Sheep breeding all over the world occupies a leading place in the livestock industry, therefore it is common for each region to adapt sheep breeds to local habitat conditions. It is for this reason that the diversity of species is striking in its quantity. The Suffolk sheep breed has become one of the most popular due to its high productivity.
English breed Suffolk
Suffolk is a massive polled breed of sheep, meat and wool direction. It has very high immunity, physical strength, grows rapidly and has a high lethal rate.
Did you know? The lamb is born with smooth shoulders and a narrow head, which keeps mortality and lambing problems to a minimum.
History of the breed
Officially, the Suffolks were registered in 1810 in England, however, the studbook was formed 76 years later. Suffolks gained their popularity in the early twentieth century around the world. This breed is the result of crossing the Southdown sheep with the horned black-faced Norfolk.. Sheep are bred in Suffolk, Essex, Cambridge. They are the owners of nutritious meat and high-quality wool thanks to the Southdown breed.
The Norfolk is recognized as a hardy breed due to its ability to survive in harsh climates, freezing climates and windy areas. The result is a muscular body and strong immunity, which they passed on to the Suffolks. All the necessary characteristics and qualities of the breed have been improved through careful selection of individuals.
The main characteristics of the breed
Suffolks are fast-growing, large, with a good slaughter rate. Are long-lived excellent immunity, resistant to parasites, high birth rate. The main reason for the popularity of the breed is its nutritious and tasty meat without the specific smell inherent in lamb. Unpretentious to food and habitat.
Did you know? Due to the special structure of the legs, sheep are perfectly adapted to a humid climate, and in severe drought, the birth rate remains at the same level.
Appearance and description
The Suffolk has a strong build, with a black head and black limbs that are not covered in rune hair. The ears of animals are rather thin, drooping. The tail is short without fat deposits, the limbs are straight, rather sinewy. The back is straight, the sacrum is massive, the head is medium in size. Horns are absent.
Suffolk is a muscular tall ram, the growth of an adult male reaches 80 cm, and the weight varies from 110 to 160 kg. The height of the female is within 74 cm with a weight of 80 to 140 kg. The weight of lambs at birth is from 3,5 to 7 kg, twins – 4,2-5 kg, triplets – 3,5-4 kg. With intensive nutrition, lambs can reach a weight of 35-40 kg at the age of 3-4 months. From the first days, lambs gain weight well, because mother’s milk is quite fatty. Meat yield – 50–52%. At the age of 6 months they are already considered sexually mature.
Wool is renowned for its durability
Representatives of the species are famous for their high-quality wool. Fleece crimped semi-thin, pleasant white or golden color. Twice a year it is necessary to carry out a haircut. The output of wool from an adult animal is 3-5 kg, from which up to 60% pure will be obtained, the fiber diameter is 30-34 microns.
Performance features: wool, meat
Suffolk wool is of very high quality: soft, fine, cross-bred. Breathable properties keep you warm. The fibers are 7–10 cm long. Wool products are very durable.
The meat of this breed has nutritional beneficial properties, does not have the smell inherent in lamb, has a delicate taste, the meat is juicy. The product is easily absorbed by the body, practically does not contain cholesterol, and the presence of lecithin helps prevent diabetes. The high content of fluorine will serve as a prevention against caries. Lambs are ready for market at 9-12 weeks. The muscle mass is very strongly developed, and due to the light skeleton, the slaughter meat yield in Suffolks is maximum, reaching 55–60%.
Advantages and disadvantages of the breed
The advantages of this breed over other breeds of sheep are quite a lot:
- Advantages:
- high productivity of meat and wool;
- adapted to temperature changes;
- very high immunity;
- nutritional value of the meat product, rich in useful substances;
- high daily weight gain of lambs;
- unpretentiousness in maintenance (pasture and stall);
- female fertility.
- Disadvantages:
- diseases of the limbs are noted;
- problems with large fetuses, lambing is difficult, help is needed.
Care
The breed gained its distribution due to its unpretentiousness in feeding and maintenance. Even eating only pasture, they quickly increase their weight.. It is necessary to feed grain mixtures and combined feeds with a sufficient amount of trace elements, vitamins and minerals.
Important! Suffolks are not recommended to be driven to distant pastures (a distance of 4–6 km) on dusty roads at a fast pace.
Neither external nor internal parasitic infections are kept on these sheep due to their body constitution. Hoof rot is practically not common in them, but regular prophylaxis of endoparasites is required (without such prophylaxis, intense croupous discharge from the nose may appear). Due to their good heredity and hardiness, Suffolks do not require special care, adapting even to the most severe climatic conditions., without experiencing much discomfort where not every kind of sheep can survive.
To obtain high results, it is simply necessary to provide a herd of transhumance for unpretentious sheep on intensive pastures. It is also possible to keep in a stall
Due to milk production, strong hooves and a wide pelvis, common problems associated with keeping sheep, such as poor growth, lambing problems, limb diseases, do not apply to this breed.
Reproduction
This type of sheep is highly productive in breeding. It gives excellent crosses with more improved meat qualities as a result of crossing with other breeds, as a result – the rapid growth of lambs with obtaining dietary meat. Intra-breed signs are unchanged.
Females are prolific: 100–130 lambs come out for 190 ewes. Okot takes place once a year. With each subsequent crossing with Suffolk sheep, the number of lambing per year increases to two, and meat characteristics improve. Already at 7–8 months, the first mating takes place.
Breeding area
Since the beginning of the twentieth century, Suffolk sheep have been bred in Europe, North and South America, Russia and New Zealand. The breed was repeatedly imported to the CIS countries and used for crossing with other breeds.
Important! Pastures located in the sun are not suitable for grazing, as the black head heats up, and sheep do not graze in the sun, but are aimed at finding shade.
Breeding the Suffolk breed will definitely be beneficial, due to the high level of development of the main indicators that every farmer should consider when choosing a breed for breeding. Ease of feeding and care, no signs of disease and infection, good life expectancy and a large offspring with easy growth, and, of course, the most important thing – the yield of food and high quality wool make the breed a priority among other breeds of sheep.
