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["Gloria Morris" <gloriamorris59 AT gmail.com>]

Well, Bill, the shorter wools are often finer. Finer wools are also
excellent for handspinning, and make better wools to wear next to the
skin. Also, not everyone probably agrees with me on the taste - it is
an individual thing. Too, there are exceptions to the rule - Black
Welsh Mountain sheep are reputed to have some of the best tasting
meat, and their wool is much finer than my longwools - all black wool,
though.

Then, shearing is an issue. My sheep were too large for me to shear.
They were almost too large for a professional shearer who stood about
a foot taller than me!! Getting a shearer at the ideal time to harvest
for hand spinning wool is ... danged near impossible.

If I ever get sheep again, or if I try fiber goats, I will go for a
small breed. In sheep I would likely go with Shetlands (reputed to
have acceptable flavor), which have very fine wool that is nice for
knitted lace and sweaters and such. Or, I might go with Pygora goats
which are an Angora cross that is hardier (our winters, ya know), and
small but very prolific, having litters (meat production). I won't do
it commercially again, it would be just for me. And I would want to be
able to do my own shearing and not depend upon a shearer.

Anyhow, there's a use for just about any breed of livestock. But any
one breed won't suit everyone's individual needs! And, needs change -
I needed remarkable tasting meat that would bring in customers who
would pay top dollar (I sold lambs on a per pound basis, ON THE HOOF,
that matched the grocery store price). But doing it for myself, I
would need something I could handle by myself. Different needs,
different breeds!

Gloria



On 2/8/07, Bill Jones <billj AT harborside.com> wrote:
> Gloria Morris wrote:
>
> >Hey Van,
> >I used to raise long-wooled sheep (Romney, predominantly, with some Lincoln
> >and other). They were excellent meat animals (in my opinion, and the
> >opinions of many, the longer wooled sheep have better tasting meat).
> >
> >>
> >>
> Gloria, you're making me wonder what short-wooled sheep would be
> preferred for, if anything.
>
> Bill
> S. Oregon coast