East Friesian Sheep

My next sheep breed in the series is East Friesians. The East Friesian sheep is a docile breed and can adapt to their surroundings, however they do not adapt well to a hot climate.

They are primarily a milk sheep and are said to be the best breed of milk sheep in the world. The milk is creamy and rich and has double the vitamin and protein content of cow and goat milk.

East Friesians were developed in the Friesland area of Germany and Holland as was the Holstein cow. They are efficient lambers and good mothers, you can expect over 200% lambing from mature ewes.

They have been cross bred with meat sheep to create a dual purpose sheep as well as bred for milk ewes. They are a large framed but lean sheep, an average ewe weighing around 90kg.

They have a white wool and their head and legs are clear of wool. They have a long, thin tail that is free of wool.

As well as being considered the best milk sheep in the world they are also considered the most fertile breed in the world which is why they are popular for cross breeding, especially in the dairy industry.

Originally these sheep were kept in small groups for household milk. They are not very hardy an do not do well in large groups or in harsh weather conditions.

Feel free to comment and let me know about your experience with East Friesians or any questions about them that you have. Also let me know which sheep breeds to cover next!

Shetland Sheep

This is the next breed in my series of sheep breeds on this blog.
Shetland sheep are a prolific and hardy breed that are easy to handle with high quality wool and flavoursome meat. Shetlands originally came from the Northern Short-tailed group. You can realistically expect  a prolificacy of 160% when lambing Shetland ewes and they are easy lambers and excellent mothers.
They are a primitive breed and are popular as conservation grazers as well as with smallholders or small farms. This is because they are easily handled, produce sweet meat and have an attractive appearance.
Because they have adapted to the harsh conditions of Shetland they are exceptionally hardy and can do well on a low level of nutrition.
Shetland ewes are generally polled (with no horns) however there are a few exceptions where you find a ewe has developed small horns. Rams can be either horned or polled and generally grow spiralled horns set apart from the head. Shetlands have small ears and a wide gap between the eyes, which joined with a long and narrow facial profile gives this breed distinct features.
The Shetland sheep has a short tail with a triangular shape; broad at the base and forming a point at the end. They have a wollen covering over most of the tail but hair is grown at the tip.
Shetland wool is the best of all native breeds because of the patterns and colours in the wool. The wool is popular among crafters and spinners because of the quality and colours.
Shetland ewes will also produce a good butcher's lamb when crossed with a terminal sire.
Have you had any experience with shetland sheep? Let me know in the comments below and ask any questions you have as well.
Also let me know what sheep you have or are interested in and I will try and feature them next time.
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Life on the Farm

My oxford downs are doing very well, the lambs are growing up nicely and will hopefully be ready to show this season. I will be putting them out into the field in the day time soon, and bringing them in at night for their food.
My collie, Nan, is also doing well. She enjoyed being out today with the sheep, shown in the picture below.

We also moved the Jacob ewes today, we have a few of them mob grazing our hay meadow at the top of our land. Today we moved the electric fence and put them onto the next fresh patch of grass. Our two oldest Jacob ewes managed to make a hasty escape whilst we were completing this task but thankfully they are very friendly and came back when we put some food out for them. Sadly I was too busy getting them in when they got out to take pictures but I did take some of them later on. 

Don't forget to comment and let me know what sheep breeds you want me to cover in my series, and also follow me on twitter @oxforddownsheep 

Jacob Sheep

My family's flock of sheep that I have helped with for a long time is Jacobs so I have a particular interest in this breed. 

The picture above is one I took of some of our Jacobs back in the summer and shows the attractive appearance of the Jacob which adds an interesting feature to many paddocks and fields. 

The breed also produces a good quality, soft fleece which appeals to spinners and crafters. The Jacob also boasts an attractive skin used for rugs as well as horns sought after to make crooks from. 

They are hardy sheep and attract few diseases, making it simple to overwinter them outside as we do every year. Jacobs are also known for having very few feet problems and health problems meaning that they breed for a very long time. In our flock alone we have a few that have been rearing lambs for over 7 years. 

We also late lamb, as is common with jacobs meaning that we have very high lambing percentages; 190% is a realistic aim for a lambing percentage with this breed. At lambing time, Jacobs are ideal for novices or part time farmers as they lamb very easily and normally independently.  Ours are lambed outside every year and normally they lamb by themselves and all we have to do is fetch them in. This is ideal for saving labour times on the farm. Jacob ewes are extremely good mothers and we have found that if monitored they can easily and succesfully produce sufficient milk to rear triplets. 

Jacob meat has exceptional flavour retained even in hogget carcasses and many customers prefer jacob lamb to other lamb. Customers are also prepared to pay a premium price for the good quality carcass. 

If you have any questions about the breed feel free to leave a comment,  also comment with any other interesting things about the breed and any experience you have of them.

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Comment with the next breed you want me to cover and I will do my best :) 

Oxford Down Lambs

I will be carrying on with my sheep breed posts however first I need to tell you about how my oxford downs are getting on. I have always been interested in sheep and from a very young age have been helping out with the family flock of jacob ewes.  However, at the beginning of December last year I began a new business venture; I bought my own small flock of Oxford Down ewes. I bought two ewes both in lamb and fairly young.

Back in January both ewes gave birth to one ewe lamb each and I am extremely pleased with all of them. I hope to show the lambs this year and I will be putting the whole flock outside again soon. 

Please comment and let me know how lambing is going for you and what kind of sheep you have, or with any queries you have about my sheep. 

Watch this space for more interesting posts about  my sheep and other breeds of sheep; let me know which breeds of sheep you want me to cover on here as well :)