So in my little comparison of raising sheep for profit and raising cattle for profit, even with all the variabilities, sheep seem to be a bit more profitable. Breeders are listed by state, but only if they request to be listed. (ideal market lamb pick), Show Lamb Supplies (4H sheep showing equipment list), How to Show Sheep (7 sheep showing tips for any level), How to Shear a Sheep (step by step with video). A type of hair breed, Katahdin sheep originate in the United States. Flock owners with less than 50 animals have a difficult time getting someone to shear unless they pool their animals with neighbors. raise a lamb from birth to market weight, even though you get a better
St. Croix sheep are excellent foragers and very easy keepers. Because of this behavior, and the mild temperament of the Boz, I was able to raise . - I rarely have to
We rely on the support of our members, grants, and donations from the public to raise the $700,000 a year needed to maintain our conservation work with rare breeds of farm animals. Noise - Loud bleating, cud chewing, and even just digesting may well be audible from inside your home if your sheep are right outside. My name is John Taylor, I am a retired pilot and now run a small ranch in Menard Texas. Weve found that while genetics play an important role in weight gains, flock management, parasite control, forage quality and forage availability seem to be more important when it comes to the bottom line. Is there any way to contact him? The influence of the Wiltshire Horn was later diminished as selection against horns was imposed . Croix sheep are the most parasite resistant breed, so why don't I raise them on my farm? This is inconvenient since you must pasture ram lambs separately from ewes to prevent unplanned pregnancies. wool. Yurts 101 Everything You Wanted to Know about the Portable, Affordable and Easy to Build Living Structure! As a result, their carcasses are lean and muscular, which is why their meat is one of the most valuable in the sheepmeat industry. - They breed like
Its important to have an animal thats pure or unaltered for sacrifice in observance of many holidays. To showcase the commercial qualities of our animals, all breeding stock we sell comes directly from pasture, having received no special treatment. Most parasite resistant sheep breed! The flocking instinct of hair animals generally isnt as good as wool breeds. The St. Croix are a medium sized hair breed sheep with a moderate frame size and long body and legs. 8. This video describes why I raise Dorper sheep instead of St. Croix sheep as a meat production breed.Join my Newsletter: http://bit.ly/ShepherdessNWSLTRFOLLOW MY INSTAGRAM: http://bit.ly/ShepherdessIG -the Shepherdess0:00 Raising Dorper Sheep1:36 Dorper vs St. Croix Sheep Size2:50 The Best Sheep Breed for Meat 4:00 Dorper Sheep Bring Nearly 1 MILLION5:05 How I Manage Parasites on My Sheep Farm6:00 Greg Judy Farms St. CroixIn this video:The best sheep breed for meatMicro Ranching for Profitsheep farming in the USADorper SheepMeat SheepSt. They will stand on their hind feet like goats to strip any low hanging limbs of their leaves. The majority of ewe lambs are sold as registered breeding stock; the majority of ram lambs are sold for slaughter. Fact: Eight or ten years ago you could expect a 5-10 cents/pound discount for hair animals. The St. Croix sheep are very pretty sheep that have a hair covering the body instead of wool. $ 350. unavailability of shearers and then having to practically give away the
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This increases the risk of falls and injury, which can be expensive to fix. In Canada, Katahdin sheep commonly gain well over a pound per day. While I cant speak for other hair sheep breeds, Katahdin sheep are often more flighty than many other breeds: Several producers of both hair and wool animals have found coyote losses are considerably lower with Katahdins. . Add to our blog community by sharingthat step in the comments! Sheep are easy to handle and generally require little input. Keeping Boer Goats: 5 Biggest Disadvantages, 4 Best Places with Sheep for Sale in Missouri, They are easy to breed and commonly give birth to multiple lambs, They arent great for milk or wool production, They dont require shearing, tail docking, or crutching, Lambs take a little longer than some breeds to reach market weight. When it comes to sheep, meat market buyers want lambs to weigh 100 lbs before slaughter and they desire the lambs to reach this weight by half dozen-8 months. Great for a homestead, as I have witnessed first hand over a 3 year period. Having raised them since 1999, here's my honest evaluation of the St. Croix breed -
A Katahdin ewe will average between 140-180 pounds, while Dorper ewes will average 160-200 pounds. They dont need to be sheared, they have a docile temperament making them easy to handle, and they are resistant to disease. havea regular customer who has a fruit orchardin CA. Positive benefits of St. Croix breed: Highest Parasite Resistance No Shearing (they shed naturally) Produce easily on grass . 2 - Cultural Perspective (and a brief history lesson) Prior to deciding on St. Croix we entertained the idea of teaching internationally and really liked the idea of offering our children (two boys 9 and 7) a broader cultural perspective. My name is Joe and Im the owner of RaisingSheep.net a site where I share information and tips about raising sheep for fun, for show, and for profit. . MI="1?9;80B37:?24G>5E0D80G?8CAEGD8>2=E;00F6>8H7@E0D80G?8CAEGD8>2=E;00F6>8H1 The best genetics wont keep an animal from starving to death. St. Croix Hair Sheep International Association, American Sheep Industry Association List of Breed Associations & Standards. People have tried for over a hundred years to find just the right breed to thrive in the tropical heat. This may or may not be the case in other states. My favorite vlog of yours was about your new animals, goats and sheep. Bosnians want 60-pound animals while Muslims often prefer 60-80 pound animals. In terms of temperament, cost, and maintenance, they are both excellent options. About Press Copyright Contact us Creators Advertise Developers Terms Privacy Press Copyright Contact us Creators Advertise Developers Terms Privacy No need for shearing and tail-docking. Breeding stock is selected under rigorous criteria, including parasite resistance, hair coat, growth characteristics on grass alone and general thriftiness. St. Croix sheep are known for high fertility, and ewe lambs become fertile at about six months of age. I sincerely doubt that a statistically average St. Croix ewe, bred to a St. Croix ram, is going to produce more pounds of lamb than a statistically average Suffolk ewe bred to a Suffolk ram. Edited: 4 years ago. This is a very good article to read and understand the secrets of Raising Katahdin Sheep. Our young Katahdins can be difficult to move. The Meatmaster offers farmers an excellent alternative with unique characteristics to meet the International market. Do these ventures create a profit that make sheep a good business decision? The meat has a mild flavor, good grain and produce a lean meat. Image via Shutterstock. There are very few disadvantages of keeping Katahdin sheep. These include: Dorper sheep dont produce much milk or wool, which means raising them for meat is your only option. We use it alot on the croix. Grazing animals put on weight quickly in preparation for the long winters. The St. Croix Legend X Spinning Rod collection has fewer options to pick from - about 5 different options in fact. They can be used for the sheep skin which has a good quality to it. https://dorpersheep.org/newsite/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/2022-Mid-America-Dorper-Sale-Report-1.pdf?fs=e&s=cl. As we disperse all our crossbreeds, weve found the crossbred cull ewes with a wool coat have sold for 50-75percentof what comparable weight hair ewes bring. Aust pulls out all the stops and brings in Accountant Mike to develop a comprehensive pro/con list to investigate this completely new venture for the homestead. That is something a good monitoring plan will help with. Of the ewe lambs exposed, 95 percent gave birth at the age of 11-13 months. Cost - Sheep aren't cheap. to speed this process up, but like my Mother always said, "If it ain't
In 2001, my friend with Polypay paid $2 to shear $.50 worth of wool per animal. Deciding which area is going to be best for you will depend on several factors such as the activities you want to do, whether you require the property to be beachfront, and proximity to restaurants and bars. A second group was imported into . ST. CROIX HAIR SHEEP. They are a hair sheep breed which means they have a coat of hair rather than wool that covers their bodies, heads and clean legs. Columbia Sheep Characteristics. Over time, Caribbean Hair sheep became well adapted to the heat and humidity of their environment. ST. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. To appeal to ethnic buyers, it often requires a change in flock management. A large-framed, late-maturing breed will not have the necessary carcass quality at these weights, whereas Katahdin sheep or Dorpers will. These rods also cost right around $450 - and are Elite St. Croix Fishing Rods. The breed standard calls for the St. Croix to be white. Croix sheep are the most parasite resistant breed, so why don't I raise them on my farm? The small size of carcass reduces the commercial value of Barbado sheep. Due to "con" number
Passion for eating whole, fresh food. rabbits. Three groups of sheep are managed separately: 1) breeding and pregnant ewes and rams; 2) lambing and lactating ewes and lambs; and 3) growing lambs (market lambs and replacements). Rather than stay in a group, they will scatter in all directions like a covey of quail. All have their pros and cons. On the Island of St. Croix, they come in shades of brown, white and black. Its carcass size is even smaller than most other wool breeds. Join Here, Wild Harvest The Whitetail Accelerator Course. At lower latitudes (down south), summer daylight periods are shorter, the temperature higher, grass growth is slower and is lower in protein and higher fiber. ground, swell. Wondering whether to add Dorper or Katahdin sheep to your homestead? Akbash. and I have. Several myths still surround hair sheep. They can provide you with information pertaining to regulations, health requirements and local export brokers. October 26, 2015 at 7:40 PM. The St Croix sheep are also very calm, have good flocking instinct and show little aggression to the dogs. The sheep proliferated as subsistence livestock and were also valued for the manure critical to sugar cane production. Breeders Association. They also tend to be highly mobile, which means they will climb on top of anything. They require food in the winter, when the lawns of New England are covered in snow, medical attention, and shelter. The St Croix (Saint 'Croy') is a breed of domestic sheep native to the U.S. Virgin Islands and named for the island of Saint Croix.They are often also called Virgin Island White because those that were imported into North America were selected for white coloration. @"; raising St. Croix hair sheep? Prolific hair sheep, adapted to humid-hot climates, parasite resistant. The pros of living in St Croix are its low crime rate, stable currency and beautiful beaches. Docking tails is unnecessary, although you still see some old timers that dock just because they always have. The Dorper was developed in the 1930s by crossing a Dorset ram with a Persian ewe. Aust shares his entire conversation with Susan Napotnik about selecting the perfect breed of sheep here on thePioneer sheep episode. 1. Sheep consume roughage as their primary feed. Originally publishedin sheep! There are three sections worth considering staying: Cane Bay, Frederiksted, and Christiansted. The pros: (a
I'm torn between Dorper sheep and St Croix sheep. For us, the Katahdin sheep breed fits our operation and our philosophy quite well. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it. practically anything. We prefer using forage to produce lambs rather than wool. I just recentky discovered your Youtube channel and now your blog. Ive seen Shropshire being used to keep weeds and grass down in Christmas tree plantations. How Many Sheep Per Acre of Pasture is Ideal? However, they have been cross-bred with other breeds over the years to develop the modern breed we see today. you want lots of sheep in a short period of time and have a lot of
Today, there are several landrace populations within this breed family in the Caribbean. St. Croix are a medium size sheep with ewes weighing around 125 lbs and rams weighing 165 lbs. Where to stay . The Dorset has white wool and the Persian has a black head. You see, this sheep doesn't need shearingit sheds its fleece once a year. It has an entirely different purposemeat. Save. perspective). And yet, despite the careful mathematical calculations of profit margins, and scientific research on varieties and methods, and the technical ins and out of any pursuit, there is also that most incalculable of all variables: passion. much as graze. . The breed was developed in the mid-1950s by crossing imported St. Croix Sheep and several other breeds, including the Suffolk Sheep.They are raised predominantly as meat animals in the U.S. and have become enormously popular in recent years due to high . the rain gutter and lamb). I love sheep manure for plants. A special thanks to our partner: RJS Bee Farm. Locals of the island refer to themselves as Crucians. Pro's: Seeing the Southern . This characteristic is a huge benefit in terms of overall health and also in terms of annual expenses of time and medication to the shepherd. of Grants Pass. Ewes usually have twin lambs but triplets are not unusual. Originating in South Africa, these lovable and attractive sheep tend to come with a lot more pros than cons. St. Thomas - to many tourists, crime and dirty on the positve side - Magens Bay In trying to reverse that trend, the Country Boy and I have grown more cautious and methodical. The St. Croix is increasing in numbers, and though it is still rare, the breeds future seems promising. This has nothing to do with genetics and everything to do with the latitude in which the animal lives: Things being equal, our weights will be lower than the weights of similar Katahdins raised in Canada, but higher than ones raised in Florida. 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Lbs and rams weighing 165 lbs Croix breed: Highest parasite Resistance no Shearing they! A retired pilot and now your blog you the best genetics wont keep an animal thats or... Weighing around 125 lbs and rams weighing 165 lbs and are Elite St. Croix to white! Many holidays must pasture ram lambs separately from ewes to prevent unplanned pregnancies other... Them on my farm 60-80 pound animals Dorpers will the modern breed we see today,. The Wiltshire Horn was later diminished as selection against horns was imposed sheep tend to highly. Listed by state, but only if they request to be sheared, they in... Make sheep a good monitoring plan will help with characteristics to meet the International.. Pound animals a hair covering the body instead of wool 11-13 months to find the! 125 lbs and rams weighing 165 lbs breed, Katahdin sheep its once!