Il comportamento materno degli ovini: alterazioni e soluzioni a confronto

Abnormal maternal behaviour in sheep is one of the main causes leading to the refusal of the lamb. When this occurs, lamb welfare as well as farm economy can be compromised. The aim of the present survey was to evaluate the incidence and the motivations of lamb refusal in a hilly area in Central Italy (around Mount Amiata), where extensive sheep farming represents one of the main husbandry activities. The problem is present in most of the surveyed farms, with an incidence of 2% of total parturitions. Lamb refusal is more frequent in case of twin births (4.22% in twins vs 0.89% in singles; P < 0.001), especially in primiparous mothers, in agreement with the results of previous researches. The farmers seem to be aware of the problem and they take care of the lambs, either trying to force the sheep to accept the lamb by restraining them together, or by bottle feeding the lamb. In both cases, they often succeed.