Effects of ewe size and nutrition during pregnancy on performance of 2-year-old female offspring

SUMMARY The current study investigated the effects of dam weight and nutrition during gestation on the reproductive performance of female primiparous offspring at 2 years of age. Four hundred and fifty heavy (H) (mean±s.e.m.: 60·8 kg±0·18) and 450 light (L) (42·5 kg±0·17) dams were randomly allocated to ad libitum (A) or maintenance (M) nutritional regimens from day 21 until day 140 of pregnancy, under pastoral grazing conditions. One week prior to lambing, all dams and their lambs were provided with ad libitum feeding through to weaning. After weaning, female progeny were managed and fed to requirements as one group. At 2 years of age, the oestrous cycles of the female offspring (n=207) were synchronized and the offspring were naturally mated. Ewes were scanned for pregnancy by ultrasound at day 70 of pregnancy. Within 24 h of birth, lambs were weighed and body dimensions were measured. Lambs were also weighed at day 24 (L24) and weaning. No effects of dam nutrition or dam weight were found (P>0·10) on the reproductive performance of the ewe offspring. Lambs of M-grand-dams were heavier at birth (P=0·024) and weaning (P=0·031) than lambs of A-grand-dams. Twin lambs of H-grand-dams were heavier at birth (P=0·014) than twin lambs of L-grand-dams; however, grand-dam weight had no effect (P>0·10) on lamb weaning weight. In summary, dam weight had no effect on reproductive performance of the female offspring, with only a minor effect on the weight of grand-offspring. Thus, being born to a larger dam has no advantages over being born to a smaller dam, in terms of number of lambs born and weight of lambs at birth and weaning. Grand-dam maintenance nutrition had no effect on reproductive performance although it increased lamb birth and weaning weight and lamb growth rates of the grand-offspring. Therefore, this indicates that ewes born to dams fed at maintenance during pregnancy have an advantage over A-ewes in physiological stressful situations including pregnancy or lactation.