The growth rate affected carcass weight, length, and dressing at the
end of the post-weaning growing phase (P b 0.05), which were greater
for HIGH bulls and smaller for LOW bulls. The qualitative feed restrictions
imposed on LOW and MEDIUM bulls were sufficient to decrease
carcass weight by 36% and 13%, respectively, compared to HIGH bulls.
Carcass weight differences between treatments decreased after the
finishing period, but carcasses from HIGH bulls remained the heaviest
(P b 0.05), which indicates that animals from the LOW and MEDIUM
groups did not totally recover the carcass weight, even after 112 days
of finishing. However, the length completely recovered and did not differ
(P N 0.05) between treatments at the end of the finishing phase.