Breeds of Livestock - Herdwick Sheep — Breeds of Livestock, Department of Animal Science Breeds of Livestock, Department of Animal Science Breeds of Livestock - Herdwick Sheep Breeds of Livestock - Herdwick Sheep Herdwick The Herdwick is found in the Lake District of northwestern England, on the Fells of Westmorland and Cumberland. They are a carpet wool and meat breed. The lambs are born with black faces, legs and blue-roan fleeces which lighten in the adults. The males are horned and the females are polled or naturally hornless. Reference: Continental Herdwick Sheep Breeders Association Continental Herdwick Sheep Breeders Association ​Authentic Herdwicks according to the Lakeland tradition The purpose of Herdwick red ​ The red colour marks the rams out of the ewes and makes it easier to spot a Herdwick from the bottom of the fell. The dye makes the Herdwick fleeces look grand in shows and auctions. It highlights the contrast with the white of the head and legs which is in important characteristic in a good ram. Originally the red dye was made from iron ore or graphite mixed with grease.

Now chemical dyes are available. Left: Gavin Bland preparing a tup for the Keswick Show and Sale. Right: tup bred by Grove farm. Two continental ewes bred by Westerplas Flock. The tipping point often seems to be the armpit. Once this turns black the Herdwick loses contrast. A clear distinction between the white of the head and legs and the dark bluish grey coat is an essential characteristic of a true-type Herdwick. Left: James Rebanks showing a cracking tup. The contrast between legs, head, neck and the body colour is magnificent. This animal proves that a combination of a dark coat with a hoar frosted white head and legs is possible. Right: Joe Weir from Chapel farm, Borrowdale with a show tup in Herdwick red. Left: The breed standards which goes back to 1921. Right: A male and a female with comments on the essential characteristics by Herdwick breeder James Rebanks from Racy Ghyll farm, Matterdale. A true-type Herdwick Examples of the breed standards are never complete. With the pictures we highlight some aspects that we learn from farmers in the Lake District.

There is no such a thing as a perfect Herdwick. With the words of our mentor Mayson Weir: ‘They all have their problems’.The challenge of breeding is the constant pursuit of these unattainable perfection. Herdwick sheep | PetMapz Don't see the breed your're looking for? Click here and let us know! Herdwick sheep United Kingdom Origin The Herdwick is a breed of domestic sheep native to the Lake District of Cumbria in North West England. The name "Herdwick" is derived from the Old Norse herdvyck, meaning sheep pasture. Though low in lambing capacity and perceived wool quality when compared to more common commercial breeds such as Merino sheep, Herdwicks are prized for their robust health, their ability to live solely on forage, and their tendency to be territorial and not to stray over the difficult upland terrain of the Lake District. It is considered that up to 99% of all Herdwick sheep are commercially farmed in the central and western Lake District. The wool quality of a Herdwick has unique qualities relating to durability. Thick bristle type fibres will often protrude from garments forming a protective barrier layer in blizzards.

Most likely the same qualities that protect the sheep in similar conditions. They have been known to survive under a blanket of snow for three days while eating their own wool. Severely threatened by the 2001 outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in England and Wales, the breed has survived due to the intent to preserve this unique animal as a crucial part of traditional Lakeland agriculture. Still far less in number than most commercial breeds, Herdwicks survive largely due to farming subsidies and the aid of the British National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty. The root word of the breed's name, herdvyck, "sheep pasture", is recorded in documents dating back to the 12th century. The origin of the breed itself is unknown, but the most common theory is that the ancestors of Herdwick sheep were introduced by early Norse settlers. According to this, it was brought to the region somewhere between the 10th and 11th centuries during the Viking invasions of western England. Alternatively, a piece of local folklore once suggested that it came from a wrecked Spanish Armada ship. In any case, the Herdwick was an important breed in the Lake District by the end of the 12th century.

For centuries, the husbandry of Herdwick sheep has been a large factor in shaping the culture and terrain of the Lake District. Topographically, grazing by sheep continues to keep the hillsides of fells largely treeless, and the ubiquitous dry stone walls of the valleys were built to protect grazing land and to confine livestock. Linguistically, many words of Lakeland speech relate to sheep husbandry. The ancient Yan Tan Tethera counting system for sheep is a survival of Brittonic counting systems. In the modern era, the main industry of the Lake District has shifted from agriculture to tourism. The subsequent influx of tourists to the District has at times conflicted with traditional life, including the raising of Herdwicks.

One Lake District farmer summed the problem up as, "We get 100,000 visitors across our land every year...If just one in a thousand forgets to shut a gate or can't be bothered, that's a hundred times we have to go out and round up our sheep." In the late 20th century, the keeping of Herdwicks became economically inviable without outside support; open market prices for Herdwick fleeces sometimes drop as low as a penny a kilogram (which is about the weight of wool from a single sheep). Without direct monetary guarantees for wool prices from the National Trust, it actually costs farmers a considerably larger amount of money to shear their Herdwicks than they would receive in compensation; the majority of farmers once burned their fleeces as waste products. The Trust now acts as a wool merchant itself, thus being able to bargain for better prices directly with the British Wool Marketing Board and operate a Herdwick wool trademark. Most farmers survive through the sale of lambs, as well as both National Trust and European Union farm subsidies. Lake District farmers in particular receive subsidies for operating in a designated Less Favored Area from the England Rural Development Programme.

Those who agree to maintain their land in accordance with sustainable farming practices also receive additional subsidies. 95% of all 50,000 or so Herdwicks live within 14 miles of Coniston, Cumbria, and this makes them particularly vulnerable to outbreaks of disease. The outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in 2001 led to the destruction of many flocks, and to fears for the survival both of the breed and of the typical Lakeland sheep farming industry. Of the estimated 100,000 Herdwick sheep present before the outbreak, a full 25% were lost. They were not easily replaceable because long-standing herds are hefted so the introduction of new stock to the fells would have required extensive fencing. The call for vaccination rather than culling to preserve what is considered a part of the traditional identity of the fells and moors was led by parties – such as the Duke of Westminster, Earl Peel, Lord Barnard and Lord Lonsdale – who wished to save the hill sheep on their lands. Many Lake District residents saw the breed as an indispensable icon of the region. Longtime resident and writer for The Guardian A.

Harry Griffin expressed this feeling: There are other mountain sheep on the Lakeland fells, notably Swaledales and Rough-Fells, but the hardy Herdwick is the sheep most likely to be seen in and around the Duddon valley, the Coniston fells, the Buttermere fells and, through Borrowdale or Wasdale, up to the highest land in England, the Scafells. More than the old drystone walls that quarter the fells, the packhorse bridges or the whitewashed farmsteads, the little grey Herdwick sheep typify the Lakeland. If they and their shepherds go, that is the end of the Lakeland where I have climbed, walked, skied and skated for nearly 80 years; of the Lakeland I have written about nearly all my life. The destruction of entire flocks meant that the shepherds were forced to undergo the process of again heafing (the local term for hefting) their new sheep to the hills.

Normally, ewes teach this behaviour to their lambs, but with no more ewes left acquainted with a particular heaf the behavior had be taught all over again to new ewes, inevitably involving much rounding up of flocks that had strayed over the often inaccessible fells. Unheafed sheep might also cause overgrazing by wandering if they replaced the original Herdwicks. The Cumbria Hill Sheep Initiative was set up to "reassess the position and circumstances" in the aftermath of the disease; tough government restrictions in order to prevent another outbreak are still in place. In 2008, an Oregon sheep farmer began importing semen from Herdwick rams in to the United States to begin a breeding program using artificial insemination and designed to bring the breed to the country for the first time. In 2013, Lakeland Herdwick meat received a Protected Designation of Origin from the European Union. Purpose RareBreedGoats 5 days ago Our Oxford Down Sheep are a little frozen today. and looking like snowmen. It's been a really… RareBreedGoats 5 days ago Our Oxford Down Sheep are a little frozen today. and looking like snowmen.

It's been a really cold few days here... RareBreedGoats Our Oxford Down Sheep are a little frozen today #rarebreedsheep #caithness #sheep365 #rarebreedgoats RareBreedGoats 7 days ago It is a blustery and snowy day accross most of the UK with further wintry showers, merging to… RareBreedGoats 7 days ago A snowy day accross Caithness with further wintry showers tonight with expected ice towards the coast #snowuk … RareBreedGoats 7 days ago It is a blustery and snowy day accross most of the UK with further wintry showers, merging to longer periods of... RareBreedGoats RT @GroatNews : Blizzards set to hit Caithness RareBreedGoats RT @visitnessie : Monster adventures to be had here in the Highlands! RareBreedGoats 10 days ago Such a handsome young lad posing for the camera in a lovely evening image of our Bagot Goats #bagotgoat … RareBreedGoats 10 days ago Such a handsome young lad....here is Viking Leodebest posing for the camera.

A lovely evening… RareBreedGoats 10 days ago Such a handsome young lad....here is Viking Leodebest posing for the camera. A lovely evening image of our... RareBreedGoats 17 days ago Cherish every moment of the days that come in 2017.....Happy New Year from all at Rare Breed Goats #rarebreedgoats … RareBreedGoats 17 days ago Cherish every moment of the days that come in 2017...Here's hoping this New Year brims your life… RareBreedGoats 17 days ago Cherish every moment of the days that come in 2017...Here's hoping this New Year brims your life with happiness...

RareBreedGoats 20 days ago Another year filled with sweet memories & joyous times has passed may you be blessed with love & best wishes for 20… RareBreedGoats 20 days ago Herdwick Sheep | Page 2 | The Farming Forum The Farming Forum Jackson4 said: ↑ Anyone who actually likes milking cows and lambing ewes is plain bonkers from the start So the Herdwick is effectively a rare breed, and 99% of them live in lakes were they get paid to support from various people (national trust) and now PDO status which will encourage people to keep them. The prince’s countryside fund has just provided £50,000 to help struggling Herdwick farmers. View attachment 115358 ...this is off the Kerry Hill flock book - [QUOTEOnce extremely numerous, numbers declined, and the Kerry Hill was until recently included on a list of Rare Breeds. However, this striking sheep is making a comeback, thanks mainly to its attractiveness to small-holders, who fall for its appearance. ] Click to expand...

Do you not like commercial sheep or something The reason the herdwicks, and these sheep are a rare breed is because farmers found something more profitable so stopped keeping them... you must expect a little doubt about their claim to be the best thing going?[/QUOTE] So do you think I should apply for some of that as I'm a poor struggling farmer who couldn't afford to keep his herdwicks, I think their doing better than me they've quad bikes, I've only got a team of dogs. The zwartbles are good ewes first one lambed yesterday(triplets) they do vary a bit we've some really thick ewes and some Holstein type, jury's out on the Kerry's at the moment, he see's his sisters zwarbs with 3 and his Kerry's with 1 and the finances don't look too good, so this lambing might be their last. Yes I do like commercial sheep, my wish list is for a flock of scotch halfbreds and put one of easyrams NZ Suffolks across them, I suppose your going to tell me their a rare breed now.

BELOWAVERAGE Member Jackson4 said: ↑ my zwartables were holstein types, one 2nd cropper bin in with the quads getting a kilo a day of concs as she just cant keep the weight on. Theres always a hobby market for those breeding these sheep for a bit of extra money i suppose? Click to expand... Going back to your previous post, what's the definition of a commercial sheep? When those herdwicks were here, they tided up the pastures going into the winter and when they were sold with lambs that ground was shut up for silage, total spend was below £150 and a bit of spring grass, they came to £8000 more than cost, are those not commercial sheep? Wensleydale Not saying any animal wont make you money, sheep is a numbers game and if your just buying old ewes out the mart the there is a bit of opportunity there to. Do you really think the uk sheep industry would make more money if they ditched the 22 million ewes it has now for herdwicks?

One lamb, one small heavy boned ewe, lambs which dont grow so have to be run on as hogs So thats feeding concentrates over winter to finish them. They sell for some of the lowest prices in the market and pures kill out around 45%. Their wool is the lowest priced wool on the wmb list at 25-27p/kg. So its a big cost to shear them. It probably is the most unimproved breed going, so why would anyone want to turn the clock back and farm like we did hundreds of years ago? Alot of the things you mention arent free to most people though, tidying the farm, grazing your pastures etc are not something free of cost, you just have the luxury of being a dairy farmer who has 5/6 months of grazing which he hasnt charged himself for. Doesnt mean we would all make money for nothing. We never had any feed costs when we kept sheep as a dairy farm as we had 200 acres of ryegrass coming out of our ears...

only we ran mules and suffolk crosses and had 2 lambs a sheep and father always got top price and all lambs gone before mid summer before they took the dairy grass. The Herdwick wont have a problem keeping going in the lakes as there is plenty of schemes to keep them going, hill farms are getting extra money, various charities look over them, and with PDO status they are fetching 35p/kilo extra for the meat. BELOWAVERAGE Member Jackson4 said: ↑ Not saying any animal wont make you money, sheep is a numbers game and if your just buying old ewes out the mart the there is a bit of opportunity there to. Do you really think the uk sheep industry would make more money if they ditched the 22 million ewes it has now for herdwicks? One lamb, one small heavy boned ewe, lambs which dont grow so have to be run on as hogs So thats feeding concentrates over winter to finish them. They sell for some of the lowest prices in the market and pures kill out around 45%. Their wool is the lowest priced wool on the wmb list at 25-27p/kg. So its a big cost to shear them.

It probably is the most unimproved breed going, so why would anyone want to turn the clock back and farm like we did hundreds of years ago? Alot of the things you mention arent free to most people though, tidying the farm, grazing your pastures etc are not something free of cost, you just have the luxury of being a dairy farmer who has 5/6 months of grazing which he hasnt charged himself for. Doesnt mean we would all make money for nothing. We never had any feed costs when we kept sheep as a dairy farm as we had 200 acres of ryegrass coming out of our ears... only we ran mules and suffolk crosses and had 2 lambs a sheep and father always got top price and all lambs gone before mid summer before they took the dairy grass. The Herdwick wont have a problem keeping going in the lakes as there is plenty of schemes to keep them going, hill farms are getting extra money, various charities look over them, and with PDO status they are fetching 35p/kilo extra for the meat. Click to expand...

I think you and me could argue for ever and a day on this, but I will make this point again, on good ground the herdwick will lamb at at least 150% and you will keep at least 3 for every 2 ewes you have now, so that's 3 x 1.5 =4.5 lambs no cake, no scan man, no sheds to lamb them in, also very little labour. Why would you want to feed a herdwick or herdwick cross hog concentrates as they would surely finish on good grass or turnips. As for lowest prices, we lost one ewe with pure lambs, those lambs were left in the field and had a bottle twice aday for a month, then left to get on with it £50 apiece in the stores in the back end. What I didn't mention was that up until 10 days before those ewes arrived we'd had 400 on tack for the previous 3 months so weren't that flushed with keep, our grass isn't free we pay rent and it has to work, don't think I said any thing else was free?

Surely the hand outs going to the herdwick hill farms are just that, it doesn't mean the sheep them selves won't work and perform on better ground, it just means they can survive in that environment. Our Kerry's start lambing this week, their down the field no feeding what so ever, just scatching a living and in really good condition if they do their normal 130%, and the lambs sell for normal price, lowest £68 highest £106 that's for fat lambs, would they not be competing with yours on a profit per ewe and per acre. Wensleydale We could go on forever but nobody knows the exact costs of anyones sheep farming without a detailed breakdown, which is not worth going into as we'd be going round in circles. There are so many variable costs that anyone could give a rosy picture of any animal they like without showing the true costs. Fert/slurry/seed/concentrates/labour/grass etc.

On my scanning i'd be selling 2300 lambs per 1000 ewes, you 1300 per 1000 - Herdwicks 1100 - 1500 per 1000 mine lamb in spring and are as good as all gone by august, last year i sold over 180% and the first 600 averaged £95 i used £240 to finish the last lambs on barley. I have no shared costs as i'm only sheep. Because i try to have a lamb per teat i have an efficient maintenance costs (though there is a cost for that as TimW will tell you) i feel i can make more money from the same land as i have the least ewes i need to have the most lambs. I have very milky ewes and bought the fastest grow rate rams available so that they finish as quick as possible... this then costs alot less as i can give the grass i've saved to my ewes, or save it for spring etc etc.

These are in the main have been the aims of modern breeding to make more profit..nearly every site you go on, and some people on here say the old breeds are slow growing (feed longer) dont kill out as well, have hardly any lambs (high maintenance), worthless cull (you said you bought them for £35?) wool worth nothing (costs to shear) etc etc. Maybe its time to drop the cows and go 100% herdies Anyway pointless arguing. Cumbria @tr250 in answer to the question, yes but most will cross with the Swale first then with the BFL. Mind I have had some bonny mule glimmers out of rangy Herdwicks. @Jackson4 , the Herdwick breeders have done a hell of a lot to improve the breed. They were one of the first to get DNA testing for scrapie, have a very strict registration inspection scheme for Tips and done a lot to reduce fleece weights to improve the sale value of finished lambs and crosses. The breed is bred for the hills so that is the most important asset plus mothering ability and thrift.

The fleece is worth nought but they are the easiest sheep in the world to sheer and your cutters and combs hardly need changing all day so most folk will do their own. Not saying they are the best sheep in the world but they suit a lot of folk and are ideal for theft with poor grazing and no time. Cheap and Cheerful Wensleydale I hate putting up or reading others costs or profits as we all gloss over any negative side to our sheep/farm/management etc. Well never really now if we've earned the most potentially from our farm without going through every detail. I have to say for a slow growing, thick boned hill breed your price at market seems very high?... when the price dropped mid july cause of the large amount of forward lambs this year i was seeing pure belties only reaching £77 in august. Alot of half texels getting low 70's. Yet all your herdwicks fetched £68 - £106?

If you have a good cheap system (roots for growing on/fattening) maybe some shared costs (grass from dairy, break in an arable rotation, sheep to clean up after sucklers etc) then there are those who will go out and buy cheap hill sheep, Swaleys, Herdwicks etc or culls in the mart for £35 and then make money.My point is, this to me doesn't make them in anyway efficient, the best you can say is you made money by buying cheap, and selling on before you get hit by some lifetime costs which someone else will have to bear. This doesnt say alot about the earning potential on a day to day sheep farm. Any search around the breed shows alot of breeding policies more akin to flat cap than front page of meat trade news.. bred for thick bones i noticed in one article (wool that wont blunt your shears ) One peice i saw said they were bad mothers and could lose 25% of their lambs? This is the breed 'standard'. Not many profit improving traits? A quick search here of mart prices - Not alot of money to be made for the farmers selling them pure?

If they did 100% on the hill you've made £33.86 for a years work minus your costs. A herdwick is half a fat lamb yet the gimmer lambs 'averaged' £33.86, shearlings £60.50 and ewes £40.30... why didnt someone just by them at £33.86 and put them in the mart fat if they were that good? Theres an opportunity to make money from anything at the right price through the mart but thats about it. Although if they have any real world hardiness and good feet then they have my vote over most hill breeds i can think off (christ beginning to like them now ) A quick search here of mart prices - Not alot of money to be made for the farmers selling them pure? If they did 100% on the hill you've made £33.86 for a years work minus your costs. A herdwick is half a fat lamb yet the gimmer lambs 'averaged' £33.86, shearlings £60.50 and ewes £40.30...

why didnt someone just by them at £33.86 and put them in the mart fat if they were that good? Theres an opportunity to make money from anything at the right price through the mart but thats about it. Although if they have any real world hardiness and good feet then they have my vote over most hill breeds i can think off (christ beginning to like them now ) Click to expand... Those prices were for all the Kerry wether lambs ever sold from here, you keep running the herdwick down and I'll keep buying them, bit p1ssed off never went up this time and bought some looking at that report. Why aren't you renting a fell and running those big fat things you've got up there, wouldn't be because their one trick ponies would it? All the prices you quote are for herdwicks straight off the fell, dowt you you'll find any prices for anything else straight off those fells, as they'll all have died within a week off being put up there. Just because you don't like these sheep doesn't mean they can't do the business down here.

Really impressed with your scanning, I hope you have a good lambing, good that you left the tups in so the few stragglers got caught instead of killing good ewes unnecessarily. I met someone who runs herdwicks on downland, they were averaging 160% lambing to charollais tups, born outside in April and selling fat from October time with all gone by March they reckoned they were a good milky ewe and as they were stocked so high, never had foot problems and never ate cake or silage they made a good little profit I was impressed with the condition of the things as I was expecting them to feel like primitive breeds but they were very solid and had alot of flesh on, well these ones from a down farm were anyway I chatted to them for a good half hour as I was interested in these funny looking sheep, but I neglected to get any contact details New Zealand I had a friend of a friend stay for a few days some months ago, an English well-to-do chap city born and educated but had no (zero) knowledge about farming but he played rugger in his youth which I learnt later was rugby so we therefore had a common interest but possibly at a different level.

The discussion above is about Herdwick sheep - this fine chap had a carry bag maybe you call it a holdall bag and it was made primarily from wool and this piqued my interest so I was duly informed the wool originated from Herdwick sheep and then I was told the bag purchase price was the top side of £500! I would farm any sort of sheep if the wool could earn for the farmer a good proportion of the retail price of the magnitude this bag was sold for. HelderHerdwyck Farm - Home HelderHerdwyck Farm Contact Us Helder~Herdwyck Farm, 450, Long Road, East Berne, NY 12059 Call the farm: From with the U.S. (518) 872-9081 / From outside the U.S. 00 1 518 872 9081 ﻿Welcome to Helder~Herdwyck Farm! Taking the Earth back to health, by the roots! ​Home of delicious, nutritious pastured eggs and rare-breed, Heritage meats. How your food is supposed to taste, is what we do.

Of the Earth, by the Sun....for you. On our farm, we harvest the sun to improve our soil, clear the air and grow natural, healthy nutritious meats. HOME OF THE BEATRIX POTTER SHEEP, and American Herdwick Sheep breeding. Helder~Herdwyck Farm is a Holistically Managed, sustainably operated, regenerative family farm in upstate New York, owned by myself, Beginning Woman Farmer, Erin Bradt and my husband, Ray. It is our desire to serve our community by not only providing local, naturally and humanely produced food alternatives to today's factory farm folly, but to improve our land, atmosphere and environment while doing so. In tune with the beautiful hilltown surroundings, we practice Holistic Management whole-farm planning in the operation of our farm. This basically means whenever there is a decision to be made, we take into consideration what affect the particular choices may have on our family, our livestock, our farm business, and the environment around us. We decided early on that we wanted to get the most benefit from our farm sustainably, nutritiously as well as financial security with the least impact on our environment, and a minimum of "farmer fussing" in flock or herd health management.

It's a work in progress as we turned full focus on it during mid 2014. Our practices provide regenerative benefits to our land by improving the soil naturally, with our animals' natural behaviors. Know your Farmer, Know your Food! We do NOT use or feed hormones, steroids, nor routine antibiotics. We will medically treat an animal if needed, and we do vaccinate against common maladies for overall health. When we do need to supplement our forage with grain, we use organic feed from Cold Spring Organic. Our hens and broilers are supplemented with Southern States Layer or Meat Grower Pellets, respectively, from Agway. Unfortunately, we have not been able to locate affordable organic feed for our hens, however, they love and do great on Southern States. The desires and preferences of practice mentioned have led us to carefully select our livestock, choosing small, sustainable breeds which must ideally serve multiple purposes and/or meet certain criteria in order to fit our operation. Our animals must have a natural hardiness, with inherent resistance to parasites and disease. With their smaller size, and our being a small family - not factory - farm, they have minimal impact on the environment through habitation of pastures, water areas or enclosures.

Our sheep are small and therefore do not disturb the earth's surface as much with their hooves - we also rotate them through our pastures, so they are never more than a few days in the same area. This leaves a plant cover over the soil to protect it and prevent erosion. Additionally, the animals do not congregate in one area for an extensive amount of time, which would otherwise leave bare dirt, susceptible to erosive actions. Herdwick sheep are a primitive and unique breed, breeding for a naturally short time in fall, producing lambs in the warmth of spring, ready for grass. Mother Nature intended this. It also greatly reduces the overhead expense of labor and heating (energy consumption) to ensure lamb survival during subzero temps of mid winter, and the risk of loss of lambs, or worse, the risk of a barn fire from a heat lamp. Our animals ideally serve multiple purposes. Each species serves at least two, if not more and/or produces at least two products of use in some way.

Our ewes, the base species in our pasture reclamation and soil remediation program, each produce: unique and beautiful natural-colored wool for rug making, outer-wear, felting or even insulation lambs for exceptionally delicious, healthy and mild meat possibly milk for soap-making mutton ​The lambs, in addition to their meat, produce beautiful, colorfully marked hides. Our Tup (ram) produces fiber, and sires our lambs. When our ram is retired, he still produces fleece, and can eventually produce a hide, horn for buttons, etc, and mutton. Our Guinea Fowl provide excellent tick patrol and an alarm to us of the uninvited hawk or other intruder. This year, we continue with a vast number of guinea fowl as we raise them for meat, 300 at this time. Ticks beware! Our llamas produce a beautiful, soft fiber, act as guard animals and are wonderful hiking companions, as well as produce "black gold nuggets" -the best natural pellet fertilizer around! Their digestive system works in such a manner as to not pass on weed seeds. ​ Our hens produce the best eggs ever, and eventually become stew hens.

Additionally, they also take part in our planned rotational grazing program, following behind the sheep and heavily fertilizing the soil where-ever their camp-out coop sits overnight, and, they aid in our natural attack on internal parasites our sheep may be susceptible to by eating them and interrupting their life-cycle. Our Australian Shepherd, Missy, is a working herd-dog and the best pet/companion ever for our daughter and us. The horses scrape by with our criteria because they produce manure (boy they do!) and provide family pleasure in riding. However, possibly in 2015, we will be pasturing out in our further fields, and will use our former cow-horses to check on the animals. Helder~Herdwyck's "Puppy King Kafa" (L) and "Bella", Akbash LGDs Our Akbash Livestock Guardian Dogs (LGD) - the "other white dog", serve a single, yet most important purpose. Though Puppy King Kafa (a.k.a. - "Coyote Killer") does not produce a product per-se, he protects our most valuable products and those who do produce them.

Shown here on November 11, 2013 at only 10 months old and about 80 lbs, he will likely top out at the larger size for Akbash - about 140 lbs, when full grown. He was 100 lbs on his first birthday in February). Originating from Turkey, these dogs were developed to independently protect isolated flocks from wolves, bear and mountain lion. We have two of the three in our area, and the Eastern Coyote is nearly as big as a wolf! (An occasional wolf has been reported. Newer to the U.S. than Great Pyranese or Maremma, these dogs still maintain their strong instinct to guard. The have not been bred away from this as the former two breeds. Bella joined our team winter of 2014. She was working the very evening we brought her home, at only 3 months old! These dogs are very independent, VERY intelligent and are thinkers. They readily figure things out. I have to say that Bella appears to be the more serious, and quicker to think guardian than her older counterpart. This puppy never missed her litter-mates, never uttered a wimper and bonded within minutes to King.

It was as if she'd always been here. I would never recommend this type of dog as a house pet, however. They are born for a particular job and their heart desires to do it. I share the opinion I have of Border Collies as well - trying to keep one as a house-pet would equate to buying a bulldozer to commute to work with because you think bulldozers are really neat and different. Doesn't work very well. We now can sleep, because they do not. We are comfortable with putting our sheep out on pastures thanks to the steady protection of these dogs. Have YOU hugged a Herdwick today? "Agriculture is our wisest pursuit, because it will in the end contribute most to real wealth, good morals, and happiness." - Thomas Jefferson Helder~Herdwyck's "Haylie" welcomes you! Pictured here as a lamb, she invites you to visit often as we continue to build our new website. If you have questions, please feel free to contact her in the pasture at helderherdwyck@gmail.com She hopes to hear from you soon!

Thank you to all of our visitors at the NYS Sheep and Wool Festival, Rhinbeck NY, and, Fiber Festival of New England, West Springfield, MA. Helder~Herdwyck's Hershey, daughter of Hyacinthe Helder~Herdwyck's "Hershey" says hello during an afternoon snack. This lamb has produced the rather drastic color change, unique to the Herdwick breed. At birth, she was a solid chocolate color (hence her name). Over the summer, her face and legs changed to this striking white. Usually lambs are born mainly black, or with mild marbling, and experience the same color metamorphosis. Hayley, above is a lighter marbling, but was otherwise solid black, which can be seen elsewhere in our site. Above she has begun the early stages of this transition. She was approximately 2 months old in that shot. Here, Hershey is about 5 months old. Web Hosting by FatCow All content and photos, unless otherwise noted, are Copyrighted.

All rights reserved by Helder~Herdwyck Farm Helder~Herdwyck Farm The Bradt Family 450 Long Road, East Berne, NY 12059 (518) 872-9081 Helder~Herdwyck Farm, 450 Long Road, East Berne, NY 12059 (518) 872-9081 helderherdwyck@gmail.com » Products Categories » Where to Buy Herdwick meat Where to Buy Herdwick meat Fornside Farm, St John’s in the Vale, Keswick, Cumbria, CA12 4TS Tel: 017687 79173 At F ornside Farm we are now selling our own Herdwick lamb and aim to have some available to order every 3-4 weeks. The lambs are taken to a local abattoir and butcher. The meat is hung for a week in the traditional way in order to tenderise the meat and enhance the flavour. The lamb is then professionally butchered into convenient cuts and bagged so that all the meat is ready to cook or home freeze.

Meat can be collected from the farm or sent direct from the butcher by overnight courier. Yew Tree Farm, Rosthwaite, Borrowdale,near Keswick, Cumbria CA12 5XB Tel: 017687 77675 Yew Tree Farm is in the centre of Rosthwaite, a small village in the beautiful Borrowdale Valley. The farm offers en suite accommodation and also runs the “Flock In” tearoom where you can sample their unique range of Borrowdale Herdwick products. Borrowdale Herdwick products are available by mail order, in hampers or may be bought direct at the “Flock In” tearoom. Millbeck Farm, Great Langdale, Ambleside, Cumbria Tel: 015394 37364 Millbeck Farm Herdwick Lamb is deliciously tasting, delicately flavoured and reared completely naturally on the Langdale Fells of the English Lake District. Our lamb is not mass-produced, factory farmed or force fed but slow matured – it is ready, when it is ready.

The stress free environment and high standard of animal welfare produces a meat of exceptional eating quality, with a fuller flavour and succulent texture. You can now order your Herdwick Lamb direct from the farm on which it is produced – saving you money, retaining all the fell farm freshness and helping to preserve the livelihood of Lakeland farmers. Our lamb can be ordered whole and half. A whole lamb weighs between 14kg and 18kg (approx 30 to 40lbs). Carved by professional butchers into convenient cuts and bagged for freshness, all the meat is ready to cook or suitable for freezing. Greensleybank Farm Askrigg, Leyburn Nth Yorks DL8 3DA Tel: 07775 813242 Located high within the Yorkshire Dales National Park on the roof of northern England Paul & Adele Chambers run a small flock of 20 Herdwick ewes which also also run alongside their cattle, all are quiet, bucket reared and respectful of fencing and wall enclosures. Herdwick can be supplied in the form of half, or a full carcass. A slow growing, lean animal, with a slightly gamey texture.

We only keep this breed as my wife observed a blind tasting and Herdwick came out top from a list of ten other types of sheep for flavour. All product comes professionally butchered, boxed, labelled and ready for the freezer, or your plate. Box Wt. around 40 lb. (18 Kg.) Usually available between January and May. Genetic Distinctiveness of the Herdwick Sheep Breed and Two Other Locally Adapted Hill Breeds of the UK Click through the PLOS taxonomy to find articles in your field. For more information about PLOS Subject Areas, click here . Loading metrics Peer-reviewed Research Article Genetic Distinctiveness of the Herdwick Sheep Breed and Two Other Locally Adapted Hill Breeds of the UK Herdwick Fleece, Fiber and Yarns Herdwick Fleece, Fiber and Yarns Herdwick Fleeces, Roving & Yarns Updated 10/23/14 Click HERE to go to Helder~Herdwyck Farm's site. One of our Herdwick crosses, here at Helder ~ Herdwyck.... Helder~Herdwyck's "Heather" - 6 month old ewe lamb.

68.75% Herdwick. Eating knapweed. Fleeces, Roving and Yarns... Fleeces: 2015 Shearing will be late March, and we will have 13 fleeces this year. Please NOTE: The Herdwick fleece is a RUG WOOL, or good for OUTER WEAR. It is not recommended for wear next to the skin, as it will be scritchy. If you want the Herdwick colors, but want something softer, we may occasionally have a fleece that does not express the Herdwick traits as strongly, and will be softer. Please call to discuss availability and possible color. US Herdwick Cross Fleeces - well skirted, unique color variations from black/brown to silver grey - some mixed color fleeces available. These fleeces are specially selected for showing the most Herdwick type traits of the dual ("quad") coat. See below for availability. Additionally we have fleeces which display non-Herdwick type fiber.

These lean toward suffolk and polypay style fleeces, but the animals they are from are 62.5% Herdwick from our own Flock. These fleeces are available in a nearly pure black, from "Alysia", and a milk chocolate grey, from "Helvellyn". Hogget (first shearing) - $22.00/lb 2nd Shear on - $18.00/lb Non Herdy type - $15.00/lb Dark or Marbled color greys mixed Shipping costs are additional. We will calculate your total cost and contact you before shipping. NOTE: Availability, color and pricing are subject to change without notice. Roving: We currently have about 10lbs of beautiful soft white, with Herdwick type texture, pin-draft roving. It is perfect for locker-hooking rugs, handspinning and felting. $6.00/oz Yarn: We have several lines of our Herdwick cross 3 ply yarn, ideal for rug hooking/punch needle, knitting, crocheting and weaving. AN IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT PURE HERDWICK FLEECES!

Herdwick Wool is a unique "quad-coat", and contains wool, hair, kemp and a unique fiber called heterotypic fiber. This fiber changes its insulative properties according to the weather/season. Because of these various fibers, Herdwick wool, in the UK, is primarily used for carpet/rugs, or outerwear - renowned for it's "Herdwick Tweed" jackets. It is not a fiber you would appreciate on the skin. However.... Because of these unique fibers, the wool is exceptionally warm, and weather resistant, allowing these sheep to survive at 3,000 feet altitude. Shepherds in England claim that after a rain, the Herdwick sheep are the first to dry. Additionally, the hair and kemp make the wool very strong, which lends itself wonderfully for rugs and carpets. These yarns will work excellently for outerwear, or garments that may be lined with another softer material. Medium grey 100% Herdwick Yarn from the U.K.

A lovely two tone "Marl" yarn of light and dark Herdwick Aran weight - 100 g/ 80 m 6 skeins in stock- $25.00/skein Black Hog 100% Herdwick Yarn from the U.K. Black Hog wool is the first shearing from Hogget, or yearling, sheep. Chunky weight, 100 grams 8 skeins in stock - $25.00/skein Roving.... Roving will be available sometime in 2014. It is available occasionally from England, which is special order. Call for arrangements and availability. This roving is available usually in light grey, medium grey and black. Price is determined at time of order, dependent upon order size, and shipping costs. ORDER FOR UK ROVING MUST BE PAID IN ADVANCE. I work with Crookabeck Farm to make all conversions in weight and price from grams and Pounds, to ounces and US $. Payment needs to be prompt, as currency rates change multiple times daily.

The Wren's Nest ~ Erin Bradt, 450 Long Road, East Berne, NY, 12059 (518) 505-9081 ~ OPEN BY APPOINTMENT ~ MC, Visa & Discover

Question: What type of animal is a Herdwick?
Answer: Sheep