HALF-PRED SHEEP.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1312, 15 December 1911, Page 10

HALF-PRED SHEEP.

DELVING INTO THE PAST. The lialf-bnxl sheep is the subject of on artieio by Sir Geo. Clill'ord in the j Canterbury Agricultural College inagaline. The article runs as under:— From the day when ail active hunter among primitive men caught an agile primitive sheep ami ascertained that its lean, sinewy Hash iva.s edible and that its matted tang'.e of coarseflwco could be transferred as artificial covering . to hid own poorly-clad skin, our race has never ceased the process of moulding this creature to its manifold uses. In j its wild state the sheep has been subject i to all forts of variation , due to climatic 1 causes or fortuitous accidents of breed- I ing while its more domesticated cousins I were undergoing processes, however rude, i of .selection for the purpose ef increas- ( ing in special directions their utility to I their shepherd owners, llence there is i perhaps no animal exempt tho dog ] has assumed so many distinct character-' isti'cs or adapted itself io s:> many different habitats and requirement!!. This pliancy and Protean faculty has in countless generations evolved all the differences with which we are familiar in tho wild and tamo cousins of our flocks; tho mountain sheep of the .Himalayas, the horn-bearing timid merino, the solid ( Down, and tho placid I'omuey Marsh, with countless intermediate stages, bear • evidence to this valuable Quality ,in which wo recognise our encouragement i to attempt the production in a new , country of a breed specially suited to its climate, ils soil, .and its needs. The choice of strains for the purpcre has been largely tho result of happy chance, as the oxis'.euce of merino flocks in Australia, and their capacity for thriving on large areas without minute attention determined their selection for stocking its unoccupied' acres. The initial shipment of merino sheep to New Zealand for pastoral purposes was inado by the present writer's father in 18-11, and this may he considered the first link in.a.long chain of consequences. The gradual subdivision of land, the increase of population, and of demand mutton, and,, most ,of all, tho institution of the frozen meat trade, call«l for sheep free from the bulkiness and coarseness of mo-t ef the imported breeds and .with a quicker development . of fc'rowth and of fattening than tho constitution _of the merino permitted. Owners of merino flocks fac-ed with, this problem tried many experiments foredoomed to failure, but\it gradually came to bo realised (hut the half-bred shsep whose sire was a Lincoln or English Leicester rain ami whose dam was a merino ewe gave the mast promise, Lambs thus .raised 1 were of a-useful' typtf for' freezing, and tho one or two-shear wethers of medium sizu were higlilv estimated by tho London fialosmmi. 'Moreover, the fleece proved to have snecial attraction for manufacturers.--.- The first' tross progeny being thus, ah ideal animal ,in meat and, woul. with, activity enough tor rough irrouml and piacMitv-.ennugh 'V>r small .paddocks, it remained; for. the ■ bleeder to fix the typo ami secure its permanence, in which task lies the crux ot tho present situation."- Wo' have got f° ~l , a r .""at ,vo ' know a Corriedalo or halfbred sheep, when we see it, but a visit to showgrounds or to saleyarcls re-veals-too many -discrepancies in' wool, in covering, in carcass, aiid'in quality—nor is it easy to devise meaus for socurin" the uniformity so greatly to be desireil nom a commercial standpoint. Tho difficulty arises from - tho numerous streams which unite to form the breed of halfbred Cornedale sheep'. Of tho types 0 f merino sheep in the countrv, good, bad or indifferent, there were two of neat excellence, but differing exceedingly in important respects. Similarly on tho ether side of the blend there were used English Leicesters, Border Leicesters, and Lmeolns, ot which each provided varieties scarce.j- less diverse. ; Hence sonic ofour ha.fbreds and Corriedales threw back to. too, many sources to secure uniformity. even within a single flock, while it is hard indeed for flock-masters to secure a safe interchange of rams without risk of deterioration. . What then, is the remedy for this diversity !„ our new breed? For what it is worth I will irivo my formula for l ta construction. Tho breet'er dosirlncr ? n ll i a Muck of luilfbrcd ewes j should select a draft of merino ewes of good pedigree to lie mated with Lincoln rams-whether Lincoln or Emrlish Leicester rams are the batter has been dis'putCd, but ii iitiubred f>w<\s in considerable number are to bo shorn the bales will eoon reveal that the Lincoln'cross carries its wool far bettor when rearing Jambs, a difference of two or three pounds of .wool beinir-verv appreciable in annual returns. The English Leicester cross may come out earlier as lambs, though 1 have had no cause to complain Tpi ~c { jlnc T oll .i cross in that respect. J. he .Border Leicester cross, however soon the lambs fatten, docs not yield a shajeJy carcass, and is outside competition in wool. \\ hen the beginner has selected his merino ewes and his Lincoln rams, Jic must, if lie is to succeed, stick to liis fiatno typo of merino and of Lincoln, or if unsuccessful abandon that attempt, and tagiu afresh. Assuming that he has reason to be satisfied with tho first cro*s owes of his experiment, ho will then proceed to cull tho faulty owes anion." their progeny, and put the reserved ones u / 7 0ss rams of similar character. At first ho cannot avoid culling some 2.5 per . cent, but ns time goes on he will lind taults disappear and can reduce his culling to some ,10 per cent, without injuring uniformity. I have found it advantageous to breed first cross rams to mato witli the halfbred ewes to assist in . preserving tho original ideal, but after nearly 30 years' establishment the inner fitud flock of halfbred ewes produces oh tho average quite as serviceable a lot of Tarns, and, as might be expected, more evenly matched. Tho best system of working a fair-sized flock of ew'es is. aftor picking the best for its continuance. to breed from the remainder of tho retained ewes a Shropshire or Southdown cross lamb. These, of course, are mostly fattened, but in any case the dark birthmark of their race prevents the d-escemlants of the faultier ewe from the possibility of re-entry into the main floe*. . Experience has fully shown that fit least in Canterbury we have from two very dissimilar breeds of sheep lit upon a product which exactly fits its surroundings and our requirements. Only time is now needed gradually to eliminate the less profitable and- substitute the more valuable types of this local adaptation of the wool-bearing friend of man. , Tho permanence of tho breed in its best, examples is amply confirmed, and its merit will secure it from the common ?ato of relapsing into extinction. .