In a message dated 4/6/04 1:55:27 PM Eastern Daylight Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes:
<< so i think im with Sue on this one Barbados Blackbelly, horned or polled, keep the name but let there be 2 categories. your next problem is how do you get everyone else to except it. >> Consistency needs to be established. Consistency in name, consistency in standards, characteristics of the breed. *polled and horned* (btw, what happens if true-strain BBS are allowed to be imported at some future date will they be referred to as true-strain BBS and the BBSAI registered sheep as american strain?) Once the breed has an absolute standard and the name is firmly established then comes getting the word out via: e-lists, word of mouth, letters to breeders, contacting Sheep Associations/all the current sheep sources that distribute breed information now, etc. Both types(horned and polled) would need good standard/characteristics to indicate the blackbelly heritage. Like what is already listed: Hair coat, classic blackbelly markings, roman nose, etc. It's really up to the the members of BBSAI to establish what they will accept as the standard for what they will accept as registered *blackbelly* sheep. Public/buyer education should be addressed as well. Grades of quality. ie. top quality features, maybe, DNA testing for % blackbelly genetics, breeding records to establish consistently polled offspring or horns. Commercial stock and the unregistered "blackbelly" market is a tougher area to address. Buyer beware. It all depends on what the buyer's are looking for in getting sheep. If it's purely personal use, to say have as a pet that'll do some yard clean up, produce meat for the freezer locker at home or whatever. Or, wanting an easy care hair sheep, it might meet their reasons for purchase. Problem I've noted, when you buy sheep that aren't held to some type of registered standard you don't really know how true to type your sheep will be. ie Hair coat vs. woolie, ease in birthing/numbers, resistance to disease/parasites, polled vs. horn, etc ie. Fella in a nearby town was advertising his sheep as: brown/black Blackbelly sheep for sale. When we visited, I noticed a lot of wool still on the sheep. It was August. He tried to tell me they had already shed and grew coats for winter! Thick, matted wool coats that looked old, just hanging on the sheep. roflol His main ram breeder was a big woolie(no blackbelly background, whatsoever)....as he put it he was experimenting to get fatter sheep for butchering. He was raising cross-bred sheep that still had some blackbelly markings. Not what at all what I wanted or had spent so much time reading about. Diana =============================================== This message is from the Barbados Blackbelly Sheep mailing list (http://www.awrittenword.com/listserv/index.html). To respond to this message, send e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] To unsubscribe or change your membership options, go to http://lists.coyotenet.net/mailman/listinfo/blackbelly To search the archives, go to http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED]/
