Hair sheep: It’s what’s for dinner

Hybrid bred for eating (not wool) is catching on in state

Jim Morgan of Fayetteville feeds his Katahdin sheep at his farm. He and his wife, Teresa Maurer, operate Katahdin Hair Sheep International.
Jim Morgan of Fayetteville feeds his Katahdin sheep at his farm. He and his wife, Teresa Maurer, operate Katahdin Hair Sheep International.

FAYETTEVILLE - While states like Texas and California produce the most sheep, a hybrid breed of rams and ewes is finding a niche in Arkansas.

Katahdin sheep - a breed known for its ease of care, mothering abilities and parasite tolerance - is commonly referred to as the “sheep you never touch” and has received a lot of attention from ranchers and farmers. The headquarters of the international Katahdin association is in Fayetteville.

Katahdin sheep have coarse-hair coats and are raised for meat rather than for wool. Unlike wool breeds, they shed their winter coats and do not need to be sheared, which saves growers time and money.

Jim Morgan and his wife, Teresa Maurer, of Fayetteville have been Katahdin sheep breeders for 18 years and have more than 100 sheep in their pasture. They also operate the breed’s association: Katahdin Hair Sheep International.

“Katahdins are one of three [types of sheep] increasing their numbers,” Morgan said of the number of Katahdin sheep raised nationwide.

Katahdins are considered perfect for Southern states because shedding their coats helps them stay cooler in the summer. And they have more muscle mass, which keeps them warmer in the winter.

Since Katahdins were introduced in the state in 1981 by Heifer International, more than 35 ranchers have added them to their pastures. In 2012, Katahdins ranked No. 2 nationally with roughly 600 fewer registrations than the No. 1 registered sheep, Suffolk, which registered 8,761 of its breed nationwide. In 2002, Katahdins ranked sixth, with about 4,200registrations in the nation.

Morgan said there are thousands more Katahdin sheep in the state that aren’t registered. “There are a lot of people who got their sheep from Heifer, and it really wasn’t tracked,” he said.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture National Agricultural Statistics Service does not keep a sheep or lamb inventory for the state because Arkansas doesn’t rank high in sheep meat production.

REFINING FLOCKS

Culling flocks helps growers refine the breed.

Parasite resistance and a ewe’s mothering ability help determine whether a particular sheep will continue to be bred or sent to slaughter. Katahdins that do not shed their winter coats in the spring are sent to slaughter. David Fernandez, livestock specialist at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, calls it “selective breeding.”

“You’re the evolutionary process. You select them out so they won’t breed and [thus] improve by selection,” he said.

The Katahdin breed evolved from hair-sheep breeds from the Caribbean. Because they have hair rather than wool, such sheep are more parasite resistant than wool-producing breeds. But they are not completely parasite-free, said Frank Craddock, professor and Extension sheep and goat specialist at Texas A&M University.

A concern for shepherds is the barber-pole worm, a blood-sucking parasite that lives in the stomachs of small cud-chewing animals.

Worm “populations can build up and kill a sheep in 31 days, so parasite-resistance is something that sheep ranchers find vital to their flocks,” Fernandez said.

If a rancher has to deworm a Katahdin sheep more than twice, the animals are sent to slaughter.

Culling “animals that have a lot of deworming will improve the flock,” he said.

Deb Deakin , owner and publisher of Banner Sheep Magazine and grower of more than 150 sheep, said all sheep have parasites, and there is no amount of culling that can completely get rid of parasites.

“The only sheep that don’t have parasites are stuffed or dead,” she said.

MULTIPLE OFFSPRING

Katahdin ewes often give birth to twins and sometimes triplets, which lets ranchers make more money per sheep. Morgan said a well-kept flock can produce twice its market weight simply because of the multiple births.

“The ewe of the future will raise triplets in a no-touch, moderate forage-only production system,” Morgan said.

Also, ranchers can have Katahdins and cattle in the same pastures because the sheep eat weeds that the cattle won’t touch.

“It’s a way to harvest the weeds that are normally sprayed and turn the weeds into meat,” Morgan said.

All farmers who raise sheep for the meat have to send their animals to a USDA-approved meat processor, said Maurer, who sells her meat at the Fayetteville Farmers Market.

Once it’s processed, ground lamb is sold for $8 to $11 a pound, and organ meats sell for $1 to $2 a pound.

“The price really depends on the cut, and there is a broad range for customers to choose from,” Maurer said. “We sell a lot for religious or cultural reasons, and to Arkansas folks who enjoy lamb as another meat option.”

Business, Pages 71 on 11/03/2013

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