Balami Sheep: Performance in North-Eastern Nigeria

Abstract

Balami sheep is the largest indiginous breeds of sheep in Nigeria with a mature ewe weight of 43kg. The performance of this breed was studied using 454 lambing records of 142 ewes during a 6-year period. Lambing occurred throughout the year with a peak during the wet  season. First lambing was at 18 months of age and subsequent  lambing occurred at approximately 9 months intervals. Mean litter size increased from 1.02 at first lambing to 1.6 at 54 months years of age. Lambing interval was shorter by 50 days for lambing in the wet than in the dry season. Lamb mortality to 10 weeks of age was about 43%. Lambs born during the wet season those from primiparous ewes and twins had low survival rates. Mean birth weight was 3.3kg and weights at 4 and 10 weeks of age were 7.4 and 12.1kg respectively. Type of birth, age of dam and sex had significant effects on weights at all ages. Productivity of ewes estimated as weight of weaned lamb per kg metabolic weight per annum increased with the age of the ewe to about 55 months of age. Repeatability of litter size, lambing interval, birth and 10 weeks were 0.087, 0.091, 0.052 and 0.273 respectively.