Does breed affect sexual play in preweaning lambs?

Sheep breeds vary in many aspects of behaviour. The aim of this study was to compare sexual play in lambs of dairy and meat breeds. A total of 30 lambs (16 Polish Milk Sheep 05 and 14 Polish Whiteheaded Mutton Sheep) were observed for 113 h 30 min during the first two months of their lives. Sex and breed appeared to influence mounting behaviour (p < 0.01), whereas age had no influence (p > 0.05). Males mounted more often than females (19.4 ± 3.0 vs 5.4 ± 1.8) and dairy lambs mounted more often than mutton lambs (18.8 ± 3.3 vs 7.1 ± 1.8). Both dairy and mutton lambs preferred to mount individuals of their own breed. This study showed that there were interbreed differences in lamb sexual play, as well as breed preference in choosing animal for mounting.