lleyns

[Walterp]

not sure i understand what you mean do you mean they have a reasonable carcass

Farmers lambing down ewe lambs, and having to decapitate their lambs to get 'em out.

 

[saitek1989]

oooo lol!! fare enough makes sence now theres one thin you can say about them there very easy lambed pure or crossed

 

[Jerry]

These are some pure bred lambs that were born last week of March, outside and just been on grass ever since.

And this is the young ram I used, just a shearling now, chosen partly on EBV's and also on recommendation of a forum member. Breed by a local non showing breeder up near Okehampton so not molly coddled in any way. His lambs practically fell out.

 

[Jerry]

And these are some of the shearling ewes going to him this year, nice bunch that come from Exmoor.

I will also be putting some to a Charolaise tup, but that tup has yet to be chosen or bought.

 

[saitek1989]

Very nice that ram looks like good one what sort of grades do you get

 

[Guiggs]

Got to agree that the adage of more difference within a breed than between breeds certainly seems to ring true with my lleyns, and also seem to be a little more prone to mastitis than my other breeds!
Texel x Lleyn make good breeding ewes and fat lambs in my experience and charollais x Lleyn is a cracking fat lamb!

 

[Jerry]

Very nice that ram looks like good one what sort of grades do you get

Thank you

Yet to be established as just a small number lambed this spring, those that have been slaughtered so far have gone in the freezer or sold direct/privately.

And all ewe lambs I am happy with are being retained for breeding as I build numbers.

 

[neilo]

I know it makes absolutely no difference to the carcass, but cracking skins on those lambs @Jerry

 

[DrDunc]

I know it makes absolutely no difference to the carcass, but cracking skins on those lambs @Jerry

Why no difference to the carcass?

I've found the tight skinned lambs finish quicker, kill out better percentage, and are less prone to running to fat?

This is in lleyns and blackies.

 

[neilo]

Why no difference to the carcass?

I've found the tight skinned lambs finish quicker, kill out better percentage, and are less prone to running to fat?

This is in lleyns and blackies.

I've always thought the same, but Signet scanners have shown that it's not necessarily true. I have seen plenty of examples of very loose coated sheep scanned by them to prove the point, which have handled very well indeed. They still don't look 'right' though, IMO.

 

[ford4000]

I've always thought the same, but Signet scanners have shown that it's not necessarily true. I have seen plenty of examples of very loose coated sheep scanned by them to prove the point, which have handled very well indeed. They still don't look 'right' though, IMO.

Signet should tell the lamb buyers around here that then, as they are always prepared to pay more for tight skinned lambs. You would have thought they would have found that out for themselves though seeing as some of them buy hundreds if not thousands a week!

 

[neilo]

Signet should tell the lamb buyers around here that then, as they are always prepared to pay more for tight skinned lambs. You would have thought they would have found that out for themselves though seeing as some of them buy hundreds if not thousands a week!

Agreed. But how much of that is down to perception? You don't see many buyers actually handling lambs any more, and I doubt many see which particular lambs are graded better at the slaughterhouse. Tighter sinned lambs look less likely to have hill breeding in them, so would be a safer bet at killing out well maybe, on a casual look from outside the pen.

You could say the same for black wooled lambs (which would often have plenty of continental blood in them) making less, or wool shedders come to that.

 

[ford4000]

Makes a mockery of scanning for muscle depth etc. Just get a tight wooled ram with high fat(because they like them fat in market !)
Had some wiltshire horn lambs next to mine in market last year, looked a decent shape on them, 1kg lighter than my texel x mules ..... £11 less money !!!

 

[DrDunc]

Recording?

Lies, damned lies, and statistics

 

[neilo]

Recording?

Lies, damned lies, and statistics

Absolutely. Much better to select purely on the basis of how well a sheep has been prepared for sale, from the day it hit the ground until the day it's presented to the buyer (either at ram sale or on farm). However if they could just come up with a 'length of ear ebv'...........

 

[JD-Kid]

lol!!!!

there great looking sheep i take it there pures they seem to have abit more shape to them than mine i would say a bit blockyer looking what sort of lambing % do you get from them regards the grading i was talking about in the previous thread im thinking that my best lamb was actually a texel cross lleyn weighing 44.5 killing 23.2 52% ko as i remember it being the heaviest lamb but i cant decide if my lowest grade O3 was a texel cross lleyn or a pure either way its a bit shite and the rest were R3/2 not sure if these were pures or crosses

think thats answered the question to yer gradeing and kill outs
if i was being realy fussy there are a few in that pic of clives that i would be tossing bit light in the arse and too much sholder

 

[poor farmer]

Don't want to sound like I'm banging on about my few, but does anyone on here put a Hampshire Down ram on Lleyn ewes?

Seem to read in the press quite regularly that it works but can't remember reading much on here. I was talking to a HD breeder the other day and she said that Scottish farmers are really going for the HD tups. Not specifically to go with
Lleyns though.

I ran A HD on pure Lleyn ewes last year & am happy with lambs, actually a couple of them went to the factory in the last bunch

BTW some super sheep in the pics , well done to owners & thanks for sharing

 

[saitek1989]

Found this pic thought id add it these are my reason for thinking charolais

 

[neilo]

Found this pic thought id add it these are my reason for thinking charolais

I suspect that, to get them looking like that, your lambs may well incur a bit of a penalty for fat class in the abattoir.

 

[saitek1989]

If the ram i buy looks likes this id be a happy man even if he is a bit fat although id imagine that these would be a bit out of my price range lol!!