Pelibuey Sheep

[Kellykidz]

Spring is here. My 4 sweet Shetland ewes are not keeping up with weed control. I am looking for inexpensive local sheep - perhaps meat so I can eat them IF I decide to breed. I found an add for Pelibuey Sheep they are a smaller breed and common in Mexico and South America. Any idea what their personalities are like?

 

[Kellykidz]

We bought 4 of the Pelibuey sheep. I made the mistake of sending my husband and daughters to pick them up and instead of only bringing home ewes they brought home a little man also. I will see how he behaves as he ages...he may end up dinner.

In this picture they are with one of my Shetland's - She is the fluffy black one.

We have had them for 2 weeks. At first they were super wild and didn't respect our temporary fencing at all we are working on it and have 3 of them in the beginning of halter training. In the picture I am trying to post they are wandering the property after crawling under the fence with one of the shetland sheep. They LOVE some of my nastier weeds. They jump over each other and the other sheep but so far have not jumped any fences.

This is the information I found on Sheep 101:
The Pelibey is a hair sheep, probably closely related to the West African, Red African, African or Africana breed of Columbia and Venezuela. It is descended from the West African Dwarf and is found in Cuba, coastal areas of Mexico, and other locales in the Caribbean. It comprises 75 percent of sheep population in Cuba.

Hair color ranges from beige, brown, dark brown, red, white, black, and roan, with both solid and a combination of colors found. Males do carry a throat ruff, but usually do not have horns.
Breed category: hair (meat)
Distribution: Caribbean, Mexico, South America

 

[she-earl]

March a year ago, we visited our daughter in Nicaragua. She has been there since August of 2011 in mission work. One of the missionary families had several Pelibuey sheep. They would eat about anything not the "normal things" like American breeds. They came towards the fence but we didn't actually pet them but I think if you spend time with them they could be tame like any other breed of sheep.

 

[Kellykidz]

One of the missionary families had several Pelibuey sheep. They would eat about anything not the "normal things" like American breeds. They came towards the fence but we didn't actually pet them but I think if you spend time with them they could be tame like any other breed of sheep.

3 of them are taming up nicely. One of them still is pretty wild. We are 2 weeks into them so anything can happen.

 

[n8ivetxn]

Hi there!

I live north of you, up in Washington. I recently bought a small flock of Barbados Blackbelly Sheep from a breeder in Colorado. - I'm really interested in your experiences with your new sheep. And, if you decide to part with them, keep me in mind, I love the looks of them. Very noble looking sheep.

V/r, Rita

 

[Kellykidz]

Rita, we are enjoying them. They are eating all our weeds really well. It took a while to get them used to staying in the electric fence. I have 2 of them trained to walk on lead ropes and two that still flop on their backs. Right now I do not need to move them on the lead so the training is on hold. The young ram that my husband bought thinking he was a girl is the sweetest but I am trying not to get to close to him or love him too much. Enjoy your Blackbellys.

Kelly

 

[n8ivetxn]

Hi Kelly! I found a Mexican website with pics of Pelibuey sheep, man they're gorgeous! If I can find the link again, I'll post it here..... It also had english translations. I believe the site was promoting the sheep business in Mexico and advertising the different breed registries in the nation.

2 out of 4 is good for the short time you've had them! The ones that flop on their backs remind me of a horse I worked with years ago - when all else failed just flip over! I have too many sheep and not enough time to train them all for leading. Maybe the upcoming lamb crop will get training....

It's hard to be "cold" toward a nice ram.... Mine is a year and a half old, so far he's been very respectful, although, I don't think he's afraid of me at all.....Then I have a 6 month old, Brandon, he's a little butter-ball! I've had him for a month and he's grown so much - but he's still so small compared to everyone else!

Later! Rita

 

[PennyHen]

Rita, we are enjoying them. They are eating all our weeds really well. It took a while to get them used to staying in the electric fence. I have 2 of them trained to walk on lead ropes and two that still flop on their backs. Right now I do not need to move them on the lead so the training is on hold. The young ram that my husband bought thinking he was a girl is the sweetest but I am trying not to get to close to him or love him too much. Enjoy your Blackbellys.

Kelly

Try clicker training them. How to Clicker Train Your Horse is a good book that can be bought on Amazon and will work with sheep too. There are even some videos on YouTube of a clicker trained sheep.