@conference {41427,
	title = {The effect of sward height on twin and triplet lamb birth weights and survival rates to weaning},
	booktitle = {Proceedings of the New Zealand Society of Animal Production},
	volume = {63},
	year = {2003},
	month = {Jan},
	pages = {152-154},
	publisher = {New Zealand Society of Animal Production},
	organization = {New Zealand Society of Animal Production},
	address = {Queenstown},
	abstract = {The differential allocation of pasture between ewes of different bearing/rearing ranks requires a knowledge of the relationship between herbage allowance, intake and production. Few experiments have been conducted in which responses to different pasture allowances have been examined for triplet-bearing/rearing ewes, particularly under continuous stocking management. Published feed requirements for ewes rearing triplets have often been extrapolated from those defined for twin-rearing ewes (Geenty \& Rattray 1987). The sward surface guidelines for feeding single- and twin-bearing ewes have been published and researched under New Zealand conditions (Parker \& McCutcheon 1992; Morris et al., 1993a, 1993b; Morris et al., 1994).
There is anecdotal evidence for varying lambing performance and lamb growth rates for triplet-bearing/rearing ewes under pastoral grazing conditions. The national average lambing percentage is increasing to beyond 120\% (MWIES 2002). The proportion of triplets in flocks lambing above 150\% increases at the expense of single-born lambs (Amer et al., 1999).
The aim of the research communicated in this paper was to compare ewe and lamb performance in twin- and triplet-bearing/rearing ewes offered various sward height allowances. },
	issn = {1176-5283},
	author = {Morris ST and Kenyon PR and Burnham DL and Everett-Hincks JM}
}
