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NEWSLETTER 2009

CULLING- SOMETIMES DIFFICULT, ALWAYS NECESSARY

submitted by Elaine Shirley

Robert Bakewell developed the Leicester Longwool (known at that time as the New Leicester) in the 18^th century through strict selection for the desired characteristics. Another way to phrase that is he culled (removing undesirable animals from the breeding group) heavily. He was selecting for an animal that matured more rapidly then average and an animal that had “two pounds of meat where there had only been one before”.

Over the 19^th and 20^th centuries the Leicester Longwool was selected to be the more wool oriented animal we know today. Although the focus of the breed has changed the need for culling has not.

As the stewards of this wonderful old breed we must always think if the animals we are breeding will help or hurt the breed overall.

There are many things to keep in mind while looking over your sheep.

1. Culling is, sometimes, a difficult choice.

The ram that butts you is a lot easier to get rid of then a friendly ewe but they must both be looked at critically. They don’t have to end up in the same place. The ram that butts you in any season other then fall (when his hormones get the best of him) or one that is very aggressive at any time of the year should go to the butcher or the stockyards. YOU AREN’T RAISING SHEEP TO GET HURT. Rams can, in the worst case, kill you and over the years there have been cases of that happening. Never, at any time of the year, trust a ram, even Mr. Sweetie; they ALL have the potential to butt. When butted by a ram, I’ll grab him under the chin and give him a loud lecture on who is in charge here. 90% of the time that works. You are the top animal in your flock and he needs to know that. If a tongue lashing doesn’t work, get rid of him. Having said all that I am very pleased will how well behaved Leicester rams are in general but mean ones do crop up. Get them out of the gene pool.

A ewe that needs to be culled can be butchered, kept where she won’t reproduce or sold to someone who is interested in a pet or her fleece. Do not transfer her papers to the new owners. If she had something that made you cull her, don’t let her potentially produce animals that could be registered.

2. Males should be culled more heavily then females.

Remember the old saying “The ram is 50% of your flock” One ram can have his genetic influence spread very quickly because he can produce so many more offspring in his life then a female. Choose your ram or rams very carefully and be critical of your ram lambs. I usually castrate about 1/3 of the ram lambs in the first few days of life with the rubber bands, ones with spots, ram lambs whose mothers weren’t great and ones with obvious problems. If you have never used rubber bands before have someone show you how to do it, you can do the task incorrectly and you still have a ram! Then in the fall or winter of their first year I cull out another 1/3. Ones that haven’t grown well, have scurs, have questionable bites, have wool I don’t like. They can be culled by butchering them, sending them to the stockyards or castrating them. At this point in their life this is a job for your vet and it does involve some blood. With the lovely Leicester wool these wethers can have a nice career of wool making, although they can get fat easily so don’t feed them too much. I end up with about 1/3 of my ram lambs as potential breeders and I continue to look at them and I am not opposed to culling at any point.

3. Feet and teeth are very important

When I started with the sheep at Colonial Williamsburg, I asked Jack Price from Maryland for advice. He raised sheep for many years and was a no nonsense shepherd. He said “If their feet or their teeth aren’t any good get rid of them. They need their teeth to eat and they need their feet to get them to their food”. I have followed that advice. Check the bites of all your sheep, under bites and overbites are very serious. Unacceptable in rams and very bad in ewes depending on the severity of the problem. Bad feet should be looked at the same way. Sheep who have bad pasterns should be culled. Sometimes an older sheep may go start to go down in their pasterns because of age. ALL young animals should have good feet.

4. There are some traits that are non-negotiable and are always cullable offenses.

Rams with testicle problems, one testicle, undescended testicles, very small testicles, testicles that are not shaped correctly.

Animals with very poor bites.

Animals with poor feet.

Animals with structural problems, backs that are not straight, hips and legs that do not work well.

Ewes who have prolapsed and their sons (the ram lambs of a ewe that has prolapsed should be castrated).

5. Read and use the breed standard

The breed standard was written to give you a guideline as to what makes a Leicester Longwool different from other breeds. Make sure your animals adhere to the breed standard and the unique characteristics that are part of our breed. Particularly look at the wool. There is a fairly wide range of strong and fine wool that is acceptable but you can get wool that is too strong and wool that is too fine. We need to keep that range available and not only breed for fine wool. When in doubt go to the standard.

6. Don’t feel guilty about culling, you should feel guilty if you don’t cull.

These sheep are here to do a job and create the next generation. Ideally the next generation will be better then the last. You feed your sheep, medicate them and keep them safe. Their part of the bargain is to produce good quality offspring, make sure they do it. Remember you are a steward, there were people before you who culled to give you the breed we have. You owe it to the next generation of breeders to do the same. With small flocks sometimes it is hard to cull but it is always necessary.

The meetings we have had where we handle sheep were done to help you recognize good and bad characteristics. The card grading event at Rhinebeck will achieve the same goal. If you have questions call any of the officers of the association and we will be happy to help you work your way to a decision.