Icelandic Sheep

 

Breeding Stock Goals

Our production model incorporates both colorful fleece and improved carcass production of Icelandic sheep.  Iceland’s progeny testing has improved meat yields and breed performance through semen exports to America.  Icelandic sheep historically are maintained on forages alone, hence their large rumens. The ewes are designed to raise a decent,  fast growing lamb without supplementation and look good doing it.  We expect to produce these improved meaty traits, while maintaining good mothering and that colorful, unique wool that sets them apart from other breeds.

Ewe flock strength starts with lambing performance.  We pasture-lamb, rarely using shed or pen to force motherhood.

They lamb in groups with adequate space for each ewe to isolate herself during the lambing process.  From this method we can discern truly good mothers of strong instinct and birthing ease.  Replacements are kept from those mothers who can lamb on their own, preferably from their first year, and grow hearty, growthy lambs in subsequent years unassisted.  Ideally a ewe needs to have lambed twice, if not three years before her lambs are considered as breeders. From this protocol we have had huge success in producing first time mothers whose instincts are strong in their first lambing.

Iceland has been exporting semen to the U.S. since 1998.  There is continual improvement in the breed due to quantifying sire contribution: carcass trait analysis and progeny testing (daughters’  performances).

There are no ram performance/progeny testing programs in North America that currently measure Icelandic sheep, except for GenOvis in Canada.  As of 2011 we have embarked on a progeny testing venture with  the NSIP (National Sheep Improvement Program) http://nsip.org/.  We will be able to discern weaknesses within our flock more readily, enabling us to select for optimal production.  Loineye testing will be done as well, and is also evaluated through NSIP. Our ideal goal is a “heavy” lamb that has maximum muscling from foreshank to butt under an appropriate fat cover,  raised on forages only.

Daughter performance is key to improving the flock from generation to generation.  We will look at which sires are producing milky ewes in looking at those EBV‘s on weaning weights.  We will also look at birth weights, prolificacy, early post weaning & post weaning weights and in many cases with our program, the carcass weights.  All the data we acquire will help us select which daughters stand out and which sires are doing their job.

We also will take it a step further and monitor parasite resistance, a valuable trait that should be selected for in American Icelandics if this breed is to compete on a commercial level.  It is possible to improve the breed in this area with genetic selection and proper (not over-used) deworming programs in place.

We built the flock with crossbred Icelandic ewes, and now have many high-percentage stock.  87% and higher  ewes are phenotypically indistinguishable from purebreds.  Our NSIP data will include the crossbreds, too,  as it is still important to keep track of all animals in our program.

 

  Icelandic Sheep Breeders of North America

Canadian Sheep Breeders Assoc.

USDA Voluntary Scrapie Flock Certification Program