Northeastfarmer
Member
- Location
- Cleveland
I’ve not even started yet!
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TexX ewes - which Tup to use?
- Thread starter Nithsdale
- Start date
There was over 1,000 suck lamb in Exeter on Monday.....I’m late down here but prob early for outside lambing.
Northeastfarmer
Member
- Location
- Cleveland
I won’t be selling till next April so not in a rush
I've been nervous lambing my charollais not knowing what they would be like. I'd lambed a lot of charollais lambs out of Welsh ewes years ago and they had been fine but there's a lot more wool on a Welsh mountain to make up for the charollais lack of it. I wouldn't try a texel again because of what @Nithsdale Farmer says about them being too big in the shoulder and heads and lambing problems. Have used NZ texels for a while and they were easy to lamb and some good get up and go in them but didn't feel like I was getting enough of a premium for them as terminal cross lambs selling liveweight so decided to try some charollais from @neiloCharollais over pure Lleyns work well here. Lambed outside in Feb. They are tougher than some give them credit for.
So far the ones out of pure lleyns are fine. But from the texel cross ewes they are a bit soft. Some of them are a bit more bald than id like and have had to bring some in today. But I don't have many texel cross ewes and there won't be any more so I can see me using charollais again if lambing is anything to go by. No problems out of pure lleyn ewes. There are some chunky lambs especially in the singles.
Could you use Suffolk as a terminal sire on your lleyns? I used to do that and they were ok. Never found them to be soft at all as long as you only went half cross. Never got any stereotypical Suffolk problems until I kept some Suffolk cross ewe lambs and put a Suffolk on them.
I’ll never have a Suffolk ram here again. Dad used to use them over poll Dorset’s. Nice enough lambs once they decide to get up and move.
Charlie’s our of Lleyns a much better option for me.
I wouldn't use another Suffolk either I don't think. They seemed to get worse and worse every year
I'd consider one from someone like easyram1 though I liked his texels overall. Definitely not the standard overfed, big headed, heavy boned, dopey type though. But if nithsdale farmer gets on with Suffolk then no reason not to use them?
- Location
- Dumfries & Galloway
We are high in Iron here which shows as low in Copper. Cobalt can be low too, but it varies from year to year... don't mind 120 Suffolk lambs running but I'm not sure I'd want 5-600 in a bad year
Chars are hard gotten up here, IMO. There's a lot aren't worth looking at. I probably should give one a go again though - it was Scotch Mule ewes when I last used them. Different sheep now. Just feart incase they are still as soft
- Location
- central scotland
I seem to have had a Suffolk ram throwing soft lambs this year,don’t think I will buy another in future,this’ll probably change in June when I’m drawing the first batch of fat lambs though.We are high in Iron here which shows as low in Copper. Cobalt can be low too, but it varies from year to year... don't mind 120 Suffolk lambs running but I'm not sure I'd want 5-600 in a bad year
Chars are hard gotten up here, IMO. There's a lot aren't worth looking at. I probably should give one a go again though - it was Scotch Mule ewes when I last used them. Different sheep now. Just feart incase they are still as soft
Have went back to the charollais the last 3 years on hoggs and this year on gimmers as well and they are just rockets up and full within minutes ,on the whole they seem to be pretty well covered as well, definitely better than the beltex lambs out of the texel hoggs some of them are blue
- Location
- Montgomeryshire
We are high in Iron here which shows as low in Copper. Cobalt can be low too, but it varies from year to year... don't mind 120 Suffolk lambs running but I'm not sure I'd want 5-600 in a bad year
Chars are hard gotten up here, IMO. There's a lot aren't worth looking at. I probably should give one a go again though - it was Scotch Mule ewes when I last used them. Different sheep now. Just feart incase they are still as soft
A Scotch Mule, any Mule in fact, will be doubling up on the Leicester blood (a long way) behind the Charollais, so you will inevitably throw a few lambs that are softer/barer from that cross imo. Most will be great lambs, but you would get the odd bare one I suspect...
Not something I ever see from my Highlanders (essentially a Texel x Romney), or when we ran Texel X ewes.
- Location
- Montgomeryshire
Phew! Glad to hear they’re doing their job.
However, I’m surprised the lambs are soft from the Texel X ewes, which has always been a ‘magic cross’ IME.
Texel x Charollais (either way round) have always been tough as nails whenever i’ve Had them.
Yes I'd been meaning to take some pictures to send you but never got round to itPhew! Glad to hear they’re doing their job.
Yes I'm surprised too I didn't expect it. There is some Suffolk quite far back (1/4or less) in the breeding of some of them maybe that's why? They are usually brownish colour and have longer legs than the ones out of lleyns. I'll take some pictures tomorrow if I have one I can catch (and I remember to do it
)
Was the Suffolk bought at a fancy sale?
- Location
- central scotland
Just a ram sale, never had an issue with the breeders sheep before, maybe not helped by the high litter numbers the twin lambs were acceptable just the triplets that were giving grief, soft and slow, just time consuming in the middle of a lambing!
- Location
- Dumfries & Galloway
Aye, the BFL has a lot to answer for...
Like I said, I should give a Char another go now I have changed ewes - I'm just feart from past experiences. I just don't like what I see up here
The breeder will make more of a difference than the breed I think. I wouldn't have considered a charollais from most other breeders but Neil doesn't baby his as much as most.Aye, the BFL has a lot to answer for...
Like I said, I should give a Char another go now I have changed ewes - I'm just feart from past experiences. I just don't like what I see up here
- Location
- Dumfries & Galloway
How close would @Logie Durno sheep be from you? I think they have some charollais
- Location
- Dumfries & Galloway
- Location
- central scotland
I have three now, cost £500 at Stirling ram sale, been very good sheep, all of off one breeder, never pushed, oh and that wasn’t a price per head that was for all three,as shearling,unfortunately he did not have any last yearAye, the BFL has a lot to answer for...
Like I said, I should give a Char another go now I have changed ewes - I'm just feart from past experiences. I just don't like what I see up here