A fattening trial with yearling rams of the Saudi Arabian Najdi and Arabi breeds.

Abstract

The major sheep breeds of the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia, the Nejdi and Arabi, are described. The fattening performance and carcass characters of 8 yearling rams of each breed were studied and the data tabulated. Owing to the high variation among animals and the small numbers used, most interbreed differences were not significant. Over the 13 wk of the trial, for Nejdi and Arabi resp., av. daily gain was 128.6 and 154.9 g, and food conversion 13.83 and 11.04 g/g gain (P<0.05). Nejdi rams gave a heavier carcass than Arabis (15.23 v 13.83 kg, P<0.025), but in other respects there was little difference between the breeds. (Abstract retrieved from CAB Abstracts by CABI’s permission)