Anyone all one breed

[Devil's advocate]

A uniform flock or herd looks great grazing.

Locally most dairy herds are all one breed, fields of mules or texels all looking uniform are common

But suckler cows, gosh some herds are Heinz 57.

For the purposes of the thread, reconized crosses can count as breeds & of course everyone needs terminal sires.

How many have just the one breed.

 

[neilo]

A uniform flock or herd looks great grazing.

Locally most dairy herds are all one breed, fields of mules or texels all looking uniform are common

But suckler cows, gosh some herds are Heinz 57.

For the purposes of the thread, reconized crosses can count as breeds & of course everyone needs terminal sires.

How many have just the one breed.

What’s more important, looking pretty grazing, or making economic sense?

 

[choochter]

I have bazadaise and limousine and limx and bazx, and one bull of each.
Also have Whitebred Shorthorn and crosses but am easing them out as they require finishing differently to their continental cousins.

 

[Devil's advocate]

What’s more important, looking pretty grazing, or making economic sense?

Looking pretty.

Must help get nice even packets to sell, cover some of the costs

Also help with feeding plans if a uniform herd/flock.

What has brought my mind to the subject. Is two terminal crosses going down with twin lamb disease & lambing a hartline today with massive twins. Should be in seperate flocks.

On the other hand I know every ewe because they all look slightly different.

 

[neilo]

Looking pretty.

Must help get nice even packets to sell, cover some of the costs

Also help with feeding plans if a uniform herd/flock.

What has brought my mind to the subject. Is two terminal crosses going down with twin lamb disease & lambing a hartline today with massive twins. Should be in seperate flocks.

On the other hand I know every ewe because they all look slightly different.

Yes, they should be managed differently. To expect a terminal x ewe to need the same management as a maternal ewe would be folly ime.

A friend of mine used to run 1500 Welsh Mules on an estate. They really were a tremendous sight when all running in a big mob of dry ewes. I’m buggered if I’d contemplate running a big flock of mules though.

 

[Hilly]

Yes , pure but not ped Angus , used to have dairy x with Limmy bull, never again , now keep pure Romney , used to keep blackies breed scotch mules and sell them 3 crop never again .

 

[tr250]

What’s more important, looking pretty grazing, or making economic sense?

Me and my brother differ on this he thinks that colour isn’t important when picking which heifers to put to the bull but I say that an even colour covers a multitude of sins to the outsider coming onto your farm to buy stock you can sell lesser beast easier if they match nicely

 

[Hilly]

What’s more important, looking pretty grazing, or making economic sense?

Economic sense , but both is nice.

 

[Jerry]

I’m pretty much 100% Lleyn ewes but split A and B flock.

A flock bred pure for ewe replacements and ram sales.

B flock crossed to a char.

Like you say it is nice to see an even bunch of ewes running together.

 

[An ancient git]

I'm Lleyn based , but vary from 50% CharleyX through to some original reg'd ewes . Crucial bit is that they are all of a reasonably similar size , and can be run as one lot ; feed can therefore be the same . The best bit is that the 50% Charleys outgun the Pures , 75%s and 87.5%s ! And they are marginally heavier ewes .....

 

[hendrebc]

I’m pretty much 100% Lleyn ewes but split A and B flock.

A flock bred pure for ewe replacements and ram sales.

B flock crossed to a char.

Like you say it is nice to see an even bunch of ewes running together.

Same here. A few older Suffolk cross and a few NZ texel crosses and one Welsh looking thing that really annoys me to look at (from a roaming Welsh ram and she wasn't finished because she took after her father and went off on holiday and turned up again after she had her 2 first adult teeth so stayed. Twins every year so that's why she is still here ) but all ewes will be lleyn in the next year or two.
Pondering stopping using terminal sires too once these mongrels are gone. Not that the terminal sires have done anything wrong in fact they have done everything I expected them to do and done it very well. Just so I can have more of a choice of pure ewe lambs while I up numbers. Not keen on buying in more ewes. I'd rather have some ewe lambs from my b flock ewes put to a good maternal ram than buying something which could be absolutely anything and could just easily be worse than my b flock ewes lambs. Will probably start using terminal sires again after I've built up again though. But my lleyn ram lambs pass as texel crosses in market so maybe not. It would make life easier not to have to split them... ?

 

[An ancient git]

My 'Lleyn' lambs pass as Texely also in mart (likely are to a degree , oops !!) . Found the liveability was better when I went down that route .... So more to sell .