[Jacob-list] Extra Teat

[Neal and Louise Grose]

I don't think that the extra teats will pose much of a problem for mastitis
in sheep. The removal of extras in cows is necessitated by the chances that
you can have more than one outlet per gland. The extras can also develop an
extra gland, if left on. Teats are removed when the cows are calves, before
udder development begins. The development of the gland seems to start at the
teat and branch out into the gland, and removing them early insures that a
small portion of the developing gland is removed as well. Since our milking
machines only have 4 teat cups, extra glands can be a problem. Removal of
extra teats rarely results in a gland with no outlet. At any rate, I doubt
that this should be seen as much of an issue in sheep.

Here's an evolutionary/selection note: The general rule seems to be that
there are twice as many teats as the normal number of offspring. In some
animals, such as cats and pigs, babies tend to only nurse from one teat.
Cats presumably have 8 or 10 dinner plates, but in a litter of 4 kittens,
the ones that are used will be scattered out. Pigs have been selected to
maximumize the use of teats, with litters often large enough so that farmers
sometimes have to redistribute piglets to have no more mouths than feeders.
Cows on the otherhand are selected to optimize production per year.
Parturition is traumatic in cows as it is in humans. Twinning one year will
often mean the loss of production for the following year. In sheep,
parturition does not seem to be traumatic in Jacobs and Finns (I will not
include giant Suffolks in this discussion), therefore allowing optimization
of number of lambs. Milk production in sheep is more similar to dairy cows
than beef cattle. These are amazingly efficient animals for converting feed
to milk secretion. Think of the rate of gain in the offspring as a percent
of body weight of the dam for a 1200 pound cow as opposed to a 100 to 120
pound ewe.
One calf gain 2 to 3 pounds per day: 3 divided by 1200
Two lambs gain up to 1 pound per day each: 2 divided by 120

On a side note: Teat size is selected for the size of the milker. When
milking was done by hand, then teats were selected for about 4 to5 inches
long and 1.25 inches in diameter regardless of breed or species. (Holstein,
Jersey or goat) When milking machines came into use, 3 inches long and 3/4
inches in diameter seemed to work better. When we cross Holsteins and
Jerseys, we often get a teat proportional to the size of the Jersey cow on
the Holstein...BIG.

Neal Grose

----- Original Message -----
From: <ranchrat at telusplanet.net>
To: <jacob-list at jacobsheep.com>
Sent: Monday, June 09, 2003 4:14 PM
Subject: [Jacob-list] Extra Teat