The effect of melatonin implants on reproductive performances of meat type ewes raised on the research and implementation farm of the faculty of agriculture university of Çukurova

This tudy was carried out on the randomly alloted 43 crossbred type Çukurova Meat Sheep raised in the Sheep Installation of Research and Implementation Farm of the Çukurova Universty/ Faculty of Agriculture. The ewes were divided into the treatment (21 ewes) and the control groups (22 ewes) at random. In the treatment group the ewes were implanted with Regulin containing 18 mg of melatonin with a special ear implant applicator subcutaneously (16 June, 2011). The control group was observed and recorded for their natural reproductive behaviour. After 49 days (28 July, 2011) the groups were heat detected with twice a day (morning and afternoon) using two teaser rams. The ewes exhibiting oestrus were taken to special paddock for mating. The ewes mated were heat detected again after 24 hours using teaser rams. Those ewes stil exhibiting heat were mated another time. The matings were terminated after 40 days. The ewes oestrus; lambing; lambs per ewe mated: lambs per ewe lambing and the multiple birth rates in the melatonin and the control groups were 85.71% and 100 %; 80.95 and 68.18 %; 135.29 and 106.67 %; 109.52; 35.29% and 6.67 % respectively. The statistical analyses between groups with respect to oestrus rates, lambing rates and lambs per ewe lambing were found to be insignificant . The difference between the groups with respect to multiple births was found to be statistically significant (P<0.05). Melatonin was responsible fort he 32.66 % of the multiple births