November 13, 2003

 

NDSU's Katahdin Hair Sheep Recognized

Two sires in North Dakota State University's Katahdin hair sheep flock have been recognized as among the top sheep of their breed in North America.

The two sires were recognized as trait leaders in the 2003 Katahdin National Genetic Evaluation. To be recognized as a trait leader, a sire must rank in the top 15 of the 328 sires evaluated. Sheep breeders from the United States and Canada participate in the program.

"This recognition brings some notoriety to our program and acknowledges that we have a group of sheep here at NDSU that are genetically superior," says Bert Moore, a sheep researcher with NDSU's Department of Animal and Range Science. "The designation also validates the decisions we've made and the program we're building."

NDSU purchased Katahdin and Wiltshire Horne hair sheep about three years ago to study if the breeds could fit into sheep enterprises on the northern Great Plains. Researchers want to know if sheep crossbred with hair sheep could eliminate labor and costs associated with wool production while producing desirable sheep for meat. The sheep do not grow fleeces, but have hair coats that shed somewhat like cattle.

NDSU's sheep were chosen as trait leaders after being compared to other Katahdin sheep from flocks that participate in the National Sheep Improvement Program. Information gathered from flocks in the program allow producers to evaluate their own sheep or potential sires and dams for five key areas of production performance.

Those areas include: 60-day weaning weight which gives an estimate of preweaning growth potential; 120-day postweaning weight which predicts genetic merit for growth; maternal milk production which indicates genetic merit for mothering ability; milk plus growth, an indicator of combined mothering ability and growth potential; and percent lamb crop, an evaluation of genetic potential for reproduction.

The NDSU sires that were named trait leaders originated in the flock of Doug and Laura Fortmeyer of Fairview, Kansas. One of the sires was recognized as a trait leader in both maternal milk production and milk production plus growth. The other sire was recognized as a trait leader in 60-day weaning weight and 120-day postweaning weight.

Moore says NDSU researchers continue to evaluate crosses between hair sheep and traditional breeds. "Most importantly we've found the crosses to be a prolific, hardy, low maintenance type of sheep that thrives in numerous environments and under various management schemes," he says.

"There is a declining number of people with an interest and expertise in sheep," Moore says. "People without a sheep background can use these crosses in low-input minimal management enterprises."

The studies also fit well with other NDSU research on using sheep in grazing systems to control leafy spurge. In those systems livestock producers can use sheep to reduce leafy spurge infestations in pastures, but some producers may hesitate to implement the system because of concerns over managing a sheep flock. Low-maintenance sheep could eliminate many of those concerns, Moore says.

In some crosses with commercial ewes, offspring began exhibiting the hair trait as early as the second generation, Moore says. Researchers don't have enough data yet to determine the crossbreeding program that produces offspring with the optimum combination of hair and meat- producing characteristics.

"We do know that the offspring are very acceptable to the meat trade and their growth rate is acceptable for producers," Moore says.

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Source: Bert Moore, (701) 231-7651, bmoore@ndsuext.nodak.edu
Editor: Tom Jirik, (701) 231-9629, tjirik@ndsuext.nodak.edu