The objective of this paper was to evaluate the effect of different feeding systems on the weight gain, characteristics of the carcass and non carcass components of lambs in termination phase. Eighteen lambs were used, castrated males, of the breed Texel, distributed randomly in the following treatments: T1 = confinement; T2 = pasture with supplementation and T3 = pasture without supplementation. The confined animals had been fed with a diet containing Tifton-85 hay and concentrated in the ratio of 40:60 in dry matter. The used pasture was Tifton-85. The supplemented animals received the same concentrated feed offered in the confinement in the ratio from 2% of live weight. To the 144 days of age, after fastening of 12 hours, the lambs were slaughtered. It was verified lesser final weight (P<0.05), daily weight gain, hot carcass weight, hot carcass yield, weight and proportion of rib and weights of hindquarter, shoulder and neck (P<0.01), in the lambs finished in the pasture, when compared with those confined or supplemented in condition of grazing. The proportions of hindquarter and shoulder had been bigger in the lambs finished in pasture without supplementation, in relation to the confined. A bigger proportion (P<0.01) of full viscera and gastrointestinal tract content in the lambs fed exclusively with pasture of Tifton-85 was verified. The lambs fed in confinement showed higher proportion of internal and renal fat and a lesser proportion of foot and empty viscera (P<0.01). The proportion of head was bigger (P<0.05) in the lambs subjected to pasture without supplementation in relation to those confined. The addition of the proportions of the non carcass components represent 34.65% of the live weight of the lambs at the moment of the slaughter.
meat sheep; regional composition; performance; weight gain
