbling score (MB)-higher by 3.32 points. The obtained data in­dicate that it is promising methods to increase the number of homozygotic animals in term of gene GDF9 by intended selection of parent animals whose genotype contains a desirable element for further improvement of quantitative and qualitative parameters of meat rate productivity in sheep of Altai Mountains breed.

Effect of Different Levels of Rhus Coriaria L. powder in Awassi Lambs Diet on Some Carcass Characteristics

This research was conducted in (Good land farm and factory) for meat processing in Samarra in cooperation with Nature Resources Center in Tikrit University. to the period from 1/5/2019 to 1/8/2019. Sixteen Awassi lambs were used in this research average body weight (20 ± 25) kg abought (5.5-6) months. the lambs was divided into four treatments according to Sumac additives : Treatment one was control without Sumac, treatment two 1% Rhus powder, treatment three it was 3% Rhus powder and treatment four was 5% Rhus powder. Ther results showed significant differences in live weight treatment four(42.38 ± 1.73)kg was higher than the other treatments were ( 38.16 ± 1.50)kg (36.64 ± 1.04)kg (34.63 ± 1.53)kg respectively. Significantly was noticed in treatment four than other three treatments in empty body weight, hot and cold carcass weight and dressing percentage. About the main cuts of right half of the carcass, leg cut in treatment four conducted significant differences (3.08 ± 0.12) than other treatments were ( 2.47 ± 0.22)kg (2.45 ± 2.02)kg (2.52 ± 0.10)kg respectively. Loin showed significant differences in treatment four(0.92 ± 0.01)kg compared with control was (0.63 ± 0.07)kg and treatment three (0.67 ± 0.01)kg shoulders and ribs did not recorded significant differences between four treatments. For secondary cuts of right half cuts, fore shank of treatment two was the lowest (0.64 ± 0.029) compared with other treatments were (0.75 ± 0.002)kg (0.68 ± 0.38)kg (0.76 ± 0.023)kg respectively while breast, neck and flank did not recorded significant differences between treatments. Abdominal fat was the highest in treatment four (0.24 ± 0.03)kg while the values in the res treatments were ( 0.08 ± 0.02)(0.17 ± 0.03)(0.07 ± 0.07)kg respectively. kidney and pelvic fat also was high in treatment four (0.26 ± 0.87)kg than other treatments. Finally, rib eye area was conducted high significant differences in treatment four was (10.404 ± 0.302)mm compared with the other three treatments were(7.701 ± 0.503)mm(6.650 ± 0.155)mm(8.752 ± 0.454)mm respectively.