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The effects of age of calves at castration on growth rate, carcass composition and feed efficiency

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 March 2009

M. A. Carroll ,
J. Pearce ,
J. M. Basset ,
P. B. Gillard  and
T. L. J. Lawrence
M. A. Carroll
Affiliation:
Faculty of Agriculture, Reading University
J. Pearce
Affiliation:
Faculty of Agriculture, Reading University
J. M. Basset
Affiliation:
Faculty of Agriculture, Reading University
P. B. Gillard
Affiliation:
Faculty of Agriculture, Reading University
T. L. J. Lawrence
Affiliation:
Faculty of Agriculture, Reading University
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Extract

An experiment is described in which four pairs of individually fed identical twin calves were used to investigate the effects of castration at 1 and 7 months, on growth, efficiency of food utilization and carcass composition and conformation.

The results indicate that up to 28 weeks of age the late-castrated animals wore superior in liveweight increase, width of head and efficiency with which they converted food to live weight. By slaughter time, at about 18 months, these differences, except width of head, had been eliminated.

The carcasses from both treatments were very similar except that a slightly greater percentage of the total muscle occurred in the thoracic and abdominal muscles of the late-castrated animals than in the early-castrated ones. A statistically significant higher percentage of the total fat occurred as subcutaneous fat in the late-castrated animals than in the early-castrated ones.

Type
Research Article
Information
The Journal of Agricultural Science , Volume 61 , Issue 1 , August 1963 , pp. 19 - 25
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1963

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References

REFERENCES

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