Poll dorset popularity (or lack of)

Man_in_black

Member
Livestock Farmer
Why is this? My cousin emigrated 3 yrs ago to Oz, talking to him this morning he commented how dorsets major ewe over there. We have about 40odd in our flock, always lamb easily, high % & bags of milk. I know people say about feet but we cull hard on feet and have some well aged dorsets. Is it just the woolly head?
 

Bury the Trash

Member
Mixed Farmer
get too fatty which pulls down the prolificacy and can get them stuck on their back unless you keep them hard. lambs need something else in them to lean them out as well,

and crap to shear. i would sooner shear an Exmoor Horn... :sneaky:
she's not an easy care ewe, not that i found anyway single lambs getting stuck an all.....

thats all i can think of atm :)

the oz sheep are bigger / range ier btw.

they don't have enough lambs generally ....

something in them to spice them up is ok,

even then maggots are a big prob .
 
Last edited:

Man_in_black

Member
Livestock Farmer
get too fatty which pulls down the prolificacy and can get them stuck on their back unless you keep them hard. lambs need something else in them to lean them out as well,

and crap to shear. i would sooner shear an Exmoor Horn... :sneaky:
she's not an easy care ewe, not that i found anyway single lambs getting stuck an all.....

thats all i can think of atm :)

the oz sheep are bigger / range ier btw.

Lambs would all be to tex.
 

Bury the Trash

Member
Mixed Farmer
Lambs would all be to tex.
never found that to be very good cross, just my experience .

we found that Char on them was a cracking lamb or Rouge as we used to use. leans them out but still do quick, and easier to lamb ,
suffolk was what we used sometimes way back, nice good weighing quick doing not too fat lamb but they were harder to lamb than the more modern contis....

purebred replacements were always expensive as well.
 
Last edited:

Spuddler

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Summer set
Got several in the flock.
Crap to shear with woolly belly’s and heads, very stubborn. Found the Charlie cross lambs finish well enough though.
 

I thats it

Member
I keep crossed ones mainly half and quarter. Love them for out of season lambing. You've got to pick the right terminal sire or lambs can be woolly and big in the belly. Clipping can be hard work if to much Dorset in them
 

primmiemoo

Member
Location
Devon
If you have bred (or find you have bought) a strain that's milky, maternal, has doubles out of season, and is easily handled and shorn, it's nigh on impossible to find rams that complement and enhance when you need new blood.

So many are bred to terminal sire figures (including selection for muscling genes), they might look Poll Dorset, but aren't. They do work as terminal sires (the supermarket job has spurred demand for this type), but not as sires of ewes.

I had someone say her Poll Dorsets won prizes because their necks are meant to have folds of skin! I once inadvertently bought a ram that passed that fault to progeny and was sure not to keep any of them for breeding, so there's something amiss within the overall gene pool, which is a pity, because they were a nice breed.

[Edit to correct spelling :facepalm: :facepalm: ]
 
Last edited:

Henarar

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Somerset
If you have bred (or find you have bought) a strain that's milky, maternal, has doubles out of season, and is easily handled and shorn, it's nigh on impossible to find rams that compliment and enhance when you need new blood.

So many are bred to terminal sire figures (including selection for muscling genes), they might look Poll Dorset, but aren't. They do work as terminal sires (the supermarket job has spurred demand for this type), but not as sires of ewes.

I had someone say her Poll Dorsets won prizes because their necks are meant to have folds of skin! I once inadvertently bought a ram that passed that fault to progeny and was sure not to keep any of them for breeding, so there's something amiss within the overall gene pool, which is a pity, because they were a nice breed.
nart better for a breed than breeders :ROFLMAO:
 
Well they’re big, friendly dopey things, nothing friendlier except when you’re trying to handle/shear them when they get a touch excitable......

milky ewes, feet can be poor, if they don’t breed out of season then their use seems limited as there’s other breeds that can do the same all round job that the Dorset is trying to do.
 

exmoor dave

Member
Location
exmoor, uk
Soft udders prone to chaffed teats and associated problems.

Horribly awkward fidgety sheep to work with in the yard jabbing, bolusing etc

Feet not the best.

That was our experience at least.


Should also say they were really good mothers, milky and reared lambs well,
Just didn't offer anything over a Suffolk mule for earlish lambing and the SM had much better cull values
 

Bury the Trash

Member
Mixed Farmer
If you have bred (or find you have bought) a strain that's milky, maternal, has doubles out of season, and is easily handled and shorn, it's nigh on impossible to find rams that complement and enhance when you need new blood.

So many are bred to terminal sire figures (including selection for muscling genes), they might look Poll Dorset, but aren't. They do work as terminal sires (the supermarket job has spurred demand for this type), but not as sires of ewes.

I had someone say her Poll Dorsets won prizes because their necks are meant to have folds of skin! I once inadvertently bought a ram that passed that fault to progeny and was sure not to keep any of them for breeding, so there's something amiss within the overall gene pool, which is a pity, because they were a nice breed.

[Edit to correct spelling :facepalm: :facepalm: ]
Same dilemma as ever with the want to breed replacements.
Not much option but to Split the flock the poor maternal ewes put to charolais and the best put to a more maternal Dorset.
Unless you are selling to somewhere that needs the pure bred Dorset lamb of course.

Just for early lamb contract , char is fine. ...Lambing indoors .

If you want higher prolificacy ' add in some Finn ':sneaky:
 

primmiemoo

Member
Location
Devon
Same dilemma as ever with the want to breed replacements.
Not much option but to Split the flock the poor maternal ewes put to charolais and the best put to a more maternal Dorset.
Unless you are selling to somewhere that needs the pure bred Dorset lamb of course.

Just for early lamb contract , char is fine. ...Lambing indoors .

If you want higher prolificacy ' add in some Finn ':sneaky:

Finn or Cambridge, definitely.

Last year I had the opportunity to observe a smashing flock of homebred blended Charollais-Polled Dorsets - happened to park at the right place at the right time. They really looked sound, working sheep. I didn't have much time to talk to the owners, but learned they were frequent lambing year round. Sounded a beautiful system.
 

Bury the Trash

Member
Mixed Farmer
Finn or Cambridge, definitely.

Last year I had the opportunity to observe a smashing flock of homebred blended Charollais-Polled Dorsets - happened to park at the right place at the right time. They really looked sound, working sheep. I didn't have much time to talk to the owners, but learned they were frequent lambing year round. Sounded a beautiful system.
I'll sound like a stuck record but it was rouge we found to best compliment them, quick doing top grading lamb and a ewe that could be kept to make a long living productive ewe .
 

SFI - What % were you taking out of production?

  • 0 %

    Votes: 79 42.0%
  • Up to 25%

    Votes: 66 35.1%
  • 25-50%

    Votes: 30 16.0%
  • 50-75%

    Votes: 3 1.6%
  • 75-100%

    Votes: 3 1.6%
  • 100% I’ve had enough of farming!

    Votes: 7 3.7%

Red Tractor drops launch of green farming scheme amid anger from farmers

  • 1,292
  • 1
As reported in Independent


quote: “Red Tractor has confirmed it is dropping plans to launch its green farming assurance standard in April“

read the TFF thread here: https://thefarmingforum.co.uk/index.php?threads/gfc-was-to-go-ahead-now-not-going-ahead.405234/
Top