Replication data for: "Effect of grazing deprivation as compared to grazing restriction on hair and saliva cortisol levels in pregnant ewes"

In the first week of the experiment, hair from the left forelimb was shaved in all ewes. Later, the same surface-hair samples were obtained twice, in Week 5 (W5) , when ewes were in the first half of pregnancy and in Week 10 (W10). Samples were processed following a methanol-based extraction protocol previously described (Davenport et al., 2006, Tallo-Parra et al., 2015). Cortisol concentrations in hair samples were determined by using a competitive cortisol enzyme immunoassay (EIA) kit. Saliva samples were taken in all ewes on Weeks 0, 3, 5, 8 and 10 (W0, W3, W5, W8, W10), and sampling was always performed between 16:00 and 17:30. Samples were obtained from a sponge of Salivette® tubes (Sarstedt, Aktiengesellsschaft & Co.; Nümbrecht, Germany). Samples were subsequently centrifuged at 3000 rpm for 10 minutes and then stored at -200C until analysis. Measurement of cortisol concentrations in saliva samples and the assay validation tests were performed using a commercial Enzyme-Linked ImmunoSorbentAssay (ELISA) kit (Neogen Corporation©; Ayr, UK). The assay was validated for the analysis of cortisol in saliva of Ovis aries following the criteria for an immunological validation (Midgley et al., 1969; Reimers & Lamb, 1991). The dilution test showed an R2 = 98.54 % and a mean recovery rate of 105.90% suggesting high specificity of the test.