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Factors Affecting IgG Concentration in Day-Old Lambs¹

University of Minnesota, St. Paul 55108

Abstract

Blood and colostrum were collected from 28 ewes at parturition and blood from their 49 lambs at 0, 8 hr and 24 hr postpartum. Serum and colostral IgG were determined by radial immunodiffusion. Ewes at parturition averaged 21.3 ± 1.5 mg/ml of IgG in serum and 115.1 ± 10.1 mg/ml in colostrum. Prior to nursing, the lambs had .07 mg/ml of serum IgG. At 8 hr after nursing, the lambs serum IgG levels had increased to 25.3 mg/ml and by 24 hr to 35.6 mg/ml. Associated with this increase in serum IgG was a decrease (P<.01) in hematocrit. The correlation (r) of colostral IgG concentration with the lamb serum IgG level at 8 hr and 24 hr was .37 and .34. After nursing, there were no differences (P>.05) in serum IgG levels at 24 hr postpartum between male lambs and female lambs (35.7 mg/ml vs 32.6 mg/ml) and between first born lambs and second born lambs (30.5 mg/ml vs 32.9 mg/ml). Despite 11/49 lambs having <15 mg IgG/ml at 24 hr postpartum, only two lambs died during the first month of life.

¹ Scientific publication series No. 9789, Minnesota Experiment Station.