mysunwolf
Herd Master
My ram this year was a cull ram of someone else, but he looked decent to me.
My question is: How do you choose who is an excellent ram? I figure that it has to do with: 1) overall soundness, muscling, testes; 2) health, behavior, parasite load; 3) genetics, pedigree; 4) personal preference. But I'm still not getting it! When I browse auction listings or sale pages, I can't tell the difference in rams. One I may think looks really excellent, others will comment that he should be a cull. And the opposite.
Mostly, I've been looking at Katahdins, which I feel never look as meaty as the wooly meat breeds I've seen. I've thought that maybe this is my trouble, that hair sheep just never get meaty. But the Dorpers have proved me wrong on that front.
Next year, we will be using a dairy ram, so I'm not sure if the criteria will be the same, but I'd like to use the general meat standards so as to have a good dual-purpose flock.
What do you personally look for when choosing a ram, either from your own flock or an outside flock?
My question is: How do you choose who is an excellent ram? I figure that it has to do with: 1) overall soundness, muscling, testes; 2) health, behavior, parasite load; 3) genetics, pedigree; 4) personal preference. But I'm still not getting it! When I browse auction listings or sale pages, I can't tell the difference in rams. One I may think looks really excellent, others will comment that he should be a cull. And the opposite.
Mostly, I've been looking at Katahdins, which I feel never look as meaty as the wooly meat breeds I've seen. I've thought that maybe this is my trouble, that hair sheep just never get meaty. But the Dorpers have proved me wrong on that front.
Next year, we will be using a dairy ram, so I'm not sure if the criteria will be the same, but I'd like to use the general meat standards so as to have a good dual-purpose flock.
What do you personally look for when choosing a ram, either from your own flock or an outside flock?