Effects of Cyclophosphamide Administration on Wool Quality, Physiological and Biochemical Parameters, Carcass Traits,...

Chemical depilation presents a promising alternative to traditional shearing for Chinese Merino sheep, aiming to overcome issues of low efficiency and animal stress. Nonetheless, the safety of meat derived from sheep treated with this technology requires comprehensive scientific evaluation. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the effects of CPA on wool quality, physiological and biochemical parameters, carcass traits, meat quality, fatty acids, and amino acids in sheep. Sheep were treated with different concentrations of CPA for 30 days, and slaughtering was performed at 3, 15, and 30 days post-administration. The CPA treatment (25-30 mg/kg) achieved complete defleecing and significantly increased staple and stretch lengths without affecting fiber length. At the 25 mg/kg dose, certain physiological and biochemical parameters, including mean corpuscular volume, mid-cell count, and lymphocyte percentage, recovered over time, with only short-term fluctuations observed. Moreover, treatment with 25 mg/kg CPA did not affect carcass characteristics, muscle amino acid composition, or meat quality parameters. In conclusion, this study verifies that complete wool shedding can be achieved with CPA at 25-30 mg/kg, while meat quality remains unaffected, providing a scientific basis for its adoption in dual-purpose sheep production.