Performance and carcass composition of Baggara cattle raised to two slaughter weights I. Feedlot performance and slaughter characteristics

Abstract

Forty-eight Sudan Baggara bulls were used. They were divided into two groups according 
to their ages, young (1-2 years) 143.5±7.5kg and mature (3-4 years) 249.0±9.6kg. The bulls 
were kept for a period of 25 weeks, during which they were fed ad libitum on a concentrated 
diet (20% CP and 11.1 MJ/kg DM ME). Representative animals from each group 
slaughtered at weeks 5, 10, 15, 20 and 25 of the feeding period. 
Mature bulls consumed more feed and had better daily weight gain than young ones. But 
young bulls showed better feed conversion ratio than mature bulls. 
No significant treatment effect (P>0.05) on trunk length, heart girth, height at withers and 
hip, neck and hump length was observed. However there were significant effect on chest 
depth (P<0.05), pelvic width (P<0.01), shank width and barrel circumference (P<0.001). 
Mature bulls showed higher dressing percentages (54.2, 59.3) than young (53.9, 58.7) bulls 
on full and empty body basis, respectively. Body weight had a significant effect (P<0.001) 
on the weights of all offal parts except spleen and rumen fill weight. 
At an equally adjusted slaughter weight, young bulls had heavier omentum, mesenteric, 
head and hide weights, while mature bulls had higher liver, spleen and rumen fill weights.