Determination of slaughter and carcass traits of Central Anatolian merino and Ramliç lambs reared in producer conditions in Eskişehir province

SUMMARY The current study aimed to determine carcass and slaughter characteristics as well as fatness and fleshing status of Central Anatolian Merino (CAM) and Ramlıç (RA) lambs–widely raised by breeders in Eskişehir–in the S/EROUP classification system at the marketing-age. The animal material of the study consisted of 14 males (single-born) CAM (n=7) and RA (n=7) lambs. This study investigated the carcass and slaughter characteristics of the fattened lambs of both genotypes (approximately 40 kg slaughter weight) purchased from breeders after slaughter. The head and testis percentages were higher in RA lambs than in CAM lambs (P<0.05). In CAM and RA lambs, the cold carcass yield was 47.98±0.85 and 49.38±0.40 and the chilling loss was 1.64±0.13 and 1.48±0.11, respectively. Leg, back-loin, and foreleg weights were higher in RA lambs than CAM lambs (P>0.05). In CAM and RA lambs, the leg percentage was 34.45±0.49 and 34.50±0.37%, the back-loin percentage was 16.49±0.53 and 16.57±0.50%, and the foreleg percentage was 17.84±0.29 and 17.94±0.34%, respectively. In the study, the differences between CAM and RA lambs were insignificant in terms of other carcass cuts except for the flank and tail percentage (P>0.05). Although the highest first quality carcass (A++) cut percentage appeared in the RA lambs, the highest second quality cut percentage (A+) was in the CAM lambs (P>0.05). The carcass-fleshing score was higher in CAM (R (0)) lambs than in RA (R (-)) lambs, and the fatness score was lower in CAM lambs (3 (0) than in RA lambs (3(+)) (P>0.05). In the study, although the differences observed between breeds in terms of carcass and leg compactness and carcass conformation coefficients were insignificant (P>0.05), the differences observed in leg conformation were significant (P<0.05). It was found that the eye muscle area was lower in RA lambs than in CAM lambs, and the back fat thickness was higher (P<0.05). As a result, at 40 kg slaughter-weight CAM lambs stand out in terms of carcass quality under producer conditions Keywords: Lamb, Ramlıç, Central Anatolian Merino, carcass measurements, carcass and slaughter traits