jacob ewe lamb

[dwbonfire]

I have the opportunity to get a jacob ewe lamb, so I wanted to ask some questions about them. She has 2 horns, rather than the typical 4 I have mostly seen. Is this a flaw to the breed standard? are they a wool sheep than needs sheering or will they shed thier wool?
also, my other sheep were in the pasture with my horses and did fine, but i was concerned where these sheep have thier horns, could they be a danger to the horses or are they good natured and shouldnt be a worry to have them around? i sure wouldnt want to be rammed with those horns, nor have my horses rammed, since i have seen a lot dont curl, they are more straight out and seem like they could do serious damage.

any advice about them would be appreciated. thanks!

 

[aggieterpkatie]

I'm not a Jacob expert, but I believe both 2 and 4 horns are accepted. I don't think it would be likely for her to use her horns to intentionally cause damage or injury to your other animals, but it might be done on accident. More importantly, they may be dangerous to you when you shear (or have someone shear her, because they do not shed their wool) or trim hooves, or administer medicines, etc. I won't ever have any horned animals because they hurt when they bump into you, and I don't want to take a chance on getting hurt. Some people like horned animals though, and are alwasy cautious around their animals. And do you still have other sheep? If not, you'd need to get her a buddy because lone sheep are miserable. They really need companions of their own kind.

 

[jbourget]

Your jacob ewe will not do any harm to anything, except maybe a new sheep you introduce her to and only then would it maybe try to set its place in the pecking order with a few headbutts. Male Jacob rams are the only ones to worry about, they could kill eachother if two mature rams are together.

They do not shed thier wool (good thing) because i make good money off mine. 15 $ a pound usually.... its highly sought after by handspinners all over.

Some people prefere 2 horns over 4, and some prefere 4 or 2. I have both and 2 is in no way going against the breed standard. In england people in different part only keep one variety. Sometimes a 4 horn is impossible to sell.... but over here a 2 horn is sometimes harder to sell. just because people are looking for that exotic 4 horned look.

Get the horses used to other animals through a fence and see how they interact. i would assume a horse to be a threat to the sheep/lamb because my young halflinger nearly killed some lambs i had that wandered into his stall.

visit my web page, www.fiercehornfarm.com

Josh