Those wonderful fuzzy always smiling faces who can't
love em! In Dark or White they are always the same cute wool
covered sheep An outstanding group of adults in summer coat
A nice grouping of adult ewes with lambs in early
spring Adult Ewes in both colors Wonderful woolly faces A Sometimes like some to the adults shots below by the
end of winter and lambing time the girls have worn off alot of the face wool in the
hay mangers. Boys should look like boys, don't you think! He is a great one, photo at 9 years old not bad for
on old fella. Winter Wonderland
p
Who doesn't love a lamb? In the mini Southdown's the dark ones are referred
to as black but actually they are only black the day they are born and from
then on they begin to turn to a choc/mocha or sometimes but less often a silver gray. The white lambs most of the time will have cinnamon shading
(above) on their legs, eyebrows and muzzle, but if the shading is more of a gray the proper term
is called mouse Southdown's do NOT come in Spotted
if
Purebred no exceptions!
Mothers and their lambs what a sweet site to see in
the spring time fields! The Mini Southdown's may great youth, 4H, FFA projects as they are calm quite and with their small size even the smallest of children
can handle them with success Even in his first time ever with a sheep!
With his fuzzy face and legs this breed is one of the
woolliest and oldest known . The very fuzzy wooled face and leggings of
the lambs make them hard not to love instantly. The breed is calm, and
though heavily built are very easy to work with, and a good first choice
for the first time sheep man. They are easy keepers. Colors range from
all black to all white, most light colored ones have darker shaded legs
and face. All black or dark sheep fade with age not staying black.
Their tails are docked short and they are to be shown in full wool on the
face body and legs.
MINIATURE SOUTHDOWN SHEEP
History and Breed Information Sheet miniature (The "smiling fuzzy faced" teddy bear sheep)
The Standard Modern Southdown are a much larger sheep
that originated from these sheep not the other way around as may be the
case with most miniatures. Small Southdown sheep originated on the
south down hills of Sussex County England, making them a hardy and productive
sheep with remarkably good flavored meat. Southdown's are the oldest
of all the down breeds of sheep.
The Southdown breed
is one of the oldest of all purebred sheep in the world today. From
1780 to 1810 U.S. breeders went
from striving to develop a "small and good" animal the "babydoll type"
to some 25 years later, breeding to develop a "large and good" individual.
In the breed's long history, they have gone from small to large to very
large. Now, thank goodness, they are back to small again with our
present day Miniature Southdown, with the "Old World" type and size.
The miniature and toy sizes are equally as easy to enjoy.s
The breed, close to what we know
them as today, were standardized in the 1780's when it was realized the
potential of these little meat and wool sheep. By the early 1800's,
they had reached the American shores, and their popularity grew.
But little Southdown's could not compete with the demand for large meat
range sheep. So they were most often crossbred to the large range
breeds to produce larger, meatier breeds with longer legs better suited
for life on the range. The larger Modern Southdown of today emerged
to what they are today large, leaner, no longer the dual breed, just a
modern meat sheep.
We are thankful for the few isolated
flocks of the small original type Southdown's that have remained, for they
never gave into the thought of bigger is always better. These pure
flocks, are the base of today's Miniature Southdown Sheep, a true miniature
without really trying, they have always been this size, small!
Little Southdown's have many qualities that
quickly endear them to all that see their "smiling fuzzy faces" and teddy
bear bodies with their quiet, calm and gentle mature. Known for being
tolerant of small areas, no large pasture needed. They do not bother
fences or do they attempt to jump them. Often kept in orchards and
vineyards as weeders, because they do not damage adult woostocks.
They are strictly grazers, grooming your yard and orchard, eating fallen
fruit and keeping down the grass and weeds thus insect problems too, and
of course they are automatic organic fertilizers as a bonus.
All are the small, under 24" tall and some as small
as 19" inches. The smaller ones those under 19" are called toys everything
else is the same. These fuzzy faced little sheep are totally covered
with wool their face, legs and belly, giving them a very old world look.
Basic colors of white and black are accepted, but white ones with darker
shaded legs are most common. Blacks are becoming popular now, but
you should know that most change to gray with age giving them the pointed
look of dark legs and face. They have short necks and legs with a moderate
back. Their heads may appear large because of the bushy eyebrows
and face, a breed trait. The fleece of these little sheep is not long, but
has been tested exceptionally fine, as little as 19-29 microns. It
is often used to blend with mohair, angora or alpaca to make it a stronger
yarn without giving up any softness, it also felts well. Llama and
alpaca breeders have gentle them without fouling the feeders.
As an investment, most young lambs are reserved
before lambing. Wethers have a good value as well as a demand for
weeders and as companion, pet, and fleece animals as well as youth project
lambs. Many small animal enthusiasts regard them as collectors items.
Most people just love them as the lawn and orchard ornaments, of novelty
sheep able to fit into anyone's lifestyle and small land parcel. Miniature
and Toy Southdown's are exactly the same except for size.
THE CONFUSION OVER SOUTHDOWNS
As a sheep breeder and association register I field
a lot of questions about the confusion in the names of the "little" Southdown
Sheep. Basically all of the small "Old World Type" Southdown's, are
or were the same breed of sheep.
Sheep of this breed and type were among the first
animal imports brought into the English Colonies as early as 1640. Well
documented importation's were made into the state of Pennsylvania in 1824
to 1829 from England. Southdown's are one of the oldest known purebred
sheep breeds in the world.
The name(s) they are called by depends on the Registry
they are associated with. There are three accepting this breed/type more
or less, and at this time, each has it's own requirements, some sheep may
or may not fit into one or all of them. They are as follows:
The American Miniature Sheep Registry.
The Old English Babydoll Southdown Sheep Association.
*The Miniature and Novelty Sheep Breeders Association and Registry.
We here at the *M.N.S.B.A.R. have by far the strictest
and most complete Registry. We also have the most well written "BREED STANDARD"
and size guidelines, to assure that all sheep within this registry really
do comply to the written standard of excellence for the breed. This ensures
that everyone has the same goal of breed type and size solidly in mind.
We do accept sheep from other registries if they are able to pass our association's
standard requirements, not all can or do. Another point of some confusion is the term "Babydoll"
Southdown. This is a big misunderstanding as to where it came from and
who can and does use the term. One of the three registries does use this
term, but were NOT the founders of the term nor do they have the exclusive
rights to it by any means. The name "Babydoll" in association with this
little type of Southdown Sheep was used in the 1800's, long before that
association existed. This term was given to the southdown breed when they
were under the influence of the well known American breeders Mr. Jones
Webb and Mr. John Ellman, considered by many to be the early breed standardizers.
They were also the main improvers of the breed once they were brought over
from England in the early 1800's, as stated in the present day Modern America
Southdown's published history. There it states that "after about twenty-five
years, breeders went from wanting a 'small and good` animal, to the smaller
`Baby doll` in appearance, type in the 1940's". To the now more modern
and larger sized present day American Southdown. All this is well documented
in the present day America Southdown Breeders Association's history and
information packet.
We here at the M.N.S.B.A.R. register many "Miniature
Southdown Sheep" in our way of recognizing the small old-world breed type
of Southdown. Our Breed Standard is written to preserve the original small
type of the early American show and breeding stock. This is the blood flowing
in all purebred Southdown's in the U.S.A. today. So when is a Southdown a Southdown you might ask?
When it’s a Southdown! A Southdown by any other name is the same, more
or less and that's a fact!
