title: Intake, digestibility, performance, and carcass traits of beef cattle of different gender.
abstract: The performance, intake, feed efficiency, and carcass traits of beef cattle from different gender profile were assessed. Fifteen animals (five steers, five spayed heifers, and five intact heifers) with ±250 kg of initial body weight were randomly assigned in individual pens and fed the same diet for 106 days. At the end of the trial, all the animals were slaughtered and the pH, temperature, and weight of the carcass were recorded. The right side of each carcass was then separated into chuck, shoulder, flank sirloin, and round for evaluation of commercial cuts yield. The left carcass sides were ribbed between the 12th and 13th ribs where the rib eye area and fat thickness measurements were taken. The 9th-11th rib section was removed from the left half carcass and then dissected into muscle, fat, and bones in order to estimate carcass composition. Gender had no effect (P > 0.05) on performance, intake, digestibility of dry matter and all the nutrients evaluated, feed efficiency, and carcass characteristics. It can be concluded that steers and heifers (spayed or not) have the same potential to produce beef. From a productive and welfare standpoint, there is no reason to spay heifers.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Zootecnia, Universidade Federal do Vale do Jequitinhonha e Mucuri (UFVJM), Diamantina, Minas Gerais, Brazil.
authors.forename: Igor Nero Kelles
authors.initials: IN
authors.lastname: Lage
authors.forename: Pedro Veiga Rodruigues
authors.initials: PV
authors.lastname: Paulino
authors.forename: Christiano Vieira
authors.initials: CV
authors.lastname: Pires
authors.forename: Severino Delmar Junqueira
authors.initials: SD
authors.lastname: Villela
authors.forename: Marcio de Souza
authors.initials: Mde S
authors.lastname: Duarte
authors.forename: Sebastião de Campos
authors.initials: Sde C
authors.lastname: Valadares Filho
authors.forename: Mario Fonseca
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Paulino
authors.forename: Bernardo Alves
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Maia
authors.forename: Luiz Henrique Pereira
authors.initials: LH
authors.lastname: Silva
authors.forename: Cesar Roberto Vianna
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Teixeira
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002417:Cattle / Q000502:physiology*; D004063:Digestion / Q000502:physiology; D004435:Eating / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D016018:Least-Squares Analysis; D008297:Male; D008460:Meat / Q000592:standards*; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000502:physiology*; D011897:Random Allocation; D012737:Sex Factors