# Finnsheep and Shetland Sheep



## MrsCedarstone

Considering these 2 sheep breeds. Does anyone have experiences with these two they would like to share? Stories, advice, pictures, etc.


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## purplequeenvt

I have Shetlands. Love them. I don't have time right now for a longer post, but I'll try to come back to this later today.


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## norseofcourse

I haven't had either, but I've seen them.  There was a booth with Finn sheep at the Great Lakes Fiber Show earlier this year.  They were cute, and had such soft voices     I saw a Shetland at a county fair - small, very fluffy sheep  

How common are they in your area?  The less common they are, likely the more you'll have to pay for them, and/or the further you'll have to travel.  Not just now for breeding stock, but eventually for replacement rams, too.

Finn sheep are known for multiple births - lots of lambs!  That will mean bottle babies to raise.

Both breeds are Northern European short-tailed sheep, which means short tails (no need to dock), no wool on the face or legs, and some other characteristics
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_European_short-tailed_sheep


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## MrsCedarstone

purplequeenvt-How long have you had shetland's? Do you breed them? 

norseofcourse-What kind of sheep do you have?

Shetland's are fairly common in my area. There are a couple within a 3 hour radius of my house. Not so much with the Finn's though. I only can find one place that is just under 4 hours from me. I don't plan on keeping a ram anytime soon.

I liked Finn's for their disposition since I wanted friendly sheep, however the general consensus I am getting is that any sheep breed could be that way if they were raised to be that way, particularly bottle babies. The finn's possibly being bottle babies could be a problem for me though so I will definitely take that into consideration. Are shetland's the same with multiples?

I seem to like all the Northern European short tails. I like both shetland's and finn's their small size.


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## purplequeenvt

Just a quick reply before bed, but I'll try to go into more detail when I get home from work tomorrow.

*purplequeenvt-How long have you had shetland's? Do you breed them? *

I have had Shetlands for almost 5 years now, but we've raised Border Leicesters (and Romneys a while ago) for 15 years. I do breed my Shetlands. I'm breeding specifically for super soft fleeces and good conformation as well as personality.

*Shetland's are fairly common in my area. There are a couple within a 3 hour radius of my house. Not so much with the Finn's though. I only can find one place that is just under 4 hours from me. I don't plan on keeping a ram anytime soon.*

Shetland's tend to be a little easier to find, but make sure you find good quality. Because they are getting so popular, some people think that they can sell mediocre quality sheep for top dollar. They can usually get away with it since new shepherds often don't have a clue what to look for. I will try to point out some things to watch for tomorrow.

I only bought my own Shetland ram last fall. I've used a neighbor/friend's registered rams for the last few years, but our sheep were getting too related and I wanted something different.

*I liked Finn's for their disposition since I wanted friendly sheep, however the general consensus I am getting is that any sheep breed could be that way if they were raised to be that way, particularly bottle babies. The finn's possibly being bottle babies could be a problem for me though so I will definitely take that into consideration. Are shetland's the same with multiples?*

I don't know a lot about Finns since I've never raised any, but I do have a friend with a small flock and hers are pretty friendly. Shetlands can be really flighty (just like any sheep), but once you have made friends with them, they can be like puppies. Shetlands generally have 1-2 lambs per birth, sometimes 3 or more, but that is quite rare. I've only ever had singles and twins.

*I seem to like all the Northern European short tails. I like both shetland's and finn's their small size.*

From my experience with the Shetlands and what I've seen of my friend's Finns, both breeds can be a lot of fun. Nice wool (usually), fun personalities, and many different colors and patterns.


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## purplequeenvt

Ok....

All of my Shetlands have been very healthy and have required very minimal "extra" care. They are wormed less often than the other breeds we have and if we have a worm overload, the Shetlands are the least likely to be affected.

They require annual shearing, but I like to shear mine twice a year. The fall fleece is usually a lot cleaner than the spring one. Hoof trimming and whatever vaccines you want to do (we do CD&T mainly).

The lambs, although weighing in at only 3-6lbs at birth, are lively and tough. They are up and nursing within minutes.

The ewes are more often than not EXCELLENT mothers. I had a ewe lamb at 14 months old (we don't normally breed our ewe lambs the fall that they are born, but she had other ideas. She got bred through a fence) this spring. She did everything by herself and has been the best mother ever.

The "teen mom", Eskimo




With her baby












Personality-wise, there is a large range. I have super crazy, bounce off the walls if you get too close (the teen mom, actually) all the way to a Shetland that will crawl into your lap for attention (Teen Mom's half sister).

Freyja




Some are naturally more friendly, but most of them can be won over with some treats and chest scratches. 

Shetlands do not have a strong flocking instinct which can make moving them around difficult. Training them to follow a bucket of grain is strongly advised! 

Shetlands come in a variety of colors and patterns. If color genetics intrigue you, there is lots of fun to be had puzzling everything out.

For example - this ram lamb is black, but he carries moorit (brown) because of his sire and his fleece is going to turn grey. He is also spotted. 




This one is fawn (a modified shade of moorit) with a pattern called "katmoget".




This one is musket (moorit with the greying gene) and spotted.




And this one is just cute! 




Things to look for when buying Shetlands:

Horns - generally speaking, only the rams have horns, BUT there are some polled rams and horned ewes. When selecting a ram to buy or breed to, check his horns. You want them to be well away from his face, like this....




Not like this. This ram had to be put down because his horns were so close to his face that you could barely slip a halter between horn and head. The horns would have continued to thicken and cause problems.




That being said, if you love everything else about the ram, use him. Not every case of bad horns is genetic and sometimes you get spectacular horns from one with bad horns.

Tails - Shetlands are supposed to have short, fluke shaped tails with hair instead of wool. There is a little variation in length and wooliness and in most cases it's ok. The tail should not be longer than 6 inches.

There is so much more about Shetlands that I don't have time to go into right now, but feel free to ask more questions.


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## MrsCedarstone

purplequeenvt said:


> Ok....
> 
> All of my Shetlands have been very healthy and have required very minimal "extra" care. They are wormed less often than the other breeds we have and if we have a worm overload, the Shetlands are the least likely to be affected.
> 
> They require annual shearing, but I like to shear mine twice a year. The fall fleece is usually a lot cleaner than the spring one. Hoof trimming and whatever vaccines you want to do (we do CD&T mainly).
> 
> The lambs, although weighing in at only 3-6lbs at birth, are lively and tough. They are up and nursing within minutes.
> 
> The ewes are more often than not EXCELLENT mothers. I had a ewe lamb at 14 months old (we don't normally breed our ewe lambs the fall that they are born, but she had other ideas. She got bred through a fence) this spring. She did everything by herself and has been the best mother ever.
> 
> The "teen mom", Eskimo
> 
> 
> 
> 
> With her baby
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Personality-wise, there is a large range. I have super crazy, bounce off the walls if you get too close (the teen mom, actually) all the way to a Shetland that will crawl into your lap for attention (Teen Mom's half sister).
> 
> Freyja
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Some are naturally more friendly, but most of them can be won over with some treats and chest scratches.
> 
> Shetlands do not have a strong flocking instinct which can make moving them around difficult. Training them to follow a bucket of grain is strongly advised!
> 
> Shetlands come in a variety of colors and patterns. If color genetics intrigue you, there is lots of fun to be had puzzling everything out.
> 
> For example - this ram lamb is black, but he carries moorit (brown) because of his sire and his fleece is going to turn grey. He is also spotted.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> This one is fawn (a modified shade of moorit) with a pattern called "katmoget".
> 
> 
> 
> 
> This one is musket (moorit with the greying gene) and spotted.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> And this one is just cute!
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Things to look for when buying Shetlands:
> 
> Horns - generally speaking, only the rams have horns, BUT there are some polled rams and horned ewes. When selecting a ram to buy or breed to, check his horns. You want them to be well away from his face, like this....
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Not like this. This ram had to be put down because his horns were so close to his face that you could barely slip a halter between horn and head. The horns would have continued to thicken and cause problems.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> That being said, if you love everything else about the ram, use him. Not every case of bad horns is genetic and sometimes you get spectacular horns from one with bad horns.
> 
> Tails - Shetlands are supposed to have short, fluke shaped tails with hair instead of wool. There is a little variation in length and wooliness and in most cases it's ok. The tail should not be longer than 6 inches.
> 
> There is so much more about Shetlands that I don't have time to go into right now, but feel free to ask more questions.


Thank you so much for the information. I will definitely do the grain training for sure. Love your pictures. I am interested in the genetics and coloring but probably won't experiment with that for a little while yet. I love colors and spots. That musket one is beautiful. I'm looking at probably getting 3 to start out so they won't be lonely, probably a mix of ewes and wethers.


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## norseofcourse

MrsCedarstone said:


> norseofcourse-What kind of sheep do you have?


I have Icelandics, also one of the Northern European short-tailed sheep.  They are bigger than Shetlands or Finns, but smaller than most of the 'modern' breeds.  Icelandics are double-coated, with a short inner coat of soft wool, and a long outer coat of sturdier wool.  It can be separated and spun for different uses, or kept together and spun up fluffy for things like sweaters or hats.  It grows fast - over an inch a month - and is usually shorn twice a year (many mills can't process 16" long wool) and as purplequeenvt said, the fall clip is usually cleaner.

At lot of things about sheep are going to be individual - mine also vary in temperament, from friendly to standoffish.  The friendly ones are only friendly to me, though, probably because I'm the one who spends the most time with them.  I've never bottle-raised one but from what I've read that can make them very people-friendly.

Icelandics come horned or polled in either sex.  They also come in a huge variety of colors - both Shetlands and Icelandics claim to have the most colors/patterns of any sheep breed.  They don't have a strong flocking instinct, and they tend to like to browse (eat brush, weeds, trees) just as much as graze on grass - if not more!

I love my Icelandics too    Good luck in your search!


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## Sue K

Does anyone know of any miniature shetland breeders in or around Missouri, Kansas, or Iowa?


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## MrsCedarstone

Have you tried the North American Shetland Sheep Association website?


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## Sue K

Not yet, but I will.  

How do shetlands tend to act around dogs that are their size?  I'm only looking for two small sheep for my backyard (it's big), but we do have two dogs that are non agressive to most any animal they've encountered.  I will fence off and rotate dogs/sheep if necessary, but they're mainly indoor dogs anyway.

I spin, so I figured (hope) that some of the grass can be eaten down instead of mowing all the time, and I get a couple of fleece once or twice a year too!  (yea, me?)

Sue


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## purplequeenvt

Shetlands as a general rule have a VERY strong dislike for dogs. They can and do get use to calm non-threatening dogs, but be prepared for them to get defensive and butt the dogs. 

Question.....when you say you are looking for "miniature Shetlands", are you looking for regular size Shetlands or something smaller? There is no such thing as a mini Shetland. If someone is trying to sell you one, either they are deceived themselves or they are selling you a potentially stunted or genetically messed up animal. 

Shetlands are about 80-100 lbs full grown.


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## Sue K

According to a google search of "miniature shetland sheep", there's three websites on the first search page that advertises minature shetlands.  I know they're smaller than your "average" sheep, however.  I'm not looking to breed, just manage lawn/weeds/etc, and some wool for me.  I'm having a great deal of fun reading on the shetland website that was suggested.


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## MrsCedarstone

I see the ones you are referring to. The sheep on those 3 sites are just normal Shetland sheep but in comparison to other sheep breeds they are miniature sheep which is why they must be calling them that. I have 3 sheep for that same purpose you mentioned Sue K. I started out looking for small sheep but then got surprised with sheep from a neighbor who didn't want to raise them anymore. Got a good deal on some unregistered Jacob sheep. Since you don't want to breed, I recommend trying to find some unregistered in your area because their price will be lower.


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## Sue K

I did find someone selling a couple of ram lambs not to far from me.....   I just don't know about that 'horn' thing.  I think I'd worry about them growing too close to their faces.  What's the incidence of that actually happening?  If it does happen, are you able to trim or train the horns?  I don't know much about that part of things, but I think they have a blood supply that runs in them (?)


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## Sue K

Here's a picture of the two from this year.


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## MrsCedarstone

Their horns look good. I doesn't seem like they will have the danger of their horns growing into their faces but they are still young, chances are pretty good they'll be okay though. Even if one horn does start turning you could have it cut, which is okay to do. Horns are made of the same stuff fingernails are. When cutting or removing horns, think cutting or removing fingernails, you do it when you have to. Buying rams would be okay if you wether them, if you don't intend to breed it's best not to keep an intact male.


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## Sue K

Oh, well thanks for letting me know.  I feel better about those two photos then.  I'm not looking to get anything till this next spring tho.  I want to make sure we have the yard set up proper first.  

Thank you for all of your help!
Sue


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## ohiogoatgirl

x2 horns are usually fine and people breed away from ones that have the problems of growing into/too close etc.

horns are like hooves, only different and on the head! lol. the outside of a horn is basically the same as fingernail material and growth. (if only toenail clippings were worth as much as ivory eh?) they can be sawn and burned but from what I understand it is half surgical type process.


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## Roving Jacobs

The one on the right is a bit close and I would watch it (if you were hypothetically buying these particular sheep) but the left one has nice wide horns. The tip of the horn can be cut with a bit of effort but there is a blood supply that runs through them and if you go too deep it bleeds like crazy. It's not usually dangerous but it can be upsetting to see. Plenty of shetlands come polled if you are concerned about horns. I like horns but not everyone does and they do make fencing more challenging.


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## Ponker

I have Finnsheep. Jumped in with both feet and bought a young ewe (Athena), young ram (Holstein), and six year old bred ewe (Kaarina). Kaarina should lamb any day. I'm ready with my camera when she does. She's big as a house and I can see bulges moving toward the business end. I'm a new farmer but choose Finnsheep because they have a prolific birthing history, are browsers, friendly, small, and wonderful fleece providers. So far I'm very happy with them. Athena is a crazy ewe who dances at breakfast and boinks around off all four feet. She's black and a joy to watch. Holstein has loose fleece about five inches long right now. He's a wooly bear and inquisitive. Smart as a whip too. Kaarina is pregnant and just wants to lamb.


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