Monday, April 13, 2015

To Find Good Katahdin Sheep Kentucky Should Be The Place To Visit

By Lelia Hall


The second half of the twentieth century in America was characterized with the development of a unique domesticated animals. Katahdins were the result of this work. The breed was first raised in north central Maine near mount Katahdin, thus the name. The research work and breeding was done by amateur geneticist called Micheal Piel. His sole goal was to come up with a breed of sheep with better hair coat, good flocking instinct, high fertility and meat type conformation.

His research was focused on producing animals with hair and not wool. A breed that does not produce wool was needed because of low prices of wool and high shearing costs. The resultant breed had good mothering abilities in comparison to the parents. To get docile yet hardy Katahdin sheep Kentucky is the place to go. They show higher resistance to both external and internal parasites. They are easy to handle because they are docile.

Healthy and full grown females vary in weight from 160 pounds to 120 pounds. Mature males have a weight variation of between 250 pounds to180 pounds. Most twins average eight pounds at birth. Ewes normally give birth to two lambs, although they may have triplets or quadruplets in some occasions. Females exhibit better protective instinct.

A year is the earliest period an ewe can be mate on condition that it has attained the necessary weight and size. Focus should be placed on weight and not size. When lambs are two-thirds the size of a mature ewe they may be bred. A first-time mother must be fed and held separately from continuing mothers until its lambs is weaned. This is an important on teaching them to be better mothers.

Early maturity and long productive lives is observed in both males and females. Males are reliable breeders with the capacity of searing the entire year. A single ram has the ability of serving many females when mixed. Both sexes can be used in interbreeding. First time generation young ones between this breed and other types of wool sheep have fleeces.

It takes approximately 3 generations or even more depending on the type of crossbred wool animal to have lambs with purebred features like shedding hair coats. The lengths and textures of hair coats vary on each sheep. Kentucky katahdins are born with many either pure or sorts of shades. Brown, red, black and white are the commonest shades. Some have spots or unique patterns.

Lambs provide healthy quality lean meat. Fatty acid quantity of their meat is determined by diet. Their meat has both important omega 3 and 6 fatty acids. They obtain fatty acids from the grass, though diets with particular oils and fats may achieve the same purpose. Details on the kind of oils or fats to give them must be prescribed by a licensed veterinary. This is crucial for health reasons.

Katahdins are tough animals with eating habits similar to that of goats. They eat anything ranging from smooth barks of deciduous trees to weeds. They stand on hind legs to reach leaves and strip tree barks. They can be destructive if not controlled. Katahdin lambs have a habit of climbing on hay and any plants. To prevent this, bale rings should be placed around trees and plants that a person wishes to protect.




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