Estimation of liver mass in sheep

The total liver mass of live ruminants is frequently required in mineral nutrition studies. In healthy, well-fleshed sheep high correlations were obtained between liver mass and body mass. In 169 sheep older than 15 months the wet liver represented 1,13 +/- 0,129% and the dry liver 0,34 +/- 0,036% of the live body mass respectively, while in 51 young sheep (6--9 months of age) these values were 1,65 +/- 0,135% and 0,48 +/- 0,062% respectively. Some of the factors influencing these values are discussed. The dry matter content of the livers in healthy sheep--irrespective of the breeds used, their age, body mass or the portion of the liver sampled--showed little variation, being 29,5 +/- 1,02%.