The Beltex is a

breed A breed is a specific group of domestic animals having homogeneous appearance (phenotype), homogeneous behavior, and/or other characteristics that distinguish it from other organisms of the same species. In literature, there exist several slig ...

of heavily muscled domestic sheep. A portmanteau of Belgian and Texel, the name reflects the breed's origin as an offshoot of

Texel sheep The Texel is a breed of domestic sheep originally from the island of Texel in the Netherlands. A heavily muscled sheep, it produces a lean meat carcass and will pass on this quality to crossbred progeny. The wool is around 32 micrometres and is ...

from The Netherlands. In the late 1980s, Belgian Texels were exported to the United Kingdom, and it was there that it was primarily refined into its modern form. It is primarily used in Europe as a terminal sire, meaning Beltex rams are prized for mating with ewes to produce lambs 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 ...

Characteristics

The Beltex is a white faced sheep with medium-length wool. It is best known for its extremely heavy muscling, especially in the hindquarters. Rams on average weigh and ewes at maturity. At the withers, rams grow to and ewes at maturity.

References

External links

The Beltex Sheep Society
in the U.K.
Image
from Flickr {{sheep-stub Sheep breeds Sheep breeds originating in Belgium