Table 2.
Number of ewes assigned per diet and day of gestation that completed study1 and the resulting number of offspring acquired for analysis
| Treatment2 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Item | Control | Restricted | Over | Sum |
| Pregnant ewes | 25 | 27 | 26 | 78 |
| d 45 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 21 |
| d 90 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 20 |
| d 135 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 19 |
| Birth | 5 | 7 | 6 | 18 |
| Total offspring | 47 | 51 | 49 | 147 |
| d 45 | 12 | 12 | 15 | 39 |
| d 90 | 14 | 14 | 11 | 39 |
| d 135 | 11 | 12 | 11 | 34 |
| Birth | 10 | 13 | 12 | 35 |
| Singleton offspring | 7 | 6 | 6 | 19 |
| d 45 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 7 |
| d 90 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
| d 135 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| Birth | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Twin offspring | 23 | 32 | 31 | 86 |
| d 45 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 20 |
| d 90 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 18 |
| d 135 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 24 |
| Birth | 4 | 12 | 8 | 24 |
| Triplet offspring | 17 | 13 | 12 | 42 |
| d 45 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 12 |
| d 90 | 6 | 6 | 3 | 15 |
| d 135 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 6 |
| Birth | 5 | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| Male:Female offspring ratio | 31:16 | 28:23 | 21:28 | 80:67 |
| d 45 | 12:0 | 9:3 | 11:4 | 32:7 |
| d 90 | 8:6 | 8:6 | 3:8 | 19:20 |
| d 135 | 7:4 | 8:4 | 3:8 | 18:16 |
| Birth | 4:6 | 3:10 | 4:8 | 11:24 |
Four ewes did not complete study due to reasons unrelated to the experiment. These ewes and their offspring are not included in this table or any of the data analyses (Control, Birth n = 2; Restricted, d 135 n = 1; Over-fed, Birth n = 1). Beginning at d 30 of gestation, pregnant ewes were randomly assigned to a control-fed (100%), restricted-fed (60%) or over-fed (140%) diet based on NRC TDN requirements. Ewes were euthanized at d 45, 90, or 135 of gestation and a hysterectomy was performed to acquire the fetus(es), or ewes were allowed to undergo parturition in which lambs were necropsied within 24 h of birth.
LSMeans are reported.