RBST-registered purebred Soay sheep for sale: update

We usually list all our sheep for sale on the big farm website, but that requires Steve to be inside at his desk and right now he’s busy outside getting ready to set our breeding groups, so here goes.

We have two adult ewes for sale, both of whom lambed this year for the first time, both produced healthy lambs.

Willen, 2-year old ewe, produced twins her first time lambing in 2017

Farnham surprised us with a black ewe lamb her first time lambing in 2017

We have four 2017 rams for sale, two brown rams and two that were pitch black at birth. The brown rams are pictured first, and then a word about the black-at-birth rams.

Yarburgh, a twin born in April 2017, is an AI grandson with rich genetic diversity from the UK

Rothwell, also born April 2017, has classic confirmation with outstanding wide horns

If you are one of the Soay breeders who just cannot get enough of the interesting color variations in the current registered Soay sheep population in the U.S., you might want to consider purchasing either Epworth and Grantham and here’s why. As noted above, both of them were solid black at birth. Both have now “lightened” to a dusky brown or, in the case of Epworth, an arresting light purplish grey-brown color.

We have no crystal ball to tell us what they will look like in a couple of years, but we do have one living example of what is likely to happen: our ewe Darby. She also was black at birth, then by about six months lightened to a first-ever (as far as we know) light brown coat with a purplish cast, very much like Epworth’s coat and to a lesser extent, Grantham’s as well. That lasted for a few years, and now as a 6-year old ewe Darby’s coat has returned to a much darker brown. There are genetic explanations for all this, but they are for another post over the rainy months. The pictures below show Darby at these three stages of her life, and then Epworth and Grantham’s baby pictures and their current color pattern.

Black Epworth at age one month

Epworth at six months has the same light, purplish fleece as Darby had at the same age

Black Grantham at birth in April 2017

Grantham’s coat seems to be lightening to the same purplish cast from his rump forward towards his neck

If you are interested in either of our proven ewes or any of our 2017 breeding rams, please contact us by either email (weaver-at-saltmarshranch-dot-com) or phone (541dash899dash1672).

For now …

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