Resumen de La respuesta a la estrategia de esquileo en verano varía según la raza de ovejas lecheras
L. Cordón, S. González Luna, Gerardo Caja López, Ahmed A. K. Salama, Francesc Xavier Such i Martí, Elena Albanell Trullás, Alexandra Contreras Jodar, T. J. De Lucas
The responses to different shearing strategies during summer were investigated in Manchega (n = 43) and Lacaune (n = 30) dairy ewes. Ewes were exploited under semi-intensive conditions and allocated in 3 groups by breed to which the treatments were randomly applied: US (unshorn), SO (shorn open) and SP (shorn pregnant). Ewes in SO and SP groups were shorn before mating (spring) and on d 100 of pregnancy (summer), respectively. No effects of treatments were found at parturition, the ewes and lambs weighing similarly by breed. Milk yield and lamb growth during the suckling period (d 0 to 28) were also similar between groups, although Lacaune produced more milk than Manchega ewes. Response to shearing treatments during the milking period varied by breed, the Lacaune SP yielding more milk than US (21%) or SO (16%) ewes, but no effects were detected in the Manchega. No differences in body weight, condition score and milk composition were detected by shearing treatment, indicating that, despite the greater milk yield of the Lacaune SP ewes, milk composition did not change. Milk coagulation properties varied by breed, according to their milk composition, but not by shearing treatment. In conclusion, shearing ewes at late-pregnancy (d 100) during summer can be a suitable management option for improving milk yield of high yielding ewes, without deleterious effects neither on milk composition and milk cheesemaking properties.
