Menoturals; Sheep 101

Nature Friday again! Thanks to the LLB gang for that weekly inspiration... and this is where I also remind you that next week is Final Friday time!

Now that that's out of the way, let's continue with your education in sheep breeds!

The largest of the hill breeds is Cumbria's own Rough Fell sheep. Cumbria boasts three hill breeds: this one (which is said to be a 'kindly' sheep), the Swaledale (said to be rather skittish), and the Herdwick (loners, but if kept close can become pets). I was unable to spot either of the latter two at the show, but there was a goodly number of the Rough Fell present.

Look at that full, creamy fleece! The breed is mixed use, so it can also be bred to be butchered. However, the wool is considered valuable. It is a durable, coarse, and hard-wearing mountain wool that includes a mix of hair and kemp, and is not easily felted. It has long, triangular locks and was historically valued for its strength, which was used for stuffing mattresses, but it is now commonly used for making carpets and rugs. The staple length is long (between 25 and 30 cm). It can be spun into a tweedy yarn. More often, it is blended with other breed products for softer, more forgiving yarns with which to make garments.

The ram's horns are true "Aries", whilst the ewes all have much shorter horns, but still very prominent. Just as well they are 'kindly' then, isn't it?!! To give you an idea of size, the horn brow of this ram was level with my 'pelmet' - so a good metre tall and perhaps a centimetre or two above that. It was by no means the tallest sheep at the show, though...

Now to leave you with a pretty flower for our galdogs over at LLB...