Southdowns: meat the breed Secretary: Gail Sprake (All Saints flock),Meens Farm, Capps Lane, All...
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Transcript of Southdowns: meat the breed Secretary: Gail Sprake (All Saints flock),Meens Farm, Capps Lane, All...
Southdowns: meat the breedSecretary: Gail Sprake (All Saints flock),Meens Farm, Capps Lane, All Saints, Halesworth, Suffolk IP19 0PD. Tel: 01986 782251 Mobile: 07885 777921E-mail: [email protected]: www.southdownsheepsociety.co.uk
Photographs & drawings: Copyright Southdown Sheep Society (Gareth Lloyd Hughes Photography, Goldsworthy Associates Limited, Jake Tebbit)
Contents
• History• Populations trends• Why Southdowns• A split personality?• Flock health and management
Breed History• 18th century > 200,000• John Ellman (Glynde) 1753-1832• Jonas Webb (Babraham) 1796 – 1862• Thomas Coke (Holkham)1754 –1842
• A down and heathland breed with fine wool, bred for meat production
• Breed Society - 1892
National Foundation Stock
• with the Norfolk Horn, the Suffolk.
• with existing stock, the Hampshire Down
• via the Hampshire Down, the Oxford Down
International Foundation Stock
• Southdowns exported worldwide• New Zealand
• Australia• USA• Europe
UK Imports
• New Zealand
• France
Southdown trends – registered breeders
Breed Recovery
Docile and easy to handle
Why Southdowns
Tight stocking, thrive on very little
Why Southdowns
Easy lambing
Why Southdowns
Early finishing
Why Southdowns
Catches premium pricesEases grazing pressure
Outstanding conformation
Why Southdowns
Great taste
Why Southdowns
Great looks
Why Southdowns
A split personality or a breed for all
seasonsCommercial• Larger and heavier
– faster finish and larger final carcase
• Rams 90-100kg• Lambs 38-40kg lwt
• Leaner
Smallholder• “Traditional” small
and compact – easy to handle
• Rams 80-90kg• Lambs 35-38kg lwt
Flocks are of many different shapes and sizes; it’s horses for courses.
The only bad sheep is a dead sheep!
Flock health and management
• Only 1 flock still scrapie testing• c. 8 flocks MV accredited
• c.7 flocks in Signet recording scheme – weight recording and fat scanning
Scheme participants
Scrapie• All Saints
MV accredited• Brompton• Chaileybro
ok• Golden
Valley• etc
Signet Recorded• All Saints• Birch Hoe• Chaileybro
ok• East Dean• Gunton• Webbellis• Woolbedin
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