Britt
Tue, 26 Jul 2005 07:30:33 -0700
Britt----- Original Message ----- From: "Sue Miller" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <blackbelly-blackbellysheep.info@lists.blackbellysheep.info> Sent: Tuesday, July 26, 2005 7:48 AM Subject: [blackbelly] Reply for Carol
HI there BB lovers,Giess I'll have to put my 2 cents worth in here. Been very interesting reading about everyone's outlook on the topics that have been discussed in the past few weeks. I will give answers to CArol's questions and comment on the ' rammy ' ram.We really didn't 'choose' the Blackbelly breed. We were given one and fell in love with our ram. So then the ewes followed.We were sold on the same attributes that others have mentioned - ease of care, birthing, how easily they multiply, their ability to mow and eat things that other animals leave behind, their beauty and grace are all sellers. Also for us is their playfulness, intelligence, the way they seem so 'family oriented' (the ram as protector and the way they all follow what I refer to as the 'alpha' ewe, the leader of the girls), and their resillience (sp?) for survival. Another plus is no shearing and that they can lamb without outside assistance generally.We make some money on them, mainly selling ewes and rams to other individuals for breeding stock, butchering, or as pasture trimmers.We take some to an exotic saile twice a year. Being that Ted is a taxidermist, we have had some hides tanned and sold hides also. They are very warm and have had some bought to take to nursing homes for lap blankets. We really haven't sold any meat but have given meat to others to try. We have a lamb processing plant close to us but we don't have the quantity they want and have been told that they don't want to buy the BB's as much due to the fact that they( the processors) can't do anything with the hides from the BB's.AS I said the hides are beautiful and have purpose. I hope to someday make a jacket/poncho out of some hides. The meat is excellent for those who have to watch their diet. After gall bladder surgery,my husband had difficulty digesting beef but had no difficulty with the BB meat. It is lean and very tasty, low in cholesterol and high in protein. Probably the best oif the red meats. Due to the absence of lanolin in these sheep from wool sheep, the mutton taste is not there.I personally have never had mutton but Ted says that you can't reheat mutton due to the taste but we can with the BB meat. The meat cooks up well and doesn't take long to cook. I have a friend, who due to lymphatic cancer, has no teeth and can't eat meat ( the radiation deteriorated her teeth and also her jaw bones so can't wear false teeth). She can eat the ground lamb from BB meat because it is mucher finer ground when cooked.My husband has raised wool sheep and as he says, " These sheep aren't stupid like wool sheep are." He has been amazed with how tough and intelligent BB are. He wouldn't have wool sheep again. Haven't sold for a trophy market so don't know anything about that. At this time, we aren't set up to keep rams apart from other sheep to keep long enough to sell to a trophy market.I guess this is my views on the American Blackbelly. Hopefully there are some points here that will be helpful for you, Carol. I am by no means an expert on these sheep but I love having them here and hope to have them for a long time. In the area that we live in, there is a mentally of ' all sheep are the same - whether they have wool or hair' which we all know is untrue. We fight this often as BB's are not as well known in this area of the country.Now as for the ram - yes our ram, Mr. Boots was a bottlefed, hands on ram. He expects attention and likes to be petted and fussed with. He likes me to brush him and pet him, which I know everyone has said you shouldn't do. I am very aware of him and what he could do to me if I were in the pen with him. I DO NOT go in the pen without my husband cause I can't handle him as my husband can. He does get rammy once in awhile, especially if he feels he's not getting your full attention. Ted got his attention a few times with an aluminum shovel cracked on his head and he is respectful of that. Uusally a stern word from Ted is all Boots needs to hear to ' back off' anymore. We are able to get a hold of him when we need to. We also tie him down when we need to work with him. We have had him down a few times but this seems to stress him out more so we usually tie him down. We are hoping to have a chute eventually to work on the sheep to reduce the stress factor on them when working on them. I am highly aware that Boots doesn't ' fear' me since I was his caregiver when he was young. That is why I don't go in without my husband. These are just my thoughts.Hope everyone is well and their flocks are flourishing. Been enjoyable and informative reading. Just had to throw in my thoughts. Everyone have a good day. Sue Miller_______________________________________________ This message is from the Blackbelly-blackbellysheep.info mailing listVisit the list's homepage at Blackbelly-blackbellysheep.info@lists.blackbellysheep.infohttp://lists.blackbellysheep.info/listinfo.cgi/blackbelly-blackbellysheep.info
_______________________________________________ This message is from the Blackbelly-blackbellysheep.info mailing list Visit the list's homepage at Blackbelly-blackbellysheep.info@lists.blackbellysheep.info http://lists.blackbellysheep.info/listinfo.cgi/blackbelly-blackbellysheep.info