Artificial Rearing of Lambs: Feeding Cold Milk Ad Libitum versus Warm Milk Three Times Per Day to Appetite, and Effects of an Antibiotic-Vitamin-Iron Supplement on Growth Performance and Digestibility of Diet Constituents

Abstract

The advantages and possibilities of weaning lambs at 3 days of age and rearing them artificially in a program of intensive sheep production were well pointed out by Welch, Vander Noot and Gilbreath (1963), Large (1965a), Pinot and Teissier (1965) and Brisson and Lemay (1968). Various types of milk substitutes have been used with artificially reared lambs and most of them have been reviewed by Large (1965a) and Large and Penning (1967). Liquid milk substitutes were usually fed at or near body temperature. Large and Penning (1967), however, reported that offering cold (0 C–14 C) reconstituted whole milk or milk substitute to early-weaned lambs (1 to 2 days of age) resulted in high growth rates and few health problems. The authors pointed out that one of the main advantages of the cold milk feeding method would be the greatly reduced demand for labor in such rearing systems. The beneficial effects of antibiotic supplements on growth of young calves were reviewed by Preston (1962). Copyright © 1970. American Society of Animal Science. Copyright 1970 by American Society of Animal Science