Beekissed

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I was reading an interesting article awhile back about two types of body styles noticed in the Katahdin breed: https://ewewin.wordpress.com/2010/01/25/two-distinct-body-styles-in-katahdin-sheep/

My last Katahdin had the type A body and hair, but this pair I have now are a little mixed up and not quite what this article describes. My type A body style ewe has a curly, wooly coat, though short and shed off to summer length, with a shorter tail. My type B body style ewe has a true hair coat, as well as a long tail.

I like the type A body style and when I build enough numbers to start culling for that, I'll likely cull towards that body style, along with other desirable traits.

What body styles does your flock contain? Do you cull for that in your Katahdin or do you focus on other traits first?
 

Baymule

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That is a very interesting article. One of the ewes on the cull list is a poor mother, her twin ewe lambs are extremely stupid(not keeping them) and she has a pronounced high shoulder with a deep dip behind it, then a roached hump back.

Most of my lambs have wavy costs. Lily is a Katahdin ewe, has a nice top line and stays in good condition.
Her lamb has a wavy coat. She has a wooly back that doesn’t shed well.
I tried to get a shot of Aria, her lamb, but they weren’t cooperating.

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This spotted lamb is on the keeper list with Aria. Her brother is standing on a stump.

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The other side.

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Beekissed

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Your cull girl looks a lot like my Rose, which would also have been a cull in a herd of mine if I didn't need her so bad right now....eventually I want to weed out all of those body types. Hate to breed her knowing she may pass that body along, but for now I just need mouths and hooves on the ground and I'll worry about conformation later on.

Those lambs would definitely be keepers in my book! LOVE those wavy coats and the balanced bodies they have.
 

Baymule

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I started with 4 bred ewes. I have tried to build my flock to the number I wanted, trying to keep the best. Now I can cull harder and keep the best of the best. I’ll slowly move into a mostly registered flock. I’m learning a lot from my mixed commercial ewes.

Psssttt...... Bee...... the brown ewe pictured is Lily, not on the cull list. I didn’t get a picture of Little Cutie, the hump backed cull. ;)
 

Beekissed

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I started with 4 bred ewes. I have tried to build my flock to the number I wanted, trying to keep the best. Now I can cull harder and keep the best of the best. I’ll slowly move into a mostly registered flock. I’m learning a lot from my mixed commercial ewes.

Psssttt...... Bee...... the brown ewe pictured is Lily, not on the cull list. I didn’t get a picture of Little Cutie, the hump backed cull. ;)

Oops! :oops: That's the body style I didn't like to see in Rose, but I had already viewed 4 different herds, two of them supposedly registered stock, and Rose and Shine were the largest ewes I could find and still vaguely resemble a Katahdin(the rest of them were downright embarrassing to the Katahdin breed!). That pendulous belly and bony looking back does not appeal to me on Rose...unfortunately, the ram lamb has a similar body style so it's likely I'll be making lambs I won't want to keep long term.

Like you, Bay, I have to get some numbers up. I need to graze more intensively here and produce more pasture at a faster rate.

I liked what I heard about Rose's history, so I figured she could be the matriarch of the herd and possibly make a good lead sheep when she ages out of lambing. She'll be 8 yrs old by the time she lambs in the spring and that's pretty old in sheep years.
 

frustratedearthmother

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@Baymule - Is the ewe in the top picture the one you said has a dip and a hump in her back? Do I just not see it because of the wool? I know I'm just a goatie, but I think her top line looks great!
 

Baymule

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THIS is the cull ewe. The more I look at her, the more I wonder what in the devil was I thinking. Then I remembered she was one of my shaggy ones that didn’t shed and it hid her faults. Duh. Her twin ewes both hold their heads low, just something not right with those two.

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This is Lucy, the mother to the spotted ewe lamb and white ram lamb pictured above. Not a great picture, but she wasn’t interested in posing.

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Baymule

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@Baymule - Is the ewe in the top picture the one you said has a dip and a hump in her back? Do I just not see it because of the wool? I know I'm just a goatie, but I think her top line looks great!
Thanks! She is a nice ewe, good mother, but always has a single. She also is the mother of the cull ewe. I didn't have much of a ram for THAT breeding, did I?
 

Beekissed

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I see what you mean about your cull ewe...she definitely has a pitiful shape, though that belly looks like it holds plenty!

That's Rose's problem too....all belly, no good muscling throughout the body like Shine has. Shine is solid muscle, stout and full. Rose has put a layer of fat on her ribs and back since she came but I still don't see a lot of meat on that frame like I can with Shine.
 
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