Kerry Hill sheep

Kerry Hill sheep

The Kerry Hill (Welsh: Dafad Bryniau Ceri) is a breed of domestic sheep originating in the county of Powys in Wales. It derives its name from the village of Kerry (Ceri), near Newtown.^[1] Kerry Hill sheep have a distinctive and unique coloration, with a white face bearing black markings around the mouth, ears, and eyes.^[2] Both rams and ewes are polled. Their wool is white, and their legs are white with black markings. First mentions of the breed date back to the early 19th century, and today it is distributed throughout the United Kingdom, Ireland, the Netherlands, Germany and Denmark. Though still not very numerous, the breed was removed from the records of the Rare Breeds Survival Trust watchlist in 2006.^[3] This breed is primarily raised for meat.^[4]

The Kerry Hill Flock Book Society keeps a register of pure bred animals and provides information on the breed, shows and sales.^[5]

Characteristics

The Kerry Hill is a medium sized breed of sturdy build, an average ewe weighing about 55 to 65 kg (121 to 143 lb) and a ram a little more.. The face is white with black markings on the nose and around the eyes, with black, wool-less ears set high on the head. The legs are white with black markings. The fleece is fine and white, with a Bradford count of 54 to 56 and a staple length of 10 cm (4 in). An average fleece weighs about 2.75 kg (6.1 lb).^[1]

The lambing percentage is often 175% and a terminal sire can be used for a larger carcase. The ewes milk well and the lambs grow fast. They can produce a 16 kg (35 lb) carcase at twelve to fourteen weeks, or if overwintered, a 20 to 25 kg (44 to 55 lb) carcase the following spring.^[1]

References

1 2 3 "Kerry Hill". Breeds of Livestock. Oklahoma State University, Dept. of Animal Science. Retrieved 2015-08-12.
↑ "Kerry Hill". National Sheep Association (U.K.). 16 March 2007. Retrieved 2009-04-17.
↑ "Rare Breeds 'Watchlist': Good News And Bad". Rare Breeds Survival Trust. 2006-01-09. Retrieved 2009-04-17.
↑ "Kerry Hill/United Kingdom". Breed Data Sheet. Domestic Animal Diversity Information System. Retrieved 2009-09-01.
↑ "Kerry Hill Flock Book Society". Retrieved 2015-08-12.

Literature

Williams-Davies J (1981/1987), Welsh Sheep and their Wool. Gomer, Llandysul pp.39-42.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kerry Hill.

kerryhill.nl (Dutch)
Danish Kerry Hill association (Danish)
Sandyford Farm Kerrys (Kerry Hill Breeder)

Livestock breeds of the British Isles

Cattle

Beef cattle	Angus Belted Galloway Devon Dexter English Longhorn Hereford Highland Luing Shorthorn South Devon Sussex Welsh Black

Dairy cattle	Ayrshire Guernsey Jersey Milking Shorthorn

Dual purpose	British White Gloucester Pembroke Red Poll

Primitive	Chillingham wild cattle Vaynol White Park cattle

Sheep

Extant	Beulah Speckled Face Bluefaced Leicester Border Leicester British Milk Cheviot Clun Forest Cotswold Dalesbred Derbyshire Gritstone Devon Closewool Devon Longwoolled Dorset Down English Leicester Exmoor Horn Galway Greyface Dartmoor Hampshire Herdwick Hill Radnor Kerry Hill Lincoln Llanwenog Lleyn Lonk Norfolk Horn Oxford Down Portland Romney Rough Fell Ryeland Scottish Blackface Shetland Shropshire Southdown sheep Suffolk Swaledale Teeswater Welsh Mountain Wensleydale Whitefaced Woodland Wiltshire Horn

Primitive	Boreray Castlemilk Moorit Hebridean Jacob Manx Loaghtan North Ronaldsay Soay

Extinct	Scottish Dunface

Pigs

Extant	Berkshire British Landrace British Lop British Saddleback Essex Gloucestershire Old Spots Hampshire Large Black Large White Middle White Oxford Sandy and Black Tamworth Welsh Wessex Saddleback

Extinct	Cumberland Grice Lincolnshire Curly-coated Small Black Small White Yorkshire Blue and White

Goats

Anglo-Nubian Bilberry British Alpine Golden Guernsey Irish

Poultry

Chickens	Burford Brown Cornish Derbyshire Redcap Dorking Ixworth Marsh Daisy Modern Game Modern Langshan Norfolk Grey Old English Game Old English Pheasant Fowl Orpington Rosecomb Scots Dumpy Scots Grey Sebright Sussex

Ducks	Abacot Ranger Aylesbury Orpington Khaki Campbell Magpie Shetland Welsh harlequin

Geese	Brecon Buff Shetland

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