Dawn Jacobson <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: I wouldnt say those who breed shetlands dont feed them. If we didn't feed our ewes over winter they wouldnt be in the middle of producing some cracking wee lambs for us.
To many emails & to many lambs arriving... Robin made a comment about a lot of shetlanders using shetland ewes to cross with cheviot (and texel or suffolk) rams, this is the way we work Robin, despite Shetland lambs that are born & raised on shetland having the best meat reputation in the world, to sell pure shetland lambs for the meat market just does not bring in enough to cover even half the winter feeding costs of the mothers. The shetland /cheviot cross produces a bigger meatier lamb, without the taste, id be the first person to stand up & yell that bit, but it still gains a shetland lamb label & the end consumers who dont know the difference are then fobbed off with it. There is currently a big ripple of pushing going on up here to promote the pure bred lamb as the meat lamb and get those of us who breed them a better price for our wares. Angela n excellent point. In a recent talk, Judith MacKenzie McCuin noted that the manufacturers of high-quality European knits prefer the wool from American sheep because we're very good at feeding and caring for them. Good feed & care = healthy sheep = long, strong fleece. Dawn Jacobson http://dtjacobson.blogspot.com/ On 4/30/07, Sara wrote: > > > Third, let's remember that wool is there to keep the sheep feeling well > and > healthy during its lifetime. Just because the "spinner" > "waaaaaaaaaaaaaants" > it, doesn't mean it is good for the sheep. For anyone wishing to follow > this > thread - check the example of the famed Saxony Merino in 18th century > Germany - known for its super fine wool produced in part by not feeding > the > sheep well. Because of the fixation with just one characteristic of the > sheep to make more money from the wool clip, these animals very nearly > became extinct - the few remaining fertile animals being shipped to > Australia, where they have never made a comeback to their original status. www.fairislefibres.blogspot.com Bed & Breakfast upon the Isle of Fair Isle www.burklecrafts.co.uk High quality hand dyed spinning fibers www.fairislefibers.co.uk To stop mail temporarily mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] with the message: set nomail To restore send: set mail
