by Playfuls Staff |
20th March 2007
New Zealand scientists are trying to breed sheep with four nipples instead of two to cater to a growing tendency of ewes to have multiple births, it was reported [more] Wednesday.
More ewes are having triplets, but one of the lambs usually struggles to survive because it cannot get enough milk from its mother, the Otago Daily Times reported.
"A triplet, if he is the runt of the litter, is usually doomed," George Davis, a scientist with the state agricultural organization AgResearch, told the paper. "If one triplet is light, his two litter mates can bully him out."
Davis said that 10 years ago, the average New Zealand ewe had one lamb, while today 100 ewes produced 120 lambs between them.
New Zealand is one of the world's biggest producers and exporters of sheep meat.
© 2007 DPA
