1. Improving Carcass Merit while maintaing profit

2. Industry Challenge Muscle weight as a % of LW LW Muscle as % of LW Cattle130032 Deer22039 Pig20032 Sheep8128 Dwarf goat3135 Rabbit4.448 *Data from various sources quoted by Fowler, 1980

3. Profit Income – expenses Pounds sold per ewe Control feed costs

4. What is your market? Niche/direct sales lambs carcass whole or half piece at a time Light slaughter lambs ethnic channels Traditional sale barn, terminal, pool, packer direct, alliance

5. Client taste and budget Upscale versus cheap Flavor intensity Mild, coarse wooled, hair or meat type Strong, fine wool or prolific Age: younger is milder Sex: more influence on old lambs (>10 mo)

6. Selecting Terminal Sire Growth, growth, growth Livability, longevity Carcass merit

7. Selecting Terminal Sire Options

8. Crossbreeding Capitalize on breed complementarity Polypay ewes breed to Suffolk Rams not Suffolk ewes breed to Polypay Rams

9. Marketing Lambs when Ready 65 to 70% of ewe weight Average weight of sire breed females Average weight of dams breed females 175 lb Polypay + 250 lb Suffolk (175+250)/2 = 137.5

10. Seedstock producers Improving your genetics to improve carcasses NSIP, Lambplan, ultrasound Carcass traits are highly heritable rapid progress is possible example: swine industry Indirect selection via growth fair comparisons

11.  Correlation between carcass and growth DGM:ISU Growth Genetic Phenotypic % lean158 % subcutaneous fat-473 lean to fat284 ultrasound fat-30-8 REA383 -+

12.  Current Lamb Market YG & QG Distribution DGM:ISU Backfat.44 YG 1 2 3 4 5 Prime 0% 1.2% 3.8% 1.2%.4% Choice 5.2% 27.0% 49.2% 11.0% 1.2% Total 5.2% 28.2% 53.0% 12.2% 1.6%

14. 2006Lamb Performance Div. Summary Statistics Ave. start weight 78.3 Ave. final weight131.2 Average daily gain.55 Std. deviation on gain.14 Average live score 17.6 Std. deviation on LS 1.66 Ave. carcass weight77.9 Ave. dressing %59.4 Ave. back fat.20 Ave. bw thickness.87 Ave. ribeye area3.33 Average %BCTRC47.5 Std. dev. on %BCTRC1.34

16. Seedstock producers Sire selection schemes Cooperative efforts Multiple flocks Increases selection differential Increases rate of genetic progress Example: Siremax, Western Suffolk Referencing Scheme

17. Questions