BREEDING PHILOSOPHY
Our primary goal as a farm is to raise lamb for meat and breed stock. In order of importance, our criteria for breeding selection are:
Overall health and vigor, disease resistance, and parasite resistance. Parasite resistance and resilience is particularly important. We check fecal samples for parasite egg counts every summer to see which lambs have higher counts. We check inner eyelids for color to watch for anemia to see which animals are being affected by parasites. We use de-wormers only when necessary (high fecal egg counts and/or anemia).
Maternal qualities including fertility, mothering instinct, ease of lambing, and “milkiness”. We want ewes that give birth independently and show a strong instinct for bonding with the lambs, cleaning lambs after birth, and getting them up and nursing. Ewes should have an abundance of milk to support fast lamb growth early in the spring. Good size and conformation to meet breed standards. Good size is important to promote lambs that grow to market weight (80-100 lbs.) within 6 months. My priorities for good conformation include good jaw alignment, strong hooves and straight legs, wide body with good depth through the rumen area and chest, wide hips, and a strong straight back. These traits allow the sheep to move back and forth to pasture and have efficient feed utilization. These characteristics also promote longevity and birthing ease.
Docility and friendliness. A calm sheep is easier to handle than a nervous sheep.
Quality and quantity of fleece. We strive for strong fiber with good length.
Color and patterns. If I were to meet all of the above categories and still have some choices to make, I would strive to have color diversity in my flock, as it is nice to have some variety to sell to hand spinners.
We are all striving to grow the strength of our flocks to get that perfect ewe or ram. As in much of life, perfection is rarely achieved. My sheep all have most of these characteristics to some degree, but they each have their strengths and their weaknesses. A good shepherd should know the strengths and weaknesses of each of her lines and be able to describe them to you. The goal is to make breeding selections for continuous improvement in the flock.