In high prolificacy sheep production many ewes produce more than 2 lambs. The trial reported here was designed to look at triplet rearing as a system of dealing with the extra lamb. The effects of the method on both ewe and lamb performance were recorded.

The trial involved 32 Cambridge and Suffolk x Cambridge ewes, aged 3 to 5 years, and their progenies (32 twin and 48 triplet lambs). From 8 to 36 days post partum the effect of rearing type was investigated in combination with the feeding of the ewe with a complete diet containing either 25% or 40% coarsely milled hay (table 1).