Characteristics of sudanese camel-hair fibres under subtropical desert condition

The study assessed the quality and variability of camel hair fibres in arid regions of Egypt. Raw camel-hair samples were collected from fifteen Sudanese camels divided into seven males (414.60 ± 38.19 kg, BW) and eight females (401.67 ± 26.76 kg BW), and the study investigated the influences of animal sex on both the physical and chemical traits of camel-hair fibers. The relationships among physical properties and both mineral and amino acid content were studied. Camel's sex had no significant effect on any of the studied traits including fibre diameter (FD), prickle factor (PF), medullated fibre (MF), staple length (SL) and staple strength (SS). In the meantime, no significant differences were found between males and females in fibers' minerals contents except potassium, where fibres of females had significantly higher potassium content than those of males. For amino acids contents in camel fibres, camel sex had a significant effect only on glutamic acid, since fibres of males showed higher (P < 0.05) content than females. Fibre diameter had positive (P < 0.01) correlations with prickle factor (r = 0.83) and medullated fibres (r = 0.73). Zinc content in camel fibres was positively correlated with fibre diameter (r = 0.57; P < 0.05) and medullated fibres (r = 0.73; P < 0.01). Moreover, a significant (negative correlation coefficient P < 0.05) was found between fibre diameter and both sulfur and proline contents (r=-0.39 and - 0.56). Ammonia content in fibres was correlated negatively (P < 0.05) with prickle factor and elongation (r=-0.62 and - 0.58, respectively). The variability in the physical properties and chemical composition of Sudanese camel-hair fibers under subtropical desert conditions may shed light on the possibility of improving fiber quality.

Space allowance impacts behavior, productivity, reproductivity and immunity of sheep-a review

Sheep is an important producing animal in subtropical and arid regions; however, sheep farming practices and welfare standards are still not well established. To move to either intensive or intensive sheep production, stocking density (animal/area, SD) is a significant factor that influencing the welfare and productivity of animals. However, there are discrepancies in space allowance standards for wool, meat, and dairy sheep at different stages. Thus, this review article sheds light on (1) the geographical distribution of wool, meat-type, and dairy sheep populations; (2) the effects of interaction among space allowances, housing systems, and group size on the social, feeding, and aggressive behaviors and human-sheep contact; (3) the effects of space allowance on wool, growth performance, and milk production of sheep; (4) the relationship between space allowance and reproductive performance; (5) the effects of stocking rate on immunity; and (6) suggestions to mitigate the stress and deleterious influences of SD on the productivity of sheep. In conclusion, the larger space allowance with access to an outdoor yard can improve social and feeding behaviors, meat and milk yield, and wool quality. Moreover, ewes are more sensitive to SD, so they should receive an adequate space allowance at each stage. The changes in behavioral responses of each sheep breed refer to their different requirements. Therefore, there is a need to determine the impact of housing aspects, especially space allowance and enrichment tools on the productive performance and welfare indices of sheep for implementing welfare-economic standards for sheep production.

Evaluation of proteins in sheep colostrum via laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy and multivariate analysis

Colostrum is essential to guarantee normal and healthy feeding in newborn ruminants during the first hours. In the present work, Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS), as a spectrochemical analytical technique, and principal component analysis (PCA) as a multivariate analysis method were used to evaluate colostrum compared to mature milk of sheep to plan the nutritional strategies for newly born lambs. Samples of colostrum have been collected from thirty-three Barki ewes. The sheep were milked every 12 h three times after birth, the fourth sample of mature milk is taken from milking in the 7th day postpartum. The spectrochemical analytical results depicted that the intensities of CN and C₂ spectral bands, and C 247.86 nm atomic line (as an indicator for protein content in LIBS spectra) are higher in colostrum than that in milk. This relationship has been confirmed by measuring the total protein in the same samples conventionally. The relation between calcium and protein percentage has also been demonstrated. Moreover, it has been shown that the higher is the CN bands' intensity the lower is the bacteria count in colostrum samples, owing to the high levels of lactoferrin with its antibacterial effect. The qualitative analysis of LIBS data using PCA led to a pronounced discrimination between colostrum and mature milk. The present study demonstrates that it is, in principle, possible to make use of the analytical and chemometric results in dairy farms to evaluate sheep colostrum to manage the nutritional strategies for the lambs.