Starting Pedigree Sheep

[Agrivator]

Apart from the introduction of Beltex genes into the Texel, and far better skins in Suffolks, I don't see any evidence of other within-breed genetic improvement in the last 30 years.

Beef cattle on the other hand have improved by leaps and bounds.

 

[gatepost]

Decide what breed you like, I had Charolais alongside the Texels, but didn't just do it for me, then don't go buying expensive flashy gimmers of the ''best there is'' read, fattest biggest most blarney ! find a breeder with sheep you like, and see if they have any old ewes they will sell, try and buy 2 or 3 from a couple of places and go from there. advice I should have followed have a go, although more of my income comes from finished lambs , it's the peds which provide the extra interest and mountain to climb.

 

[Longlowdog]

If you go for a terminal sire breed the joy of watching a field full of chunky lambs growing is not to be underestimated.
Showing has its own attractions above and beyond the prizes. Watching the manipulation of the sheep, the other competitors and the judge by someone skilled in showing is very interesting if you are a people watcher. The best sheep is only part of the winning, showmanship, confidence and manipulation are all a part as well. If you have the ability or can fake it the rewards when you beat a big name are tremendous.

 

[Moors Lad]

Whatever breed you go for look to buy sheep with the characteristics you like and don`t lose sight of the fact you need to buy a "correct" sheep. Good teeth , good legs and feet, and a decent shape. After that, buy what you like the look of - it`s you that`s got to look at them every day so you might as well buy something you like looking at! Good luck and enjoy!

 

[pgk]

We bought well respected recorded flock, not show, Texels from which we have 3 crops. Of the original 44 ewes we have selected out those which can lamb with no or minimal assistance. All others and their daughters go to high index charollais. We did the shows in the past but realised what we wanted was functional sheep which grow and finish on forage, never the Twain shall meet. I cant deny the sight of this years Texel lambs and F2 Chartex lambs gives me a warm glow. Positive feed back on our forage reared Texel rams is another positive.

 

[Lazy Bones]

Sincere thanks to each and every one who replied to my thread, I must say that the people on TFF are a very helpful bunch, I didn't expect so many helpful contributions. I will start my endeavor in the next two weeks, armed with a sense of realistic optimism, thank you all.

 

[MRT]

Sincere thanks to each and every one who replied to my thread, I must say that the people on TFF are a very helpful bunch, I didn't expect so many helpful contributions. I will start my endeavor in the next two weeks, armed with a sense of realistic optimism, thank you all.

Good luck, keep us updated

 

[Charollais Man]

Sincere thanks to each and every one who replied to my thread, I must say that the people on TFF are a very helpful bunch, I didn't expect so many helpful contributions. I will start my endeavor in the next two weeks, armed with a sense of realistic optimism, thank you all.

What did you do in the end @Lazy Bones??

 

[Ysgythan]

Hi Folks, I would greatly appreciate any advice, I have decided to start a small pedigree flock, I have lots of experience with commercial sheep, lambing etc. I am not trying to make money from selling rams to farmers or breeders, it's more of trying to produce a nice animal that I could possibly take to a show or at least could appreciate in the field and hopefully break even financially . I am debating should I buy say 12 to 15 and hope to maybe identify a few breeders among them or put the same resources into 4 or 5 and try ET on 1 or 2. Or is there any other route I could or should go, thanks for reading.

That’s exactly where we were in 1989.

First, aim high. You’ll get plenty that don’t tick your boxes from good stock.

Following on from that take what you’d spend on 12-15 and get 2 or 3 good foundation females. You’ll get plenty of time to wonder “what if?”

Personally I wouldn’t ET them until they have done the job for you two or three times. After three seasons you’ll know which lines you want more females out of.

 

[Ysgythan]

And - always look at the date of a post before going off on one

 

[CopperBeech]

Belltex easy lamb and a great sheep, good commercial sheep