Choosing Your Sheep Breeding Stock

Understanding Sheep

When we offer lambs as breeding stock, we look for animals that are healthy, structurally sound, and appropriate for responsible breeding, and you should too.    

 

Breeding should never be approached casually. Responsible breeding means thinking beyond the next generation.  The health, temperament, structure, genetics, and overall condition of both the ewe and ram matter, and a successful breeding program should support the continuation of these traits and long-term sustainability.

 

Before caring for and breeding sheep, it is also important to understand who they are.  Sheep are herd animals. They generally feel safer when they have appropriate companionship and are able to engage in normal social behaviors.

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They are also prey animals, which means their instincts are strongly influenced by safety and awareness of their surroundings.  Owners should pay attention to their physical health and body condition, their temperament and behavior, and their relationships within the flock.  It's also important to monitor their access to appropriate forage, establish shelter and protection from weather, and provide access to clean water and safe spaces.  Veterinary and preventative-care needs also need to be managed, and continuous monitoring of the sheep's ability to express normal livestock behaviors

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Breeders should contribute to healthy, functional livestock rather than breeding simply for quantity, and Weeping Willows Ranch follows this philosophy as well.