Postnatal maternal behaviour expression depends on lambing difficulty in Merino ewes

Area of Science:

• Veterinary Science
• Animal Behaviour
• Reproductive Biology

Background:

• Dystocia is a primary cause of lamb mortality globally.
• It can lead to neonatal hypoxia, CNS damage, and increased lamb mortality.
• Dystocia also poses risks of fatigue, injury, and death to the ewe.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the impact of dystocia on ewe maternal behaviour post-lambing.
• To quantify differences in maternal and avoidance behaviours between dystocic and eutocic ewes.
• To understand how dystocia affects the ewe-lamb bond and subsequent lamb survival.

Main Methods:

• Observation and annotation of ewe behaviour for 2 hours post-lambing.
• Comparison of 9 dystocic ewes with 9 eutocic (normal birth) ewes.
• Behavioral analysis based on video recordings and expert classification of birth events.

Main Results:

• Dystocic ewes exhibited significantly less maternal behaviour.
• Dystocic ewes displayed significantly more avoidance behaviours towards their lambs.
• Overall, dystocic ewes performed fewer behaviours compared to eutocic ewes.

Conclusions:

• Dystocia negatively impacts the quality and quantity of maternal behaviour in ewes.
• This can result in increased lamb avoidance, maternal disinterest, and higher lamb mortality.
• Prompt identification of dystocia can facilitate interventions for improved ewe and lamb outcomes.