Re: [blackbelly] wooliness in sheep
At 01:35 PM 10/24/2005, you wrote: >Hi Julien, > >I've seen photos of sheep that simply are not good sheep because they are >too wooly and it never sheds. There are a lot of crosses that do that. >You'll know them when you see them. Your ram Art is borderline. If I were >you, I'd wait another year before I ruled on his wooliness because he is >young yet. The fact that his sister is relatively sleek supports the idea >that it may be a temporary thing for him. > >Carol Thanks for your input, Carol. We'll see how everyone turns out next spring. Art doesn't really matter, though... the reason his name is Wall Art, is his markings: http://jbhale.home.comcast.net/Baby_Art.jpg Once he sheds out in the spring, we'll have a nice hide to put on the wall, and maybe some nice horns to put up, too :) Julian ___ This message is from the blackbelly mailing list Visit the list's homepage at blackbelly@lists.blackbellysheep.info http://lists.blackbellysheep.info/listinfo.cgi/blackbelly-blackbellysheep.info
[blackbelly] wooliness in sheep
Hi Julien, The wooliness issue is interesting and each year my experience changes a little bit, adding to my overall general confusion about the issue. Originally, I understood that sheep in colder climates would naturally develop a thicker wool undercoat in the winter that would shed out. And for the most part, I think that is the bottom line. Regardless of where a sheep winters, it should shed that undercoat in the summer. That said, however, I've noticed in my sheep and other breeders' as well that some sheep sport little tufts of wool that simply do not break in the spring and continue to hang on throughout the year. I still think that is all right, providing that they don't do it from year to year. Continuing on down my list, the next sheep group are those that have a fairly thick undercoat that doesn't shed at all in the spring. That is not a good thing, but I'm beginning to believe that if it happens only occasionally on a sheep, it may be in response to some internal signal from the sheep rather than a genetic thing. I do know that sheep under a great deal of stress (poorly nourished or carrying a heavy parasite burden) will fail to shed in the spring. My sheep aren't under stress, so I still am not sure why the two girls haven't shed well this year but they did last year. The final group of sheep to look at are those whose wooliness is not an undercoat but is interspersed with the hair, creating a permanent wool/hair coat. That is a trait that seems to persist genetically as a result either of an unknown cross or, in the case of Zachary, perhaps too much inbreeding. Zachary came from a "purebred" research flock that had been closed since it was purchased from North Carolina State U. He cost me a small fortune to ship and got turned into gold-plated lambburger because he was so wooly he had to be shorn! And he seems to have passed that wooliness on to his offspring. I've kept a couple of his daughters who are real beauties and I'm selling one of his daughters and a granddaughter now. I'm confused about their wooliness because they have shed properly in the past. Their wool is a soft, silkie topcoat that persisted this entire summer. I'd hang on to them if I weren't so overstocked because they are otherwise good sheep. I have a couple lines who produce curly-haired lambs who look quite fuzzy as babies and some whose lambs are woolie if winterborn but, as you mentioned, seem to shed just fine after they are a year old. When I first started raising sheep, I sold a bunch of ewes who I thought were too woolie only to discover that when they turned two they were just as sleek as anything. I've seen photos of sheep that simply are not good sheep because they are too wooly and it never sheds. There are a lot of crosses that do that. You'll know them when you see them. Your ram Art is borderline. If I were you, I'd wait another year before I ruled on his wooliness because he is young yet. The fact that his sister is relatively sleek supports the idea that it may be a temporary thing for him. Carol At 12:23 PM 10/24/2005 -0700, you wrote: >Hey Carol, > >On your page, you have a picture of Zachary, and mention you culled >him due to excessive woolliness... what do you consider >excessive? Is it that he didn't shed well in the summer, or is it he >just had more wool than others? > >I've noticed that some of my lambs have more wool than others, and >I've also noticed that my lambs tend to be pretty wooly their first >year, but that next spring they shed well, or at least last year's >did. Also, for whatever reason, some of my ewes didn't shed properly >last year, but they shed nicely this year... I'm fairly new to sheep, >and still trying to get a handle on exactly what I should be watching for. > >Here are two of my lambs, full brother/sister. One is pretty darn >wooly, the other has very little. Would you call Art (short for >Wall Art) excessively wooly? > >http://jbhale.home.comcast.net/Woolie_Art.jpg ___ This message is from the blackbelly mailing list Visit the list's homepage at blackbelly@lists.blackbellysheep.info http://lists.blackbellysheep.info/listinfo.cgi/blackbelly-blackbellysheep.info
Re: [blackbelly] polled Barbados Blackbelly sheep for sale
At 11:43 AM 10/24/2005, Carol J. Elkins wrote: >I need to reduce the size of my flock and will be selling some commercial >grade breeding ewes, a breeding ram, and 3 ram lambs. These sheep are all >from polled bloodlines and have long loins and good conformation. Two of >the ewes were a little woolier this summer than expected, but I suspect it >is a seasonal thing because last year they shed out fine. I am willing to >expose these ewes in November to a ram whose sire is from the University of >Virgin Islands research flock and release them for transport in December. > >My sheep are large and heavy. When the ram lambs reach 9 months (~100 lb), >they will butcher out on average at 45 lb cut and wrapped. They are worm >tolerant (I do not deworm) and healthy. Can provide pedigree and breeding >records to demonstrate prolificacy and polledness. Photos are available at >critterhaven.biz. > >Please contact me off list at [EMAIL PROTECTED] if you are interested. > >Carol Hey Carol, On your page, you have a picture of Zachary, and mention you culled him due to excessive woolliness... what do you consider excessive? Is it that he didn't shed well in the summer, or is it he just had more wool than others? I've noticed that some of my lambs have more wool than others, and I've also noticed that my lambs tend to be pretty wooly their first year, but that next spring they shed well, or at least last year's did. Also, for whatever reason, some of my ewes didn't shed properly last year, but they shed nicely this year... I'm fairly new to sheep, and still trying to get a handle on exactly what I should be watching for. Here are two of my lambs, full brother/sister. One is pretty darn wooly, the other has very little. Would you call Art (short for Wall Art) excessively wooly? http://jbhale.home.comcast.net/Woolie_Art.jpg http://jbhale.home.comcast.net/Art_sister.jpg Then there is the only ram lamb I felt was worth being used as a sire, Mousse. He has pretty much no wool at all: http://jbhale.home.comcast.net/Mousse.jpg Thanks, Julian ___ This message is from the blackbelly mailing list Visit the list's homepage at blackbelly@lists.blackbellysheep.info http://lists.blackbellysheep.info/listinfo.cgi/blackbelly-blackbellysheep.info
[blackbelly] polled Barbados Blackbelly sheep for sale
Hi folks, I need to reduce the size of my flock and will be selling 3 breeding ewes, a breeding ram, and 3 ram lambs. These sheep are all from polled bloodlines and have long loins and good conformation. Two of the ewes were a little woolier this summer than expected, but I suspect it is a seasonal thing because last year they shed out fine. I am willing to expose these ewes in November to a ram whose sire is from the University of Virgin Islands research flock and release them for transport in December. My sheep are large and heavy. When the ram lambs reach 9 months (~100 lb), they will butcher out on average at 45 lb cut and wrapped. They are parasite tolerant (I do not deworm) and healthy. Can provide pedigree and breeding records to demonstrate prolificacy and polledness. Photos are available at critterhaven.biz. Please contact me off list at [EMAIL PROTECTED] if you are interested. Carol Carol Elkins Critterhaven--Registered Barbados Blackbelly Hair Sheep (no shear, no dock, no fuss) Pueblo, Colorado http://www.critterhaven.biz T-shirts, mugs, caps, and more at the Barbados Blackbelly Online Store http://www.cafepress.com/blackbellysheep ___ This message is from the blackbelly mailing list Visit the list's homepage at blackbelly@lists.blackbellysheep.info http://lists.blackbellysheep.info/listinfo.cgi/blackbelly-blackbellysheep.info
[blackbelly] polled Barbados Blackbelly sheep for sale
I need to reduce the size of my flock and will be selling some commercial grade breeding ewes, a breeding ram, and 3 ram lambs. These sheep are all from polled bloodlines and have long loins and good conformation. Two of the ewes were a little woolier this summer than expected, but I suspect it is a seasonal thing because last year they shed out fine. I am willing to expose these ewes in November to a ram whose sire is from the University of Virgin Islands research flock and release them for transport in December. My sheep are large and heavy. When the ram lambs reach 9 months (~100 lb), they will butcher out on average at 45 lb cut and wrapped. They are worm tolerant (I do not deworm) and healthy. Can provide pedigree and breeding records to demonstrate prolificacy and polledness. Photos are available at critterhaven.biz. Please contact me off list at [EMAIL PROTECTED] if you are interested. Carol Carol Elkins Critterhaven--Registered Barbados Blackbelly Hair Sheep (no shear, no dock, no fuss) Pueblo, Colorado http://www.critterhaven.biz T-shirts, mugs, caps, and more at the Barbados Blackbelly Online Store http://www.cafepress.com/blackbellysheep ___ This message is from the blackbelly mailing list Visit the list's homepage at blackbelly@lists.blackbellysheep.info http://lists.blackbellysheep.info/listinfo.cgi/blackbelly-blackbellysheep.info
