EFFECT OF IMPROVED FEEDING ON REPRODUCTIVE PERFORMANCE OF SHEEP UNDER TRADITIONAL MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

Abstract

Among the domestic animals, sheep play a significant role in the subsistence economy of Bangladesh. Sheep are multipurpose animals and important enterprise for providing meat, wool and skin. About 98% sheep are reared by landless and marginal farmers in rural areas, char and coastal areas as well as in plane land under zero input. The sheep are penned at night in animal houses and allowed to grazing on fallow lands, roads and canal sides as well as char areas almost without concentrate supplementation. No other domestic animals are capable of existing on such feed. The present study was conducted for a period of three years in char areas of Sadar upazilla under Kurigram District of Bangladesh. A total of 100 native sheep were selected for this study. The collected data were compiled, decoded and analyzed statistically. Sheep were initially five to six months of old where the body weight of ewes and rams were 8 to 10 kg and 12 to 15 kg, respectively. Sheep were assigned randomly into two feeding system i.e. traditional feeding system and improved feeding system. In improved feeding system group each sheep intake 250 grams of ready concentrate feed in addition to grazing. The heated ewes were bred by conception. For ensuring the natural mating, male and female ratio was maintained as 1:3 during the study period. The results showed that the age at first heat, services per conception, age at first lambing, post-partum heat period and lambing intervals were reduced significantly (P<0.05) by improved feeding compared to the traditional feeding system. But average gestation lengths were not significantly (P>0.05) differed between the groups of sheep. However the average litter size in ewes was 1.7 in traditional feeding system and 1.8 in improved feeding system. The lamb mortality were significantly (P<0.05) reduced in improved feeding system compared with the traditional feeding system. The productive and reproductive performances of sheep were higher in improved feeding system compared with traditional feeding system. Therefore, the farmers of char areas under Sadar upazila in Kurigram District of Bangladesh may provide improved feeding to their sheep to achieve better performances.