Sheep identification sheet Beltex The breed is an offshoot of the Texel breed from Belgium, giving the name BELTEX. It is a white faced sheep with medium-length wool. It is best known for its large mus- cles, especially in the hindquarters Black Welsh Mountain The Black Welsh Mountain is a small, black sheep with no wool on the face or on the legs below the knee and hock. The rams are usually horned and the females are polled (hornless). Sheep identification sheet Bleu Du Maine The Bleu Du Maine Sheep is a breed of domestic sheep that originated in western France. The most distinctive charac- teristic of the breed is its bald, grey–blue head which is polled in both sexes. Though this breed does grow wool, it is raised primarily for meat. The Bluefaced Leicester is a longwool breed of sheep which originates Bluefaced from Northumberland. This breed is raised primarily for meat, but their Leicester fleece is becoming increasingly popular forhand spinning. They have curly threadlike wool which makes it considerably lighter than others. Bluefaced Leicester's are recognisable through their Roman noses, which have a dark blue skin which can be seen through the white hair. Border Leicester The Border Leicester is a breed of sheep originating in England and raised primarily for meat. Border Leicester's are polled (without horns), long woollen sheep. Though large in size and robust, they are also docile. Sheep identification sheet Charollais The Charollais is a medium to large sized sheep, long and well muscled with thick, deep gigots (legs). The body is long with a well muscled broad loin and wide deep chest. The head is free from wool. The Cheviot is a breed of white faced sheep which gets its name from a Cheviot range of hills in north Northumberland and the Scottish Borders. It is still common in this area, but also in north west Scotland, Wales and the south west of England (especially Dartmoor and Exmoor). The Cheviot is a dual-purpose breed being raised for meat and wool. Clun Forest The Clun Forest is a breed of domestic sheep originating from the area surrounding the Clun Forest in Shropshire. Similar to many of the British breeds of upland sheep, Clun Forest are hardy, adaptable, good foragers and are long–lived. They have dark brown faces with hair on the top of the head and strong muscular necks. Sheep identification sheet Dalesbred Derived from the Swaledale and Scottish Blackface breeds, the Dalesbred is a hill breed most common in the Central Pennines in England. Both rams and ewes have horns and a white carpet-quality fleece.They are recognised by a white spot on each side of their black face, with the end of the muzzle be- coming grey. This breed is primarily used for meat and wool production. Dorset Downs are medium-sized, strong sheep with dark faces and short Dorset Down wool. The Dorset Down is known for producing early maturing lambs from grass, making them ideal for organic and other farming systems. Both horned and polled Dorset's are all white sheep of medium size - Dorset horn and having good body length and lots of muscle. The fleece is very white and Poll Dorset strong. They are the only breed that can breed all year round, sometimes having 2 lambing seasons in a year. Sheep identification sheet The Exmoor Horn is a white faced, horned breed of sheep. It was developed in Exmoor, Devon, in the 19th century, but is a descendant of sheep that had Exmoor Horn roamed on the moors for several hundred years. Exmoors are a hardy breed, so well suited to the high moors.[3] They are ‘dual purpose’ - bred not just for their wool, but also for the fact that they are prolific sheep and good moth- ers, producing quality lamb. The Hampshire Down sheep has a dark brown face and ears with wool Hampshire Down over the poll and forehead. Its body is covered with white wool. Hampshire Down rams produce faster finishing lambs which require less grazed grass and hence make considerable cost savings. The Jacob sheep is a rare breed of small, piebald (coloured with white Jacob spots), polycerate (multi-horned) sheep. Jacobs may have from two to six horns, but most commonly have four. The most common colour is black and white. Jacobs are usually raised for their wool, meat, and hides (skin). Sheep identification sheet Lleyn Lleyn sheep are a breed of sheep from the Llŷn peninsula in, north- west Wales. They are bred for high birth rate, good mothering, quiet in na- ture, high milk yield and they give excellent white wool. They are suited to both upland and lowland grazing. This breed is raised primarily for meat.[ The Lincoln, sometimes called the Lincoln Longwool, is the largest British Lincoln sheep, developed specifically to produce the heaviest, longest and most lustrous fleece of any breed in the world. Great numbers were exported to many countries to improve the size and wool quality of their native breeds. The versatile fleece is in great demand for spinning, weaving and many other crafts. Masham sheep are medium sized and hornless, and have been bred for over a century in the north of England. They have a distinctive black and Masham white face and legs and a woolly forelock. The Masham is renowned for its hardiness and longevity, strong mothering instincts and high birth rate. They are a cross between a Teeswater ram with a Dalesbred or Swaledale ewe. The lustrous fleece is in demand for speciality uses including the fashion industry and upholstery. Sheep identification sheet In sheep farming, the term Mule is used to refer to a cross between a lowland ram (usually a Bluefaced Leicester) and a purebred upland ewe. This brings Mule the best characteristics of both breeds into one ewe that can be used to produce good quality lamb for the table. This breed is primarily raised for meat. The Oxford is relatively large- Oxford Down bodied, hornless, has a brown face and legs covered in white wool, and has a short fleece. It produces the heaviest fleece of any of the Down breeds. The Rough Fell is an upland breed which is common on fell and moor- land farms in South Cumbria, parts of the West Riding of Yorkshire, North Rough Fell Lancashire and, more recently, upland parts of Devon. It is very hardy and is well-suited to endure the hardships of exposed and high moorland and mountains. It is one of the largest mountain breeds in Britain and is raised primarily for meat. Sheep identification sheet The breed evolved from medieval longwool types. The Romney is in general an open-faced breed with long wool that grows over the legs in full. It can be Romney either coloured or white. They are big sheep with a heavy longwoolled fleece. The Rouge de l'Ouest is a breed of domestic sheep originating in France. The name means "Red of the West" and refers to its region of origin and Rouge its unique pinkish face and legs. The Rouge was originally a dairy sheep breed used to produce Camembert cheese, but is now primarily raised for meat The Ryeland is one of the oldest of British sheep breeds going back seven centuries to when the monks of Leominster in Herefordshire bred sheep Ryeland and grazed them on the rye pastures, giving them their name. The breed is raised primarily for meat. Ryelands are gentle and are ideal sheep for small properties. Sheep identification sheet The Scottish Blackface is the most common breed of domestic sheep in the United Kingdom. This tough and adaptable breed is often found in the more Scottish Blackface exposed locations, such as the Scottish Highlands or roaming on the moors of Dartmoor. They are one of the hardiest sheep breeds in the country and are the back- bone of the Scottish sheep industry The breed is noted for its very fine, soft wool and the high quality of its Shetland meat. They are small-bodied animals with no wool on their faces, noses or legs, and small, erect ears. The ewes are usually polled (hornless) and the rams usually horned. Shetlands occur in many different colours and patterns. There are 11 main colours. These sheep have short tails and naturally shed their wool, which can be Soay hand plucked (called rooing) in the spring and early summer. Ewes are polled (dehorned). They are most commonly brown or tan with a white belly, white rump patch and white patch under the chin (referred to as the Mouflon or wild pattern). Sheep identification sheet Southdown The Southdown is a very compact sheep originating from the late 18th centu- ry. It is raised primarily for meat. The colour of its face and legs is mouse, not dark brown. It is found in all part of the UK. Along with the Romney, this sheep helped establish the New Zealand lamb industry. The Suffolk sheep have black faces and legs, a large frame, and are highly muscular. They do not have horns and are mainly raised for wool and Suffolk meat production. Swaledale is a breed of domestic sheep named after the Yorkshire valley Swaledale of Swaledale. They are found throughout the more mountainous areas of Great Britain, but particularly in County Durham, Yorkshire, and Cum- bria. They are noted for their off-white wool and curled horns. They are used for the production of mutton and wool Sheep identification sheet The Teeswater is a breed of sheep from Teesdale in the north of England, where they have been bred for about 200 years.