Country of origin | United Kingdom |
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Distribution | Powys, Herefordshire, Monmouthshire |
Use | Meat |
Traits | |
Wool color | White |
Face color | Light brown |
Horn status | Ewes are polled (hornless), rams are horned |
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The Hill Radnor is a breed of domestic sheep originating in the United Kingdom. Classified as one of the mountain (or upland) breeds, it is most common from Powys down to southwest Herefordshire and Monmouthshire. The Hill Radnor has a dense white fleece, with a light brown face and legs. Ewes are polled and rams are horned. [1] It is hardy and forages well, like many hill breeds. Hill Radnor ewes have good maternal instincts, and are sometimes crossed with lowland rams to yield market lambs or mules. Lambing percentages vary under different conditions but the breed can easily average around 155%. [2] The breed is listed as "vulnerable" by the Rare Breeds Survival Trust of the U.K. [3]
The Herdwick is a breed of domestic sheep native to the Lake District in North West England. The name "Herdwick" is derived from the Old Norse herdvyck, meaning sheep pasture. Though low in lambing capacity and perceived wool quality when compared to more common commercial breeds, Herdwicks are prized for their robust health, their ability to live solely on forage, and their tendency to be territorial and not to stray over the difficult upland terrain of the Lake District. It is considered that up to 99% of all Herdwick sheep are commercially farmed in the central and western Lake District.
The Soay sheep is a breed of domestic sheep descended from a population of feral sheep on the 100-hectare (250-acre) island of Soay in the St Kilda Archipelago, about 65 kilometres (40 mi) from the Western Isles of Scotland. It is one of the Northern European short-tailed sheep breeds.
Cotswold sheep is a breed of domestic sheep originating in the Cotswold hills of the southern midlands of England. It is a dual-use breed providing both meat and wool. As at 2009, this long-woolled breed is relatively rare, and is categorised in the UK as "minority" by the Rare Breeds Survival Trust.
The Jacob is a British breed of domestic sheep. It combines two characteristics unusual in sheep: it is piebald—dark-coloured with areas of white wool—and it is often polycerate or multi-horned. It most commonly has four horns. The origin of the breed is not known; broken-coloured polycerate sheep were present in England by the middle of the seventeenth century, and were widespread a century later. A breed society was formed in 1969, and a flock book was published from 1972.
Not to be confused with the Olde English 'Babydoll' Southdown sheep.
The Balwen Welsh Mountain sheep is one of a number of varieties of Welsh Mountain sheep, bred for sheep farming in Wales. It has a distinctive colour pattern of a black body with white extremities. It originates in the Tywi valley in Wales. This breed is raised primarily for meat.
The Whiteface Dartmoor is a breed of domestic sheep originating in the Dartmoor region of south west England. The Rare Breeds Survival Trust has designated this breed as "at risk".
The Shetland is a small, wool-producing breed of sheep originating in the Shetland Isles, Scotland but is now also kept in many other parts of the world. It is part of the Northern European short-tailed sheep group, and it is closely related to the extinct Scottish Dunface. Shetlands are classified as a landrace or "unimproved" breed. This breed is kept for its very fine wool, for meat, and for conservation grazing.
The Norfolk Horn is one of the British black-faced sheep breeds. It differs from other black-faced breeds, which are mainly found in high-rainfall, upland areas, and from most other modern, lowland British sheep breeds in being lightly built and very hardy. This breed is raised primarily for meat.
The Portland is a sheep breed that takes its name from the Isle of Portland in Dorset, England. This breed is raised primarily for meat.
The Clun Forest is a breed of domestic sheep originating from the area surrounding the Clun Forest in Shropshire, England. Similar to many of the British breeds of upland sheep, Clun Forest are hardy, adaptable, good foragers, and are long–lived. With sleek heads and wide pelvic structures, Clun Forest ewes lamb easily. The breed has a short to medium–length wool and dark brown faces. They are a multi–purpose animal, kept for meat, wool, and milk. Like other dark faced sheep, Clun produce quality lamb and mutton. However, in contrast to more common meat breeds such as Suffolks, their wool is free of undesirable black fibres and kemp, and is suitable for handspinning. The breed's alert and stylish appearance, together with its reputation for hardiness and fecundity have made it popular with hobby farmers and large commercial flock owners alike. The Official Clun Sheep Breeders Society Show & Sale for males and females is held annually in early September at Ludlow livestock market by McCartneys.
The Castlemilk Moorit is a rare breed of domestic sheep originating in Dumfriesshire in Scotland.
The Wensleydale is a British breed of domestic sheep. It is named for the Wensleydale region of North Yorkshire, in the north of England, where it was bred in the early nineteenth century by cross-breeding a Dishley Leicester ram with local long-woolled sheep of a breed that is now extinct. It has a blue-grey face and long purled wool, and is among the heaviest of British sheep breeds. It is an endangered breed, and is categorised as "at risk" by the Rare Breeds Survival Trust. It is often used as a ram breed to cross with other breeds to obtain market lambs, and for its high-quality wool.
The Kerry Hill is a breed of domestic sheep originating in the county of Powys in Wales. It derives its name from the village of Kerry (Ceri), near Newtown. Kerry Hill sheep have a distinctive and unique coloration, with a white face bearing black markings around the mouth, ears, and eyes. Both rams and ewes are polled. Their wool is white, and their legs are white with black markings. First mentions of the breed date back to the early 19th century, and today it is distributed throughout the United Kingdom, Ireland, the Netherlands, Germany and Denmark. Though still not very numerous, the breed was removed from the records of the Rare Breeds Survival Trust watchlist in 2006. This breed is primarily raised for meat.
Sheep are quadrupedal, ruminant mammals typically kept as livestock. Like all ruminants, sheep are members of the order Artiodactyla, the even-toed ungulates. Although the name sheep applies to many species in the genus Ovis, in everyday usage it almost always refers to Ovis aries. Numbering a little over one billion, domestic sheep are also the most numerous species of sheep. An adult female is referred to as a ewe, an intact male as a ram, occasionally a tup, a castrated male as a wether, and a young sheep as a lamb.
The Whitefaced Woodland is a sheep breed from the Woodlands of Hope an area in the South Pennines in England. It is a combination of two breeds, the Woodland and the Penistone sheep after the Yorkshire town where sheep sales have been held since 1699. It is thought to be closely related to the Swaledale and the Lonk. Substantial commercial flocks of the Whitefaced Woodland are kept in its region of origin, but it is listed as a vulnerable breed by the Rare Breeds Survival Trust, since there are fewer than 900 registered breeding females in Great Britain.
The Boreray, also known as the Boreray Blackface or Hebridean Blackface, is a breed of sheep originating on the St Kilda archipelago off the west coast of Scotland and surviving as a feral animal on one of the islands, Boreray. The breed was once reared for meat and wool, but is now used mainly for conservation grazing. The Boreray is one of the Northern European short-tailed sheep group of breeds.
The Llanwenog is a breed of domestic sheep originating in Wales. It was developed in the 19th century from the Llanllwni, the Shropshire, Welsh Mountain, and Clun Forest breeds. The Llanwenog's native locale is the Teifi Valley, in western Wales, but it has since spread into other areas. The breed association was formed in 1957. Llanwenogs have black faces and medium-length wool. They have a docile temperament and are known for their profligacy in lambing. The breed has a very placid temperament, is easily handled, easily contained and is well suited to stress free inwintering if necessary. This has important consequences for the health of both the animal and its keeper. This breed is raised primarily for meat.
The Zwartbles is a breed of domestic sheep originating in the Friesland region of the north Netherlands. There it was primarily used for the production of sheep milk as well as lamb and mutton. They were often kept alongside dairy cattle herds.
The Dalesbred is a breed of domestic sheep originating in England. Derived from the Swaledale and Scottish Blackface breeds, the Dalesbred is a northern hill breed distributed in the Yorkshire Dales and into Lancashire. The Dalesbred is genetically distinct from the other northern hill breeds, the Herdwick and Rough Fell.