Evaluating the reproductive ability of breeding rams in North-Eastern Spain using clinical examination of the body and external genitalia

Table 1 Prevalence (%) of rams with alterations and suitability of rams for breeding according to age (n = 774)

Body area	Lesions severity	12 – 24 months (n = 153)	24 – 72 months (n = 490)	≥72 months (n = 131)	TOTAL
Head, neck and trunk	None	75.8^a	64.5^b	41.2^c	62.8
	Mild	22.2	32.2	34.4	30.6
	Severe	2.0^a	3.3^a	24.4^b	6.6
Prognathism	None	98.0^a	91.6^b	84.7^b	91.7
	Mild	2.0^a	7.3^a	14.5^b	7.5
	Severe	0.0^d	1.0	0.8	0.8
Limbs	None	93.5^a	86.9^a	64.9^b	84.5
	Mild	5.9^a	11.4^a	25.2^b	12.7
	Severe	0.7^a	1.6^a	9.9^b	2.8
Leg conformation	None	100.0	99.0^a	93.9^b	98.3
	Mild	0.0^d	1.0^a	3.8^b	1.3
	Severe	0.0^d	0.0^d	2.3	0.4
Genitals	None	78.4^a	68.0^b	58.0^b	68.3
	Mild	15.7	22.2	24.4	21.3
	Severe	5.9^a	9.8^a	16.6^b	10.3
Testicles	None	96.7	94.9	91.6	94.7
	Yes	3.3	5.1	8.4	5.3
Posthitis	None	91.5^a	81.0^b	71.0^c	81.4
	Mild	7.8^a	15.7^b	22.1^b	15.3
	Severe	0.7^a	3.3^a	6.9^b	3.4
Glans	None	95.4	95.9	96.9	96.0
	Mild	3.3	2.9	3.1	3.0
	Severe	1.3	1.2	0.0^d	1.0
Rams with any alterations	None	54.2^a	40.0^b	19.8^c	39.4
	Mild	37.9	46.1	38.9	43.3
	Severe	7.8^a	13.9^a	41.3^b	17.3
Previous disease	None	87.6^a	60.2^b	30.5^c	60.6
	Yes	12.4^a	39.8^b	69.5^c	39.4
BSE	Suitable	92.2^a	86.1^a	62.6^b	83.3
	Unsuitable	7.9^a	13.8^a	37.4^b	16.7

^a,b,cMeans in the same row with different superscripts differ significantly p < 0.05
^dThis category is not used for multiple comparison because the proportion is equal to zero

ISSN: 1746-6148