The Next Generation

Beau, Bella, Bubbles and Squeak

Introducing April

Here she is at just over one day old.

Dumpling as a youngster*

Bubbles and Squeak

The second set of twins this year, born to Rosie

Not everyones a winner

Tonight my young ewe, Prima, lost her first lamb. He was a big strapping ram lamb and was born still born. Very sad for all concerned, she was calling for him even though we gave her the chance to check him over. This is the first time I have lost a lamb and I am sure it won't be the last but it hits hard when there seems to be no reason and mum is understandably upset. There are still a couple more ewes to lamb so lets hope we can end things on a high note.

Breed Standard CTD

REASONS FOR DISQUALIFICATIONToo big ( exceeding maximum height limit)
poor pasterns, bad hooves, legs overdeveloped
Rams, horns asymmetrical, too delicate, too tight or too open, abscence of horns.
Pie coloured
Tail too long
Ears too large
Prominant bridge in the ewe or over developed in the ram
Prescence of toggles at the throat
Admissable in young subjects, blacks lightly marked with white on the forehead, whites with rust on the neck tail or feet, these marks diminish with age.REMARKSThere appears (rarely) in some ewes, tiny horns, without any bony plate, if they are observed they cannot be considered a fault.
Outside the breed standard, it needs to be noted single births are a characteristic of the breed, twin births are rare and not sought after.
WOOL
Fleece- furnishing the forehead, and the cheeks partly. Covering all the body, descending at least to the knees and just to the hocks.
COLOURBlack, brown, chestnut, white, the pigmentation must be even throughout all the fleece.
TEXTURE
Fleece semi closed, and quite compact, locks (staple) of 8 - 10 cms for 12 months growth.
Prescence of hairs and medullated fibres at the throat - cravat (accentuated in rams) nape and britches. The hairs are similar to the rest of the fleece although, they may be a little darker.
AVERAGE THICKNESS medium 27 to 28 microns
QUALITY very soft wool to the touch, very springy
AVERAGE WEIGHT OF THE FLEECE Rams 4.5% of live weight Ewes 4%of live weight.
CAUSES OF DISQUALIFICATION Fleece outside the standard, colour uneven, marks in the fleece, fleece thin, matted , lacking texture, density, staple length.

The Breed Standard

With thanks to GEMO a copy of the breed standard in English (my translation, so it may not reflect the exact content of the french text)
Link to original french text Breed Standard FR

"Standard proposed by the General Assembly of the group of breeders of Ouessants ( GEMO) 5th December 1981, modified by the General Assembly 16th November 1991 and 29th october 2005.
HEAD
Fine and regular, the rams are horned, the bridge of the nose and forehead should form a continuous line. A very slight bridge to the nose in the ram
Eyes Bright and lively look, prominant orbit to the eye.
Ears fine, small, short, mobile and have a tendancy to be carried pricked.
Horns dark for the blacks and browns, light for the whites, triangular in section, strong, curled in a single spiral, of large amplitude, a good distance from the head.
NECK
rounded , without any dewlap, cravat (collar) in the rams.
TRUNK
withers not prominant , deep chest.
BACK
Straight ( level ) topline from the withers to the base of the tail.
RUMP
wide
LEGS
slender, of medium length, well proportioned, good pasterns. Hooves, dark for the black and browns, light for the whites.
HEIGHT
Maximum height for an adult Ram 49 cms
Maximum height for an adult Ewe 46cms

Addenum 29th October 2005. An optimum range has been determined particularly for competition, that corresponds to the ideal size looked for in selection. This range represents a division for obtaining a prize at the time of judging. The jury can decide to award a placement even if the subject is outside of the optimum range if, in their estimation, the qualities of the subject shown merits it and as long as they are within the norms for the standard.

Table for the optimum ranges.

Adult Ram 42 cm 48 cm
Yearling 40 cm 46 cm
Adult Ewe 40 cm 45 cm
Yearling 38 cm 44 cm

COLOUR
All uniform colours are accepted, black, noire brunissante, brown, white, a base of rust where there is a light touch of rust appearing on the fleece, appearing mostly on the head, feet or base of the tail is acceptable in whites.

Twins!

Two days ago the first of my ewes expecting lambs gave birth to twins what a momentous event. Twins are  not common in ouessants and its considered undesireable to have twins ( no doubt their teeny size makes everything more complicated when it comes to doubling up) how undesirable it may have been mum and babes are doing well and I am thrilled to see them grow and thrive.

FAQ about Ouessant Sheep - Questions Fréquemment Posées

Frequently Asked Questions on caring for  Ouessant sheep  - This is by no means an exhaustive guide to caring for Ouessant sheep  and if you are in any doubt, advice should be sought from additional  reputable sources.


Do Ouessant Sheep need special care?
No more than any other breed of sheep and in reality attention to detail as with any animal is more about knowing their usual habits and recognising when anything is wrong.

How much space do they need?
The all important question and not always easy one to answer. A couple or pair of Ouessant sheep can be quite happy on 3000m2 of land but this is dependatnt on the type of terrain they are on and the exact amount needed will vary.  What is needed is enough to allow some ground to be rested and provide grazing for most of the year, otherwise it may be necessary to top up with hay during the winter or in dry summers when the grass gets burnt off.

Are they high maintenance?
No, it is important that are wormed regularly or if you prefer, that worm counts are done to make sure you don't get a build up of parasites.
Shearing once a year to removed the previous years fleece.
Foot trimming needs to be done reasonably regularly three to four times a year depending on the ground and how much exercise they get.
Its important to bear in mind this breed of sheep were bred to survive in harsh conditions with little attention, over feed them and you will make more problems so watch the treats and granular feeds. Daily monitoring of sheep is necessary, keeping waters topped up and ensuring they are not caught up in fencing means that they should not  be left longer than 24 hours without checks.

How long do they live?
As far as I know about the same as any other breed of sheep. 10 to 12 years would be good going for most sheep although I have heard of exceptional cases where they have lived as long as fifteen years..

Are they agressive?
No,  the rams can charge if allowed to become over familiar with people but a ewe and wether ( castrated male) will live quite happily together and make ideal pets.

Will they keep my grass down?
Yes, they will happily munch through good grass but they tend to leave thistles and nettles. With the nettles if you cut them they will eat them once they have been cut. They fertilise as they go and provided the ground isn't overly wet in winter will not poach the ground or leave muddy areas.  In fact  with the right conditions they are excellent for conservation grazing.

What can you do with their fleece?
 Fleece that isn't full of bits of vegetation and is relatively clean can be shorn and used by hand spinners. Ouessant wool is high quality and with the right care and attention in preperation is sought after. It can be used in a number of fibrecrafts including felting and for weaving.

Can you eat them?
Yes, Ouessant sheep were originally kept by the islanders for both their fleece and meat there was little room on the island for pets and the Ragout of mouton was a popular dish. Their meat is reported to be dark and similar in texture to some of the darker gamier meats such as venison. In terms of productivity the carcass is obviously very small and there is no real commercial return on raising Ouessant Sheep for meat.

Where can I get one?
Ouessant sheep are still a relatively rare breed. There are some breeders who may sell but few if any are kept on a commercial scale. It is important to go to a recognised breeder of registered stock. Only this way can you be sure you are buying quality sheep that are healthy and not likely to cause problems or run up expensive vet bills.

Do they make good pets?
Very much so, they are a nice size and provided they are reared and kept correctly they will give you and your family hours of fun and fascination. Not to mention giving the grass a good trim.

Can you spin their wool?
Ouessant sheep are an ideal addition to a spinners flock, They come in a variety of colours and are one of the most productive sheep breeds in terms of the amount of fleece they produce for their size.

Do they need to be sheared?
Yes, for details see shearing ouessants but you will need to arrange for them to be shorn once a year. If you don't this happens! Poor Dod hasn't been shorn for two years:-(. In some cases they will shed their fleeece and can be rooed by hand rather than shorn with electric clippers.









Do they need any supplements or extra feeding?
As a rule they do best on relatively poor grazing or at least not to rich. Hay should be accessible, if the grazing is very low then you may need to provide sheep pellets or other concentrates but they  are not generally ideal as a main diet. As with all sheep you should provide a mineral block to make sure they don't lack essential nutrients in their diet.


Do I need to register my sheep?
Yes, in  France, you should declare your holding to your local EDE who will provide you with a  Numèro de Cheptel - Holding number. All  of your sheep should be tagged and registered to your holding. 
In the UK your holding should be declared with the rural payments agency who will give you a CPH ( county parish holding ) number. The same rules apply for tagging and registration of individual sheep as in France