Haematological profiles of Indonesian fat-tailed sheep under different physiological conditions

The aim of this research was to evaluate the effect of sex, age, feed and physiological conditions on the haematological profiles of Indonesian fat-tailed sheep. A total of 32 healthy Indonesian fat-tailed sheep in different physiological states (i.e. suckling lambs/weaners aged 1-5 months, postweaning lambs aged 6-8 months, lactating ewes, rams, and pregnant ewes) were used in this study. Blood samples were collected from the jugular vein and then transferred into tubes for haematological analysis. The results revealed the following: RBCs, 7.09 +/- 0.52 million mu L-1; HCT, 46.76 +/- 4.30%; Hb, 9.83 +/- 0.57 g dL(-1); MCV, 69.88 +/- 5.48 fL; MCH, 14.94 +/- 0.71 pg; MCHC, 24.29 +/- 1.36 g dL(-1); WBCs, 5.60 +/- 1.24 thousand mu L-1; percentage of neutrophils, 58.30 +/- 7.31%; percentage of lymphocytes, 41.63 +/- 7.31%; and N/L ratio, 0.18 +/- 0.05. The physiological status of the sheep affected RBCs, Hb, HCT and MCH (P < 0.05). The sex, age, feed and physiological status of the animals should be considered in the interpretation of haematological profiles in Indonesian fat-tailed sheep.