The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service will present an Ultrasound for Carcass Traits in Sheep webinar March 24 from 2-4:30 p.m.
The program is free, but preregistration is required by 1:30 p.m. on the day of the event.
Ultrasound is a proven technology that producers can use to improve quality and consistency of carcass traits in sheep. (Texas A&M AgriLife photo by Susan Himes)“Ultrasound is a proven technology to improve quality and consistency of carcass traits in sheep yet has been underutilized by Texas seedstock sheep breeders,” said Reid Redden, AgriLife Extension sheep and goat specialist and director of the Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Service Center at San Angelo. “This technology has resulted in great improvements for beef cattle genetics, and we anticipate similar gains for the sheep industry.”
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Redden said the webinar will provide sheep producers, commercial and seedstock, with a general understanding of how the technology works and how to best implement it across the Texas sheep industry.
This webinar is also a precursor for veterinarians or other skilled technicians who are interested in becoming certified to collect carcass traits in sheep via ultrasonography. The program will conclude with a panel of National Sheep Improvement Program, NSIP, breeders.
Topics and speakers
- Welcome and Overview – Redden.
- Dorper Carcass Quality Needs – Zach Hagan, Capra Foods, Goldthwaite.
- Genetics of Carcass Quality in Sheep – Jake Thorne, AgriLife Extension sheep and goat associate, San Angelo.
- Ultrasound to Improve Carcass Quality in Beef – Tommy Perkins, associate professor of animal sciences, West Texas A&M University, Canyon.
- Technology and Process to Ultrasound Sheep – Chris Schauer, director, North Dakota State University Hettinger Research Extension Center, Fargo, North Dakota.
- Producer Panel – producers Lynn Fahrmeier, NSIP Katahdin breeder, Wellington, Missouri; Cody Hiemke, NSIP Shropshire breeder, Stoughton, Wisconsin; and Kristin Bieber, NSIP Targhee breeder, Rockway, Montana.