The Red Engadine or Engadine Red is a traditional Swiss breed of
domestic sheep from the
Lower Engadine valley and some neighbouring parts of
Bavaria and
Tyrol. It derives from
cross-breeding of stock of
Bergamasca and
Alpines Steinschaf type. It is characterised by its convex profile, its fox-red wool and its long lop ears. In the 1980s it became gravely
endangered, but has since recovered. It is a hardy mountain sheep; the hooves are strong and hard, and the breed is one of the few that are reported to have good resistance to
foot rot.
History
The Red Engadine is a long-established traditional mountain sheep breed of the
Lower Engadine valley, in the
canton of Graubünden in south-eastern Switzerland, and some neighbouring parts of
Bavaria in Germany and
Tyrol in Austria. It derives from
cross-breeding of sheep similar to the modern
Bergamasca, brought by Italian shepherds to the Alps of eastern Switzerland, with indigenous stock of
Alpines Steinschaf type.
During the twentieth century it was gradually displaced by faster-growing breeds such as the
Weisse Alpenschaf Weisse or Weiße is a surname which means "white" in German. It may refer to:
People
* Charles H. Weisse (1866–1919), American politician
* Christian Felix Weiße (1726–1804), German writer
* Christian Hermann Weisse (1801–1866), German Prot ...
, and by the 1980s it was
gravely endangered. With the assistance of
ProSpecieRara, measures were taken to recover the breed: in 1985 a
flock-book was started, and in 1992 a
breed society, the , was formed. Between 1992 and 2001 the recorded population rose from 40 breeding rams and 250 ewes to 136 rams and 1381 ewes. In 2007 the breed was listed by the
FAO as "not at risk"; in 2020 its
conservation status was reported to
DAD-IS as "at risk".
Characteristics
The Red Engadine is characterised by a convex profile, a fox-red coat, and long lop ears; the coat may fade in the sun. The face is dark, which together with the long drooping ears may give the animal a monkish appearance; this has given rise to names such as rm, Besch da Pader, italic=no and german: Paterschaf, italic=no for the breed.
It is a hardy mountain sheep; the hooves are strong and hard, and the breed is one of the few that are reported to have good resistance to
foot rot.
Use
The Red Engadine is reared principally for
meat
Meat is animal flesh that is eaten as food. Humans have hunted, farmed, and scavenged animals for meat since prehistoric times. The establishment of settlements in the Neolithic Revolution allowed the domestication of animals such as chic ...
. It is slow-growing in comparison to some other breeds, but shows high
prolificity – it is an aseasonal breeder, with a high twinning rate and short lambing interval of seven to eight months. The meat is of high quality and is low in fat.
Unlike more widespread breeds such as the Weisses Alpenschaf, it browses on woody stems as well as grass. It has been shown to be effective in limiting the spread of the invasive ''
Alnus alnobetula'' (= ''Alnus viridis'', "green alder") which threatens
montane pasture land in the Alps and elsewhere.
References
Further reading
{{midsize, 1=* Christian Gazzarin (editor) (2018)
''Schafgeschichte & Lammgerichte''(in German). Hinterforst: Spriessbürger Verlag. {{isbn, 9783952452431.
Sheep breeds
Sheep breeds originating in Switzerland