The aim of this study was to compare wool growth and quality in twin- and triplet bearing/rearing ewes, offered different sward heights. After pregnancy scanning, 94 Romney ewes of six week wool growth were randomly allocated to four different sward height (2, 4, 6 and 8 cm). Within the first 24 hours of parturition ewes were transferred to one of two sward heights (4 and 8 cm). In ewes shorn 87 days after parturition, the fleece was weighed and a sample taken from midside for evaluation of fleece characteristics. Fleeces from twin-bearing/rearing ewes tended to be heavier (P<0.1; 2.0 Kg vs 1.9 Kg) than those from triplet-bearing/rearing ewes. Other wool characteristics were not affected by litter size. Ewes offered 2 cm long sward during the last half of pregnancy bore lighter (1.6 vs 2.2 Kg, P<0.05) and finer (39.0 vs 41.8 µm, P<0.05) fleeces than those offered 4 cm, but there was no increase in weight or fineness for those offered sward more than 4 cm height. Post parturition nutritional treatments had no significant effects on wool characteristics. In terms of wool growth and wool processing characteristics, it seems being of little benefit to offer twin or triplet bearing ewes a sward higher than 4 cm. There were no interactions observed between nutritional treatment and litter size for any wool characteristic measurements.
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