Llanwenog and Shropshire sheep - geograph

The Llanwenog 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 domestic sheep originating in Wales. It was developed in the 19th century from the (now extinct) Llanllwni, the Shropshire, Welsh Mountain, and

Clun Forest Clun Forest is a remote, rural area of open pastures, moorland and mixed deciduous/coniferous woodland in the southwest part of the English county of Shropshire and also just over the border into Powys, Wales. It was once a Royal hunting forest ...

breeds. The Llanwenog's native locale is the Teifi Valley, in western Wales, but it has since spread into other areas. The breed association was formed in 1957. Llanwenogs have black faces and medium-length wool. They have a docile temperament and are known for their profligacy in lambing. The breed has a very placid temperament, is easily handled, easily contained and is well suited to stress free inwintering if necessary. This has important consequences for the health of both the animal and its keeper. This breed is raised primarily 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 Llanwenog is a medium-sized breed. Rams can reach or more and ewes average . The face and legs are black with a tuft of wool on the forehead. The wool is of high quality with a

Bradford count The Bradford system (also known as the English Worsted Yarn Count System or spinning count or Bradford count) is a way to assess the fineness of wool. To measure the fineness of sheep wool fibre before microscopes and lasers were used, English w ...

of 56/58 and a staple length of . The breed is prolific, most ewes having twins, and the lambs are fast growing, twin lambs reaching a carcase weight of in 56 days. The sheep are long-lived, docile and easy to handle with easy lambing and good mothering abilities. They are economic to feed and can be housed in winter. Ewes can be crossed with other breeds if larger carcases are required.

Status

The number of purebred Llanwenogs has been decreasing over the last few years and there were estimated to be fewer than three thousand registered breeding ewes in 2015. The breed appears regularly at agricultural shows in Wales and England.

Notes

References

External links

Llanwenog Sheep Society
- United Kingdom {{British livestock, R.1 Sheep breeds originating in Wales Sheep breeds