Thursday, September 8, 2016

For Quality Katahdin Sheep For Sale Kentucky Is Worth Visiting

By Joseph Davis


It was in the late 1950s that Katahdin sheep first started to be developed. This process was started by Michael Piel from the state of Maine. The Piel Farm at the moment had several thousands of sheep and all the initial development occurred there before other breeders adopted the katahdins. From the Piel Farm, katahdins have spread widely in all the four corners of the United States. As such, when one wants Katahdin sheep for sale Kentucky should be one of the first places to consider visiting. There are several breeders in Kentucky who produce high-quality katahdins for sale to the public.

One factor motivated Piel into the development of the breed. Piel realized that other factors other than wool needed to be based upon when engaging in breed selection for meat. Wool breeds were after all not the best animals for meat production. Piel wanted to combine the good qualities he saw in wool breeds with those in Virgin Island sheep to produce a new breed.

Virgin Island sheep possessed hardiness, prolificacy, and hair coat that Piel wanted. So, Piel set out to combine the characteristics in Virgin Island animals with the rate of growth and meat conformation of wool breeds. The experimentation began with crossing hair breeds and other British breeds, particularly Suffolk.

For the next twenty years, Piel engaged in the development of the new breed by choosing only animals that possessed the required traits. At the end of the experiment, Piel had come up with a flock of ewes that he named Katahdins. The origin of the name is Mt. Karahdin in Maine. In 1970s, the integration of Wiltshire Horn was done as a way of enhancing size and quality of the carcass.

From the original flock, breeders have managed to expand the number of Katahdins in the entire North American continent and worldwide. This is done with careful selection for reproductive efficiency, carcass quality, and hair coat. The KHSI was formed in 1986 for the purpose of registering individual Katahdins, record performance, assist with marketing and promotion, and to encourage research and development on the breed.

Animals are registered when they attain the age of one year and have been inspected thorough to ensure that they conform to breed standards. The breeder needs to be a KNSI member in order to put in a request for inspection or to have the animal registered. There is often no need for inspection before registration of lambs with 100 percent purebred parents. Such parents should not have birthdays beyond 1/1/1998.

Katahdins have several qualities that are superior to those found in other breeds. For example, this breed has displayed a higher level of parasite resistance in comparison to other breeds. Individuals are able to resist parasitic attack to maintain good health and form. Compared to wool breeds, this breed is also more heat resistant.

Other qualities compared with other breeds are fertility factors, growth performance, prolificacy, meat flavor, out-of-season breeding, and carcass quality. The superior meat flavor of this breed makes it favorable to many people worldwide.




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