Date of Graduation

7-2025

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science in Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

Degree Level

Undergraduate

Department

Animal Science

Advisor/Mentor

Dr. Ken Coffey

Committee Member

Dr. Derico Setyabrata

Second Committee Member

Dr. Shawna Weimer

Abstract

Stress is a significant factor affecting the health, behavior, and performance of sheep in production settings. Most lambs go through artificial weaning, and this is a stressful time in a lamb’s life. Stress can negatively affect growth rates, feed efficiency, and susceptibility to illness and parasites. The traditional and most common method of weaning is the abrupt separation of lambs from their dams. An alternative method of weaning, fenceline weaning, has been found to reduce stress in cattle and may also reduce stress in sheep. The objectives of this study were to evaluate body weights, fecal egg counts, and behavior to determine if the traditional or fenceline weaning method has lower stress associated with weaning in lambs. The study was conducted at the Milo J. Shult Agricultural Research & Extension Center, with two 14-day trials, totaling 32 majority Hampshire breed lambs. Lambs were assigned to either a fenceline or abrupt weaning group. Body weights were recorded on days 0, 7, and 14, and fecal samples were collected on days 0 and 14 to assess parasite loads. Behavioral responses were observed through video recordings using instantaneous scan sampling for the first three days after weaning. Fecal egg counts and weight change measurements were not different (P ≥ 0.26) between the weaning methods. The interaction between weaning group and day was detected for lying and eating behaviors (P ≤ 0.02). The lambs in the fenceline weaning group performed standing and walking behaviors less frequently than the abrupt weaning group. This indicates that the fenceline weaned group had less stress than the abruptly separated weaning group. Mitigating stress is important in finding the best management practices to improve animal welfare and productivity.

Keywords

lamb weaning; animal welfare; animal stress; fenceline weaning; abrupt weaning

Download

Share

COinS