Search Members and the Breeds They Raise
Border
Cheviot
The Border Cheviot is a native of the Cheviot
Hills of Scotland and is said to have originated when Merino
sheep, carried by the ships of the Spanish Armada, washed ashore
and evolved with the local breeds. They have been raised in
Canada since the 1850s. Border Cheviots are extremely vigorous, hardy and good foragers
that can survive in harsher conditions than many other sheep.
They are a quick and alert breed, the ewes are excellent mothers
who need little help at lambing and the lambs grow quickly to
20 kg as milk lambs but progress slowly after that. Border Cheviot
rams are used as terminal sires to produce a fast rate of gain
in the Down breeds, and to give lambs smaller front ends and
heads for easier delivery in first time ewes.
Body weight:
Rams: 70 - 85 Kg
Ewes: 55 - 70 Kg
Fleece: Long, strong and lustrous
Charollais
Charollais originated in France in the early
1800's from a cross of Leicester Longwool and local landrace
breeds. The breed is often used as a terminal sire to increase
the muscling and growth rate of the lambs. The Charollais has
excellent maternal qualities, early maturity, good fertility,
high prolificacity and are excellent milkers. They are a medium to large sheep, long, well muscled and have
a mature body weight of 100-150 kg for rams and 80-100kg for
ewes. The breed is found in more than twenty countries around
the world. The Charollais fleece is fine and dense.
Clun
Forest
Medium sized sheepwith a strong wide heart girth, long body and strong legs. They have a bold walk. The head is narrow and sleek, with sharp eyesand a clean, open dark brown face, polled, white wool covering top of head which is free from dark wool. The ears set high and are of moderate length, set high. The neck is muscular and strong, blending into body.
Shoulders are well rounded, blending into body. The chest is deep with lots of depth through heart girth. The back, loin and rump are lengthy with a strong back and deep ribs, strong loin and well rounded thighs. The legs are squarely placed with good hocks. strong bone fairly free of wool from hock and knee down
-Mature body weight
Rams 75-105 kg
Ewes 65-80 kg.
Fleece:
- Tight, fine texture
- Free of kemp and dark or gray wool
Corriedale
The Corriedale was developed in New Zealand during
the mid-19th century as breeders attempted to improve the meat
characteristics of the Merino sheep by cross-breeding with the
British longwool breeds, especially Lincoln. The Corriedale is now one of the most populous breeds throughout
the world with large flocks in Australia, New Zealand, South
America and the U.S. The Corriedale was imported to Canada from New Zealand, and
for many years was a popular dual purpose breed. The ewes are
average in prolificacy, good mothers and good milkers. The lambs
are slower-growing than the Down breeds but finish well as light
or heavy lambs. The popularity of the breed in Canada has declined
with the fortunes of the wool industry, but they remain an excellent
dual purpose choice for small acreage.
Body weight:
Rams: 80 - 125 Kg
Ewes: 60 - 80 Kg
Fleece: Bright, soft
Dorper
Dorpers were developed 60 years ago in South
Africa as a meat breed by crossing the Dorset Horn and Persian
Blackhead (a fat tailed South African sheep). They are now the
second most popular breed in that country. They ideally have
a black head or head and neck with white body. see for breed standard They're an easy care sheep that divert most of their energy
into growing meat instead of wool. In fact, you don't have to
shear them at all! Dorpers have a high lambing rate, the ability to breed all
year, outstanding mothering ability, hardiness and many other
qualities that make them easy to raise. The ewes can produce
offspring three times in two years. Dorpers
have well developed hind quarters and their meat is lean and
tastes delicious
Body weight:
Rams: 100 lbs.
at 90 days
Ewes: 80 to 90 lbs at 90 day
Fleece: Bright, white, dense
Dorset
One of Canada's most popular breeds, the Polled
Dorset is descended from the Horned Dorset, which has been one
of the most widely kept breeds in Southern England and Wales
since the 16th century. Polled Dorsets originated from a mutation
at the North Carolina State College in the U.S. and were accepted
into the U.S. registry in 1956. Since that time they have spread
into Canada and become a major contributor to the light lamb
market in this country. The ewes are prolific, good milkers,
breed out of season and adapt well to confined, accelerated
cross-breeding programs. The lambs are not heavy feeders and gain quickly to 27 kg after
which point they gain more slowly. Because the breed is easily
kept and responds well to confinement, whether for lamb feedlots
or ewe flocks, they appeal to anyone with a small acreage interested
in intensive production.
Body weight:
Rams: 90 - 125 Kg
Ewes: 55 - 90 Kg
Fleece: Bright, white, dense
East Friesian Dairy Sheep
East Friesian
Dairy Sheep are the most productive dairy sheep breed and a
crossing breed used to improve lambing percentage and milk
production in meat breeds. They are polled in both sexes with clean faces, legs and under the tail which is
naturally crutched with the distinctive "rat-tail" which is free of wool. The East Friesen has pale or white hooves and is large framed
with very lean meat. They have a quiet temperament (easy to work with). They are prolific with an average lambing percentage of 230%
with weight gains to 100 days (average) - 0.73 lb/day (0.33
kg/day).
Body Weight
Between 160 and 200 pounds
Average milk production
160 gallons (600 liters)/220-230 day
lactation. - average milk fat - 6% and average total
solids - 18%
Fleece
white wool of medium texture, 30-37 micron
count, 52-54 Bradford count - 12 lb (5.5 kg) wool/ewe/yr
Hampshire
The Hampshire is one of the Down breeds that
originated in Hampshire County in England during the 18th century
when Southdown rams were crossed with the local horn sheep.
Fixed as a breed in 1889, it was exported to Canada at the turn
of the century and since then has remained, with the Suffolk
and the Dorset, one of the most consistently popular breeds
in Canada. They are large sheep, stocky, with excellent meat characteristics
and high-yielding carcass. They are extremely fast-growing and
serve both the light and heavy lamb market. The ewes are average
in prolificacy, long-lived, easy keepers and adapt to either
pasture or confinement management. Rams used as terminal sires pass on the Hampshire loin and
leg very consistently, but the lambs are large at birth and
large ewes should be used. They are very docile, easy to manage
and make an ideal small farm flock.
Body weight:
Rams: 115 - 150 Kg
Ewes: 80 - 115 Kg
Fleece: Medium coarse, semi-bright
North Country Cheviot
The North Country Cheviot is a breed that has
been widely used for centuries in the North of England and Scotland.
They are an independent, outdoor sheep, strong-willed, vigorous
and very hardy in harsh climates and rough pasture. The ewes
show superior mothering instincts, deliver lambs easily and
feature the longest lactation period of any of the more popular
breeds. The lambs are very spry at birth. Although only average
in rate of gain, the carcass quality is very good, with high
red meat content and above average percentage yield. For all
of these reasons, North Country rams are often used in cross-breeding
to pass on the maternal strengths of the breed and to improve
carcass quality. Best suited to pasture systems where management is not intensive.
Body weight:
Rams: 100 - 125 Kg
Ewes: 55 - 80 Kg
Fleece: Bulky, low lustre
Polypay
The Polypay was developed at the Experimental
Station in Dubois, Idaho beginning in the late 1960s. Researchers
drew from four breeds: Finnsheep, Rambouillet, Targhee and Dorset,
to produce a prolific sheep that would lamb out of season and
produce a fast growing lamb and high-yielding carcass. The breed
was fixed in 1975 and has since spread to farms across the U.S.,
Canada and Mexico. Polypay lambs are good feeders and grow quickly and steadily
to 36 kg. They are docile, easily managed and thrive in pasture,
rotational grazing and confinement systems.
Body weight:
Rams: 90 - 125 Kg
Ewes: 60 - 90 Kg
Fleece: Fine, pronounced crimp
Rambouillet
Rambouillet are large sized sheep of good body length and muscle conformation. Rams are strongly masculine, Ewes are distinctly feminine. Their head is open faced free of wool around and under the eyes. Their ears are broad and relatively short and thick. They are polled or horned with sturdy necks free of wrinkles. Their shoulders are trim, smooth and well rounded. The chest is deep and full with moderate width between the forelegs. Their back is long, level and broad. Their loin is long and wide, thick with natural flesh throughout. Their legs are well set on their corners, straight, strong and thickly muscled with pasterns strong and upright with white hooves.
Body weight:
Rams 100-135 kg
Ewes 70-90 kg
Fleece:
Dense, long and uniform over whole body
No more than two grades drop on britch
Bright, clean, free from other fibres
Fine and white
Romney
The Romney is a British longwool sheep that evolved
in the low, wet Romney Marsh district of Kent County, in Southeast
England during the 13th century. Effectively isolated from other
parts of the country for centuries by the Kent Forest, the Romney
developed on its own and adapted well to its damp and often
harsh environment. It was exported to New Zealand in 1853 where
it flourished and became the most popular breed in the country.
Because of its resistance to footrot and internal parasites,
the Romney has become popular in the wet coastal regions of
British Columbia. The lambs are large and lean and convert feed very well. They
are not a competitive sheep and when mixed with commercial breeds,
but docile and easily managed. Romney wool is in demand with
hand spinners who pay a premium for the fleece.
Body weight:
Rams: 90 - 100 Kg
Ewes: 65 - 80 Kg
Fleece: Medium coarse, lustrous white
Shetland
Shetlands are a small sized sheep, alert and nimble, giving a smart active appearance. Rams are generally with horns, ewes are generally polled. They have wool on their forehead and poll tapering into
the neck, likewise wool on cheeks. The variety of colour and fineness
of the wool is a distinguishable feature of the breed. Wool
on the tail tapers off from the base leaving the lower end almost
bare, except for short stubby hairs. This feature readily permits
the purity of the breed to be gauged.
Body weight:
Rams: 40-75 kg
Ewes 30-60 kg
Fleece:
Extra fine and soft texture, longish, wavy and well closed.
Length 5 to 10 centimetres, which ideally should have 9-10 crimps
per 2.5 centimetres.
Southdown
The Southdown was developed in Sussex, England
during the late 1700s and early 1800s and exported to the U.S.
shortly after. In this century it became known as the "Aberdeen
Angus" of the Canadian sheep industry because of its ability
to flesh out a small carcass, however, the breed dropped drastically
in numbers in the 1960s because of its too small stature and
difficulty with lambing. Breeding improvements have restored size to the Southdown and
while preserving its feed conversion efficiency and the breed
has come back in favour. It is a medium-sized sheep that excels
in producing meaty carcasses for the medium to light lamb market.
The Southdown is very docile, adapts well to confinement operations
and can easily be finished on pasture. Southdown rams are widely
used as terminal sires to put finish on many other breeds but
the ewes are usually bred pure. Because of its size and gentle
nature, the Southdown make an excellent starter flock or 4-H
project for children.
Body weight:
Rams: 85 - 105 Kg
Ewes: 60 - 80 Kg
Fleece: Dense, fine
St. Croix
St. Croix are prolific, often with two lamb crops per year with the total flock
averaging 230% annual lamb crop raised to market. Yearlings
average 1.5 lambs born per birth with later lambings averaging
over 2.0 lambs. They are good on rough forage utilizing coarse fodder. In addition they are adapted to hot climates. They have inherent resistance to internal
parasites. Gentle and easy to handle - both sexes are hornless. St. Croix are haired sheep
and naturally shed their winter coat in spring. Lambs finish out without excessive
fat and the carcass conformation is similar to a Ramboulillet
with the exception that the St. Croix has a higher slaughter
yield. Very few birthing problems. This includes young females who generally
lamb their first time at one year of age.
Body weight:
Rams: up to 90 Kg
Ewes: up to 75 Kg
Suffolk
The Suffolk was developed in the early 1800s
in the southeastern area of England by crossing Southdown and
Norfolk Horned sheep. It came to Canada in 1888 and interest
in the breed rose rapidly after 1920. It is now the dominant
breed in Canada. Because the Suffolk lambs are usually twins, exceed all others
in rate of gain, respond well to confinement and command higher
prices, they offer the best economic returns in the industry
and continue to dominate the heavy lamb market in Canada. The
rams are widely used as terminal sires on rangelands because
of their ability to pass on valuable traits in meat production:
i.e. rate of gain, carcass quality and high red meat content.
However, the Suffolk is a heavy feeder and those breeders enjoying
success with them have kept them at a moderate size, resisting
recent trends by some breeders to make them bigger. The moderate sized Suffolk is an efficient converter of feed,
somewhat shorter-lived than white-faced breeds and performs
best on small farms and acreages under controlled management.
Body weight:
Rams: 115 - 150 Kg
Ewes: 100 - 115 Kg
Fleece: Dense, fine
Texel
General Appearance:
Texels are a medium extremely muscled animal, robust, strongly framed with a thick set body
Mature body weights:
Rams 80-95 kg.
Ewes 70 80 kg.
Fleece:
A fine crimp
White fleece is fine, closely set and contains no superfluous lanolin
