By Bonnie Sutten — When I first started raising sheep for profit, raw fleece sales were on the bottom of my priority list. I thought that if I was raising sheep for wool, it was the processed roving or other products that would be the way to go. I spent a lot of time and money, believing that raw wool would not be profitable. From the beginning of our work in raising sheep for profit, our farm set a goal to continue to raise this breed with the handspinner in mind. Because of this, we never sell any fleeces on shearing day. There is never time that day to thoroughly skirt a fleece, and if you sell it to someone and they take it home and show someone else, that unskirted fleece is going to represent your farm to the public. Ready to bring sheep to your homestead or small farm?
After decades of giving way to larger farm enterprises, smaller farms are making a comeback, not only for crops but for raising animals as well. Small-acreage farms can provide suitable space for profitably raising sheep. Profitability can be challenging, but with productive sheep and close control of expenses, a profit is possible. Sheep produce income from the sale of meat, wool and milk. The highest-quality meat is produced from lambs, young sheep under one year of age. Most sheep are sheared once per year to produce wool. Successful marketing of sheep products is critical for a profitable sheep operation and timing is a critical factor. The price for lamb is often higher in the spring than during other times of the year. Some sheep producers schedule fall lambing to produce market lambs by spring. However, only certain breeds of sheep such as Dorset, Rambouillet and Polypay, lamb during the fall. Most breeds give birth to lambs during the late winter or early spring, producing market lambs for summer or fall sales. Familiarity with consumer buying habits in your area will help determine the best timing for lamb production.
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Ewes normally give birth to one to three lambs per year. Most ewes successfully raise two lambs. Twins provide a larger profit than single lambs. The ability to produce twins rather than single lambs is partially inherited. Ewes who are a twin or triplet tend to produce more than one lamb. Careful selection of breeding ewes and excellent care of the young animals is necessary for a profit. It is essential to have a marketing plan. Sheep producers sell sheep by auction or directly to slaughterhouses, restaurants or retail outlets.
Spring and Fall Lambing Seasons
The relatively low investment and the natural, gradually increasing size of a flock may make sheep ideal for the beginning small and part-time farmer, according to Dr. Clair E. An animal breeding specialist, Terrill has been watching the economics of sheep production for years. Terrill, who retired from the U.
Raise the Best Sheep for Wool and Build a Solid Customer Base for Raw Fleece
Coarse wool ewes. Medium wool ewes. Fine woil rams. Fleece Learning to grade wool. Unloading wool at the wool pool. Wool noney. Wool yarn Wool garments. Real men wear wool One sheep Approximately 90 percent of the world’s sheep produce wool. One sheep produces anywhere from 2 to 30 pounds of wool annually. The wool from one sheep is called a fleece, from many sheep, a clip. The amount of wool that a shee; produces depends upon its breed, genetics, nutrition, and shearing interval.
Lambs produce less wool than mature animals. Due to their larger size, rams usually produce more wool than ewes of the same breed or type. Long wool sheep Long wool sheep usually produce the heaviest fleeces because their fibers, though coarser, grow the longest. Hand spinners tend to prefer wool from the long wool breeds because it is easier to spin.
Some sheep produce very coarse fibers. This type of wool is called carpet wool, and as the name suggests is used to make carpets and tapestries. Medium wool sheep Jn wool sheep, raised more for meat than fiber, produce the lightest weight, least valuable fleeces. Medium wool is usually made into blankets, sweaters, or socks or it is felted. According to the I. Fine wool sheep Fine wool sheep produce fleeces which usually have the greatest value due to their smaller fiber obe and versatility of use.
Garments made from fine wool are less likely to itch. Hair sheep Hair sheep shed their coats and produce no usable fibers. The «fleeces» from hair sheep and hair x wool crosses should be discarded. Their inclusion in a wool clip can contaminate the pne clip. Even raising wool sheep along side hair sheep or other shedding animals could affect fleece quality of the wooled sheep.
Hair will not accept dye. Value of wool The value of wool is based on its suitability for specific end uses, as well as the fundamentals of the world oone market. Raw wool is usually purchased on the basis of grade.
Grade denotes the average fiber diameter and length of individual fibers. The grade or price is reduced if the wool is dirty and contains a lot of vegetable matter or other contaminants.
Color In the commercial market, white wool is more valuable than colored wool because it can be dyed any color.
Even the wool from sheep with white faces is more valuable than the wool from sheep with dark or moddled faces because the fleeces from non-white face sheep may contain colored wool or hairs which cannot be dyed. In contrast, naturally colored wools are often favored in the niche markets. Wool marketing In the United States, large producers of wool usually sell their wool to warehouses or directly to wool mills.
Sometimes, the wool is sold on a clean scoured basis with the lower quality belly removed from the clip. Small producers often sell their wool raw through wool pools. A wool pool is a collection point for wool from many producers. At the pool, wool is sorted and packaged into different lots. The entire pool is sold to one mill, often via silent bid. Some producers sell their wool to hand spinners or have it made into yarn or blankets.
When prices are low, some producers throw their wool away or give it to their shearer. In The average fleece weight was 7. In the US, Nevada sheep boasted the heaviest fleeces weights: 9. Sheep producers can get more money for their wool if they direct market it to hand spinners or add value to it. In niche markets, there is no upper limit as to what wool can sell. Globally Wool is a freely-traded international commodity, subject to global supply and demand. Though China is the largest producer of wool, Australia dominates the world wool market.
China is the largest wool buyer. The United States accounts for less than 1 percent of the world’s wool production and is a net importer of wool. In the U. Wool Production — Top 10 countries and states. Sheep About sheep. Kinds of sheep. History and other interesting stuff. Send E-mail. Raising sheep.
Sheep Products. What Sheep Eat. Fiber diameter. Fleece weight. Metric tons.
How to Harvesting Wool — Amazing Sheep Factory — Wool Processing Mill
Log in or Sign up. Welcome to the Homesteading Today Forum and Community! Sheep Income? How much does your sheep make? Oct 12, 1. Messages: I would Specialy like to hear from those of you that can compare two or more breeds or crosses or mutts in one spot! Oct 12, 2.
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