Estimates of maturing rates and masses at maturity for body components of sheep 1993. 71:2952-2957. J Anim Sci http://jas.fass.org the World Wide Web at: The online version of this article, along with updated information and services, is located on www.asas.org by on ABSTRACT Weight data for fleece-free empty body, carcass and offal components, and their chemical constituents (protein, water, lipid, and ash) were collected via serial slaughter techniques. Rams sired by a sheep breed of high

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... tic merit for growth were slaughtered from birth through 48 mo of age. Approximately six rams were killed a t each of 13 slaughter ages. The data were fit with a nonlinear function Yt = A( 1 -Be-kt) to provide estimates of rates of maturing ( k ) and weight at maturity ( A ) for components of interest. Except for the testes, all tissues met the convergence criterion. The proportion of offal compo-nents relative t o empty BW was greatest at birth and steadily declined after this time. Rates of maturing for visceral organs (except for the heart) and the protein constituent of the offal were of greater magnitude than the carcass and nonprotein constituents of both the offal and carcass. Estimated maturing rate and weight at maturity for lipid of the carcass exceeded corresponding estimates of the offal lipid. Evidence was provided suggesting that the developmental patterns of body components may be established by functional demand.