You've Been Lied to About Dorper Sheep
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- čas přidán 7. 06. 2024
- As many of you know, I am a fan of the Dorper sheep. There are many reasons to love Dorper sheep, and I share many in this video. However, people don't often talk about the downsides of Dorper sheep. And in this video, I wanted to set the record straight for anyone who is looking into this breed to know that it might not be the best sheep for your circumstances.
I really wish I would have known this stuff before I brought my stock with me from Utah.
Hope this helps! Happy homesteading!
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TIMESTAMPS
Dorper Sheep: 0:00
Hard Truth #1: 2:15
My Story: 4:11
High Cost: 5:53
Papers vs Commercial: 6:58
Breed Consistency: 7:33
Dorper on a Small Scale: 8:47
Where Dorpers Thrive: 9:01
Best Breed of Sheep???: 9:39
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ABOUT THE HIGH MOUNTAIN HOMESTEAD
Hi! I’m PJ, and my family loves the homesteading life! It’s something my wife and I have always wanted to do, but we grew up with ZERO HOMESTEADING EXPERIENCE!!!!!
We grew up in beautiful southern California, 15 minutes away from the beach. As amazing as that was, we both dreamed of a life closer to land and animals. After getting married and moving to Utah, our family slowly grew. We had become a family of four living in a townhome with a small backyard filled with potted plants.
In 2019 we dipped our feet into homesteading on 1 ¼ acre lot in Utah. In 18 months we were ready to do this for real. So in 2021 we packed everything up (including our sheep) and moved to North Carolina to 12 acres and we love every inch of our homestead!
We raise Dorper sheep and have big plans for:
• grass-fed lamb
• fullblood Dorper breeding stock
• meat chickens
• laying chickens and ducks
• heritage breed pork
• honey
• row crops
• perennial food forest
• and more
I hope you join us on our journey, subscribe and ring the bell if you haven’t yet.
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#sheep #dorpersheep #dorpersheep
Agree with the overall message. I had Dorpers in Arizona, among others, and loved them there. In east Texas, where we are wet and humid with tons of rain most years, parasites with the Dorpers have been a continuous problem, even with pasture rotation, deworming, etc. We've also had foot problems in the wet years beyond our others. Gaining the quality that I want has also been an issue. Our path has been to create the sheep that works for us in this environment. It involves starting with a mixed flock, including Katahdin, St. Croix, Royal White, Blackbelly cross, and Dorpers (though not the quality that I found in AZ). We have changed out rams based on the body type, shedding ability, carcass quality and birth rates that we seek. Then we cull Hard. Heavy parasites? - cull, loss of condition? - cull, any breeding or lambing issues? - cull, singles? - cull, fatty carcass? cull, handles parasites, but has low meat-to-bone ratio? - cull. That gets your numbers down and either keeps your freezer full or puts a little in your pocket from the sale barn. Then we keep the best from the best, and though some might not like it, I have no problem linebreeding to set the type and traits that we want. Color is irrelevant, and you will still produce culls from time to time, but eventually, you get those long-term producing ewes that raise great babies of size and quality. We even had a group of 10 ewes that wouldn't allow their lambs to leave the nightly dry lot, even if the gate was left open, until the sun was well up, they were wary of predators and that passed to their daughters. For us, this is the way. It's not the only way, but it is our way. We aren't producing papers, we are producing a micro-landrace breed - meaning that it works here for what we need - which is turning grass into meat, controlling weeds and underbrush and complementing the cattle. I'm not against registries, as we purchase registered stock from time to time, and often my rams are the best registered animals that I can afford. It's not a flawless system, but it sure works better than taking the losses that we did by buying a "breed" whose reported performance is amazing, then having high losses because they can't perform in our area.
Amazing information! All that attention and work will have undoubtedly taken years to acquire and to make the micro-landrace breed that works well in your microclimate. It would be easier to sidestep the long years of breed management and learning but often that is the only way. If we could all buy the "perfect" sheep no matter where we live, that would be easier but it just isn't the case.
The years pass anyway. I enjoy it. :)
Thank you very well said, I’ve been studying about 6 months on goats and sheep not planing on buying any thing till we get out to our farm in around May June ish 2032 but know there are going to be some hard decisions to make when it comes time. I have however also considering St. Croissant as well.
This is great information!
Do you have a website or contact? We are considering moving to Dallas. Thank you (put spaces in any links please, so it doesn't get auto deleted).
Glad to see you again! Keep the videos coming!
Looking to set up a flock on a small farm of 10 acres of pastures.
Thanks for sharing. You have helped me. I am on lush pastures in Australia. So, I will look at my neighbours sheep breeds.
I subscribed after the worm in the rumen joke. Made me laugh. First time seeing your channel and thanks for your perspective.
I really enjoy your videos. They are very informative. Keep them coming.
Thanks! I've been on a hiatus, but hopefully I'll film one today!
@@homesteadingwithPJ Good looking animals. Have you used copper sulfate for dewormer?
@@kingdavidson7430 I have not tried it.
Great information and tremendous advice. We’re planning on raising sheep in Richmond County, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. Katahdin and St. Croix are top of our list so far.
@ David, I am born and raised in Richmond Co., (Petit De Grat) and living in North Carolina. We are planning on raising some Dorper and Katahdin. Small world, good luck!
There's great sheep in Nova Scotia. Find the ones that are on the islands. They are selected by their environnement and much tougher than the farm raised ones.
I needed this video, thanks!
We are brand new to sheep... Khatadin... Harsh climate, lush pastures.
I haven't ever raised Katahdins, but they sound like great sheep. Very versatile animals. Good luck!
I have white Dorpers and am in hot, humid, wet, parasite invested Alabama. They are more resistant then my Nigerian Dwarfs were. I culled over the years and had a great flock when I sold the goats out.
My white Dorpers are very resistant and I am impressed. I have full bloods and purebreds. But as a Shepard you have to be on the ball. If one is ADR (ain’t doing right), you need to act immediately. I learned the hard way with the goats which has helped the Dorpers greatly. Only had one lamb have issues, popped her with dextran, b complex, cydectin and Valbazen- turned her around and she is a pregnant beautiful ewe. I still cull anyone not hardy. The others I worm after they lamb depending on eye color. I have not had the regular black headed Dorpers. My flock is beefy and long. I have been thrilled with them and bought 6 more ewes from Georgia.
Thanks for the great information. Congrats on all of your hard earned success.
@@homesteadingwithPJ I tried to share something you can look into but it seems youtube doesn't allow me to share a link
We have a couple Dorper crosses with Katahain. We are in Western Pa. where it can be very wet but we are quite dry this year now. We like the cross for the size and putting on meat but the Katahdin part for the worm load. We do have some issues but not much, maybe deworm once a year.
St. Croix or St. Croix sired, for the sheep... Shannon County Missouri is our location... We have not had any issues with loss... No dewormer, no shots, nothing! Grass and free choice minerals. We moved to MO from California, so I decided Greg Judy would be the guy to listen to since he lives in MO as well. Thanks a ton for your content. My wife and I have been watching you for 2 years now. CHEERS TO YOU!!!
Yes, if you're in MO, Greg Judy will be the best source for sheep info. Always go for the folks near you with history over what seems to be popular.
This is an excellent video!
We raise White Dorper. We started with 12 commercial cross ewes, Suffolk x Katahdin.
Our farm is in SC Kentucky.
Your right about the worm resistance. We watch carefully for average worm infestation and more so for Barber Pole the most lethal of all worms.
We keep replacement ewe lambs that show the best resistance and are doing better. The first two years were horrific as we kept all the half blood and 3/4 blood ewe lambs.
I took have noticed the range of type. The show ring wants taller sheep but the breed standard is like your big ewe.
We like the Whites and have a growing market for commercial rams. Texas A&M did a study of Katahdin x Dorper and found that cross to be the most versatile for small operations.
Good inputs, thanks for sharing.
Yes, I love that ewe. She's had great breed conformation. Sadly I lost her last year. She laid down one day and never got back up. Vet believed it was parasites.
Do you know why the white dorper was started? It comes from the Afrikaner tradition of eating sheeps head. The black head dorper does not fetch the same price and is “frowned upon” when buying a sheep head (skaapkop). And as a consequence, white headed dorpers were bred
Raising sheep in NE Indiana. I keep mostly Shetland and Romanovs for meat and wool. The nearest sheep to me are Lincoln Longwool which is just too big for my property to handle. I picked my breeds because they are hardy and small. The easy lambing is a major perk. Parasite resistance has been great for me, with the exception of my lone Katahdin for milking and she is much wormier than the others.
How cool I'm from Culbertson Nebraska!! I'm looking to getting some dorpers, how hard is it for to sell your wool, and also get some to come out sheer your sheep? I know dorpers don't have wool, I was just curious 🙂
Hey, I'm raising sheep in NC too! I have about 70 Katahdins and I just added a St.' Croix ram for additional parasite resistance. I've been selectively breeding for that, and have very few problems at this point. I also move them every day so that helps.
Very cool, sounds like you will have some incredible stock in no time. I may have to reach out to you to buy some ewes!
Hi, I live in Virginia looking for a breeding pair or 3 lambs 2 female 1 male do you sell sheep?
@@homesteadingwithPJ absolutely! I'd love to help out another fellow sheep farmer.
@@geaj4214 I do occasionally sell some stock. I have a very nice ram lamb for sale right now, and I may be selecting out some ewes soon.
I have been raising katahdin for 20 years. I purchased a registered blackhead dorper ram n I'm having a problem with parasites in the lambs. I have maybe dewormed twice before then. Some of my sheep have been dewormed maybe twice in 15 years. Thank you for sharing this information
Interesting. Thanks for sharing your experience. I currently have five young Katahdin rams, raising them out for the meat for a year. Seeing if I like the breed before I go all in on them.
Thanks for this video…I’ve heard about the parasite problem with Dorpers and looking to probably get St Croix for my homestead either later this year or early next year
St. Croix have a great reputation for a reason.
We had Jacob sheep for a few days because we had a neighbour up the road who had been raising them for quite a long time. We liked how hardy they are and how unique looking. The plan was to basically have living lawn mowers. Unfortunately, the project only lasted a few days because we made a lot of really big mistakes (the biggest being making fences the sheep couldn't get out of but dogs could get into). We lost one sheep and the other has a broken leg. Our neighbour across the road was kind enough to take it off our hands because they wanted it and were clearly better prepared than we were. We aren't giving up on sheep for good but we are going to take at least a year to better prepare ourselves, learn as much as we can and hopefully make more connections in the sheep world so that when we try again, it'll be more successful.
As for our area, we are in northeast BC where winters are long, summers are short and the winters get down to -40°. Springs and falls can be very wet but the summers and winters are very dry. We have a lot of really good grass to be eaten in the warmer months and also keep cattle on about 140 acres of our land part of the year.
I hate hearing stories of neighbors dogs getting in with sheep. Makes me so upset! So sorry to hear it.
@@homesteadingwithPJ unfortunately it was our own dogs 🤦♀️ but good news! Both sheep turned up alive and are recovering from their adventures!
Appreciate the post
I hope all is good with you
haven't seen any postings recently
Looking forward to a new one
Thanks, for checking in. We'll get back on a regular posting schedule soon.
Your pasture mix of grass legumes and forbs are perfect for sheep. I'd like to hear your thoughts on Dorper Katahdin cross.
Its worked well for us.
My neighbor thinks he's gonna cross one of my rams with either Katahdin or St. Croix, so I'll let you know when I have some to look at!
I’m in the PNW and looking to get started with sheep. Been actively researching the Dorper and Katahdin. I was originally interested in the trifecta - Meat, wool and milk but have realized wool costs more and doesn’t taste as good. I hope to get started this spring and see how things go.
Good luck!
I’ve got a mixed flock of katahdin, Barbados, and white dorper. They are primarily katahdin. I have noticed most of my culls are ones with the most dorper in them.
We sell meat direct to consumers, and at several local farm stores and a food hub, and graze several rented small farms across three townships in west mass.
If I had a flock of dorpers id buy a parasite resistant ram lamb or two to put to them from someone like me who’s got a flock adapted to hot humid weather and a 50 inch rainfall. If you want to treck up to Franklin county ma we have 70 to chose from.
The Dorper was bred for the Northern Cape of South Africa. This entails the Kalahari, Bushmanland, Damaraland, Greater Karoo, Klein Karoo, Namid, Namaqualand. This area is dry and arid, arid and bone dry, drought prone, desert like and lastly arid and dry. Consequently worm tolerance had, since inception, never been a priority.
The other problem with dorpers is that they are prone to bloat.
Interestingly, contrary to British belief, the cold and wet sheep raising areas of Southern Africa are reserved for merino and merino,derived sheep like the Dohne merino. Their parasite tolerance is better.
Fascinating insight. Luckily I haven't had bloat problems, but it makes sense with their background and origin. Arid environments usually produce more tolerable roughage.
Hello, I have enjoyed and learned so much from watching several of your videos. Great work! We live in Florida and recently bought two fullblood registered rams. We are looking for a few ewes for them. We will be making a trip to NC in early November. I was wondering where abouts in NC you are located and if you might have anything for sale around that time? Thanks in advance. Keep up the good work!
How are they doing in FL? Are you needing to deworm?
@@JadamH I am new to raising sheep and have only had them for a month or so. But several people raise sheep down here. The ranch I bought them from which is in central FL and specializes in dorper told me she only deworms as needed. I will say most of the sheep breeds in florida are florida cracker and katahdins. A lot of people are also crossing the dorper and katahdin for parasite resistance I believe.
Hello! We are near Durham, NC. We sadly won't have any sheep available for purchase at that time. I suggest finding a local breeder as close to you as you can find, and a breeder that practices the same management style you're interested in. That way your sheep will already be acclimated to your environment and you can hit the ground running. Good luck!
thanks for the great video man, wanted to ask you, how much does your ram weigh?
It varies on the time of year. I'd say a good Dorper stud would be over 200 pounds just before breeding him.
Our first year with Dorpers (last year) was very dry here in Nova Scotia and we STILL struggled with barber pole and tape. But only with our 2 pure bred. The others are crossed with black belly which are known to be parasite resistant, and they are. We paid hundreds more for the full blood which to me is highly overrated. We don’t get as much meat from the black belly crosses but I’d rather not have to deal with the parasites. When we treated our 2 Dorpers last summer I would say the meds didn’t work very well as the worms were back in a month. Now we drench with garlic 3-4 x per year and copper sulphate when famacha is low. This works better for us. No grain, pasture rotated, mineral and kelp, high quality hay in winter.
Great feed back PJ. Will you go with katahdins next?
Wow. Good to know the grass isn't always greener.
I'm with you. Smaller sheep are fine, so long as they are alive.
I'm thinking of Katahdins, or St. Croixs, or a cross between the two. My neighbor just bought my last two rams, and if he can get a solid cross of Dorper and another sheep, I may just raise out rams from him and then use his stock to form a new flock.
I raise Rambouillets in upstate NY. They require a lot of grain and aren’t great at eating the weeds, but they’re just so beautiful to look at and their fleeces are to die for.
I hear they have a good sized carcass yield too.
@@homesteadingwithPJ they grow skeleton first, and don’t start to fill out with a good percentage of meat until 8 months. By that point you’ve got a 200-250lb animal, and it’s a very specific market that’s looking for an animal that big.
Here to learn. We're thinking about moving to and starting a homestead in Florida. So far, I'm not 100% convinced that I want animals, but I've ben debating between sheep and goats - and I've never raised either. So all of this honest conversation and you sharing your experiences is greatly appreciated.
You bet! I'd say if you're thinking between sheep or goats, consider what you have. If you have dense forest, get goats. If you have good pasture, get sheep.
If you have so so pasture, get goats for 2 years, and then get sheep. :)
@@homesteadingwithPJ Thanks. Will definitely take that into account. :)
@@homesteadingwithPJ hey were can i get some sheep
I am a South African and my favorite breed is dohne merino. It’s a dual purpose breed and like it’s hardiness.
I raise Jacob sheep in western north Carolina love your videos keep it up 👍👍👍
In semi desert, Western Queensland, Australia my neighbour has a mob of about 1100 Dorpers run as a minority operation over a very wide area. They perform well according to her, and produce a good meat carcass without too much supervision or veterinary issues. She thinks that they may not do so well in humid or wet conditions
I agree. I've since switched to Katahdins, and haven't had issues yet.
I live in South Island NZ and the dorper seems to be fairly popular down here. I own a few but purchased them from various homesteads. Over a year we drench them 2 or 3 times to take care of the parasites. It seems some are more prone than others. A few new lines come from Australia so it's pretty easy to rent a ram from a reputable breeder and get better genetically. There is a farm in the north island solely dedicated to breeding these. Very interesting read on how far they have come and how good they have gotten there breeding lines to very low maintenance.
very important info you shared here yes and yes you have to breed for what you want that's why the correct genetics and line breeding is so important doesn't matter witch breed .Those who invested in good genetics and breed for more parasite resilience without losing the growth rate and body conformation in those regions will reap the benefits of this sheep breed ... its what we had to do in the northen parts of South Africa also you have to take inconsideration that this breed is fairly a new breed
We are in NW N. Carolina and currently have 3 Khatadin ewes, 1 Khatadin/Dorper lamb and a Khatadin ram. We are looking to add a commercial grade Dorper ram to cross with our Khatadins, but have had difficulty finding Dorpers. We would appreciate any help you might offer.
Try these guys. Juan is a great person to know if you're looking for good Dorpers in NC.
m.facebook.com/thebarnwagon/
Leaning towards Pelibuey. The regional government started a breeding program with imported pure Dorper embryos and cross them with local Pelibuey stock to eventually acheive Pure By Cross Dorpers. I don't think I'd even take my chances with the F1s. Everything I've been learning about Dorper makes me think that was a bad decision. This is the jungle, so they should've imported something more parasite resistant like St. Croix, which I don't think is even available in Peru. The best locally available breeds near our area are probably Pelibuey and BBB. Maybe some sort of cross between the two is available as well. The Pelibuey sound OK to me though, because our two biggest concerns are hoof problems and parasite resistance. Plus they are on the small side. We are looking mostly for something self-sufficient that can do silvopasture maintenance in our young food forest.
I agree with you on the worms , We still battle with this in south Africa. . Dorper sheep do really well in very dry conditions .. We live in a very dry area that got unusual amounts of rain this year , I strongly believe just this change in the weather has brought alot more parasites and we seeing alot more deaths . . we have cattle walking with our sheep and got chickens to eat the parasites ,so far we not seeing deaths in our flock, Best of luck to you ..
Thanks for sharing your perspective. Nice to know that even in the motherland of Dorper you still have issues sometimes.
From southern INDIA, What I did is, I bought one pure line dorper ram, 10 native female eve sheeps… the native sheeps are here for centuries… so native sheeps are resistant to this climate, parasites, diseases… then when I got F1,F2 dorper offspring’s, they were resistant and adaptable too… I didn’t loose a single sheep… and pure dorpers are like a ₹4 - 500,000. Whereas native sheeps are ₹6,000… so I saved a lot of money too
Started with two kat ewe lambs this week in SE TN, they seem a little wilder than I was thinking 🤔
I am in the process of fencing almost 400A. For cattle 100A in pasture the rest brush and timber. Thinking about adding meat sheep to the blend. What sheep would you use in central Arkansas.
Wow! That's a lot of land! I've only passed through Arkansas and don't know the area well. I suggest finding maybe a sheep group specific to Arkansas on Facebook? The people in that group will be able to tell you what works for them and you can find someone near you. If someone near you is making sheep work, you will be able to make it work too. You'll want to purchase sheep from someone near you to start.
How much does a 3 mth old weigh, thanks for all your great information.
My husband and I are both from beef ranching families in Tx. Growing up sheep was a bad word lol. I was always told lamb was so nasty dog wont even eat it, so naturally I never tried lamb. 10 years ago I started raising dairy goats. This year we decided to add meat goats and sheep to our homestead. We finally decide to try lamb back in March and I figured if we like the WalMart lamb then we would love our home grown lamb. Needless to say the lamb lasted all of 30 secs after it came off the grill. It was really good and my husband and son couldn't get enough of it. I do not like gamey meat, so I did a little research and decided to make my own crossbreed for our homestead. I will be crossing Painted Desert with a Katahdin ram, then crossing any ewes from that breeding to a Barbados/St.Croix cross ram. I may add in other breeds like Dorper later but I want to see how these turn out 1st. We should get our 1st lamb crop of Painted Desert/Katahdin in Jan/Feb. Hoping for a really nice mild flavor from them.
Yes! The reputation of lamb meat being gross is wack! So glad you tried it and it's leading you to pursue your own.
By the way, those crosses you mentioned sound like real winners. Best of luck!
wait so purebreed and full blood are different? I need to learn more! any recommended literature for me to read?
Not every breed has full blood status, but in Dorper fullblood means you can trace both sides back to South African decent. Purebred means it's at least 15/16th Dorper.
Kahtana/dorper mix
We are new
We are on our 3rd month on small homestead
We move ours daily to about 30x30 paddocks
We have 10
Brand new to the page and farming. How do homestead farmers sell their sheep/lamb meat? They need USDA approval or certain veterinary shots to sell the meat after it comes from the butcher?
I'm not a lawyer, and I don't give legal advice.
But its common for homesteaders who have excess to sell live animals (i.e. a whole lamb) and deliver it to the butcher as a courtesy to the buyer. Then the buyer picks up the meat from their animal.
Welcome to the world of homesteading. I'm not always the quickest on responses, but I make a serious effort to respond to every question on the channel. Ask away!
I'm just getting started but I have Dorper/St Croix crosses. My friend has pure blood Dorpers. Dorpers seem to have foot problems as well as parasite issues but I've had neither of those with my crosses yet. We live in the PNW.
I've never had any foot problems with my Dorpers, but I know they exists.
Well, I guess I had one lamb that had a limp for a week or two, but he got over it himself.
Hi guys I'm yet to buy droppers and goats Kalaharis but this is ma take on this shit men.. noticed u guys raise sheep and goats on free range u gonna run into this kind of shit. I'm from Uganda I get ma lessons from Kenya I c Kenyan zero grazing farmers build raised pens upto 4ft from ground up to floor level this shit works good for Dem less parasite s if any. And grow their food dats it men give it a shot research Kenyan farms gonna c this shit.thanks.
Da floors are gapped by one inch to allow shit through and Abit slanted for urine to flow easily thanks and good airation or ventilation by using wire mesh and timber boards 8by1 inches or so.thanks guys.
Beautiful lambs mate
Bought a mini farm in PA not sure was sheep for that area any ideas?
I don't know the area super well, but I'd start by going to your farmer's market and see who sells lamb and see what breeds they raise. There's a lot of old farms out there (I believe) so you could probably buy from a very established line.
How do you get rid of cud weed
Dorper
My one year old dorper ewes all had twins in their first year . I live in West Texas, and I feed my flock everything they eat . They convert food to weight better than anything I have seen !!!
Ok, I get it with the parasites, but is the carcass still ok to eat? parasites seems to be concentrated in one of the stomachs...
I think it depends. Like I wouldn't want to process a sheep. that looks obviously wormy. I also wouldn't want a sheep that had been recently dewormed.
Wow, I haven't dewormed any of my dorpers and they appear to be fine.
Maybe I should fix that. I never knew they were especially vulnerable
It depends on a lot of factors, mainly where you live. When I lived in Utah, I never dewormed and never had issues. I had trouble with my Dorper sheep in North Carolina, but the Katahdins I'm raising now have been doing well.
@@homesteadingwithPJ We flood here, I checked a couple eyelids and they aren't terrible. I think my ewes are mostly Katahdin and my Ram looks more dorper but he only sheds his belly wool and has horns so maybe more Dorset heavy than Persian
I have painted desert and icelandic mostly the crosses seem to be doing very well this year I got some f1 crosses but I lost a couple pure icelandics because they have more issues with parasites moving forward I'm keeping the crosses to breed back to painted desert and katahdin because my parents raise katahdin and I'm getting a ram from them. I prefer horns but have had a issue it seems with my horned rams becoming aggressive and end up eating them so I'm just molding them all together. Icelandics are built very well and my crosses are much stockier then painted deserts which I like but they are also tough as nails like painted desert sheep both are delicious I haven't eaten any of the crosses yet but they are both very lean and delicious. I tried raising both east friesian and finnsheep same issues as the icelandics especially East friesian I have some crosses from those I'm keeping for now as well because I want to be able to milk them eventually.
Nice plan!
Please help! We have a few Katahdin sheep and now have the opportunity to add a few Dorpers to the mix. Would you recommend this? Is it good to cross breed like this?
I would! If you're just trying to create a strong sheep for meat (and don't care about papers or registered stock) then I'd say go for it! They cross really well.
@@homesteadingwithPJdo the crosses shed out? I raise Katahdins here in Northern California and had one Katahdin/Dorper cross given to me as a bummer lamb. Had to shear Beatrice every year. Have an opportunity to get some Dorper/Katahdin cross ewes but trying to reduce the shearing work on our ranch. BTW one of our rams was 1/4 St.Croix/3/4 Katahdin. Was told the St. Croix rams are more mellow. Scout was a bit grouchy during breeding season but otherwise a really nice guy. Had a "Katahdin ram" that obviously had some Jacobs in him because he had the brown patches. A total jerk regardless of the season. Jacobs have horns and don't hesitate to use them on other sheep or people. I started with Jacobs. Sticking with Katahdins.
Crosses are less reliable with their genetic traits. But I would think that a Dorper/Katahdin cross would shead out. @@suechan6414
@@homesteadingwithPJI think the hair/shedding might be on a different gene. I contacted a local rancher that was offering Dorper/Katahdin ewes. She said they shear every summer, too.
I bought 3 ewes ( 2..3 year olds and one 4 year old) all had lambed..Hamp/suff cross.. 200 $ each..Lander Wy.. we will see how I do.. this spring. Got a free Droper ram to breed them in October.. raising for meat only. On 9 pastured acres
That sounds like an amazing set-up. I think you're gonna do really well with that cross. Big meaty, hardy sheep.
We are in Victoria Australia, and we recently got a mob of 15 white dorper from our neighbour, 4 of which are pregnant and lambing. We have 13 acres and plan on doing rotational grazing and eventually buy an Australian white ram, apararently the aussie whites are great for eating 🥩
You are hearing the marketing machine re the AW. Hair breeds are great eating so any mix will do, you don't need to pay a premium for the marketing hype.
@@Baabaabelle we wont be paying alot for the ram, plus we already had 3 aw x dorper and you can definitely feel the difference when we were grabbing them to worm them, same age as the dorper but much chunkier, i guess we will see when it comes to eating them
Do you think dorper would be good for Missouri?
They could work, but you'd have to have ample land and time to rotate them often. If time and land are considerations, I would look at the St. Croix or Katahdin breeds.
Also buy local, visit the farm you intend to buy from. Make sure you're buying from people to show raise sheep the way you want to raise sheep.
I live in mid Missouri. So far my horse and dogs haven't had much parasite issues, but I shall be watching the sheep closely. I'm getting 3 ewe lambs next week and a bred yearly ewe in the fall. They are East Friesian and Lacaune crosses and my primary goal is dairy production. I'm getting them from a trusted source well known for the dairy. If I think I can handle it, next year, I'll add a polled Dorset or two. That will give me some better meat and wool and the offspring should still produce a good amount of milk just instead of 200-230 days the average time frame will be more like 160-180 days.
Most of the sheep near me are all crosses or Big meaty breeds with wool. I never see Dorper near me other than crosses. I don't go to shows, though.
I am also in Missouri south east of Joplin I have black head Dorpers I got them from a woman who has been breeding for 30 years and has culled all her weak sheep, she culls all that get worms or have feet issues ect she is really good.
Awesome to hear! I hope they do great for you. With selective breeding pretty much any goal can be accomplished in livestock.
@@thewolfaeflock8060 we are 40 minutes south east of Joplin if you are near it would be neat to see some other operations around here
I think we're a couple hours apart. I'm in Lebanon. I'm just getting started, like I said. Just picking up my first lambs Saturday :)
That's the way to do it! Sounds like you have some GREAT stock!
We just started our flock. We have 3 East Frieslan X Laucaune ewes. They are all between 85-83% EF. we are raising ours to be triple purpose of milk, wool, and meat. Their wool quality is EXCEPTIONAL. We may later bring in a Dorper or Katahdin ram to make the meat better on the offspring (lower lanolin). They have great temperaments and should do fine here in southeast Iowa. They don't love high heat and humidity together, but so far have tolerated it well. We plan to make yogurt, cheeses, butter, ice cream, and soaps with the milk and lanolin. Wool will be spun into yarn to make winter wear and emergency lamb sweaters.
you cant mix hair and wool sheep ... it will spoil the wool
@@juanpieterse4075
The babies wouldn't be kept for their wool. They would be meat. However I now have a ram lined up for my ladies and he is a wool sheep. Dorset.
@@BaughbeSauce Dohne merino
dorpahdins all the way, baby! some end up like your B ewes, a few ended up like your A+ ewe, and one lamb came out this year looking like your A+ but loong. we call him frank the tank and he'll be a keeper for sure!
It's all about the crosses that work for your property! Thanks for sharing your insight and experience here.
There's a natural dewormer that actually works which is lespedeza hay/pellets.
I sold my pet sheep as I left for Europe and also for the fact that he needed a companion as he was alone and felt very lonely! Otherwise they’re so fricking emotional and get attached very easily. I’m definitely buying two for my small garden when I return home 🥹🐑
I don't raise any sheep, but I'll be starting a farm here in about 4 or 5 years, when I retire, and dorper sheep is an animal that I would like to raise for meat. I'm looking to start with about 20 or them, but I'll also be raising pigs and cattle as well. I live in Central Texas now, but looking to relocate closer to the coast when starting the farm. So, I guess I'll take your advice and see what type of sheep people in that area will be raising before committing. I do know that there are a lot of people in east Texas who raise sheep but I follow a person here on CZcams in that area who raises Dorpers. So I guess I'll figure that out later.
Ya, when you move I suggest looking for people around you who raise sheep for meat and asking not only their breed but also their management style. It'll give you a better idea of the breed you can expect to raise successfully. Best of luck!
I see your sheep have their tails docked. Is that a standard practice?
If so do you do the docking?
Thank you
Craig
It's standard if you're selling Dorpers to people who also want to sell/breed Dorpers. Other breeds, I'm not so sure. But if you've ever had a sheep with diarrhea, (scours) you'll be glad you docked them.
Yes, I dock myself. It's very easy to do with a band and the lambs don't mind it as much as you'd think.
We raise MIXED breed hair for a reason. EVERY Dorper we bought has had an issue, one ram was gay and did not breed ewes, the does we got were not tolerant of Barberpoles!!!!!!!!! Nothing worked on them! I thought Dairy goats were bad... Dorps were BAD!
thanks, I will get a few for VA usa, on 90 ac. Looking for meat.
Sounds awesome! Good luck!
Great video. I am in my first year of owning Dorper sheep the North of New Zealand. it's super warm and humid here and the biggest issue I have faced so far is foot problems. we have pretty lush pastures even now in the winter and I've had to treat for scald several times on all 9 of them.
We have our first lambs arriving some time in September which is kind of terrifying as I'm a first generation farmer. We plan to lamb on pasture so fingers crossed it all goes well!
Keep up the good work.
Very exciting! And terrifying too for sure. If you are able, I suggest finding someone who does sheep near you so that you have someone to call for guidance if anything with lambing goes south. Even if you have a neighbor who has helped deliver calves or babies, it is helpful to have someone else there who appreciates the task of bringing life to the pasture. And hopefully you everything goes smoothly!
I had feet issues when we had wet muggy weather for a few weeks. I used copper sulfate solution and toothbrush, scrub between there toes with the brush to get any debris out and either hold the foot in container of copper sulfate and water mix or if you have many might want to set up a foot bath and a way to make sure they stand in it for 15 to 30 seconds
Whats the smallest sheep to have as a pet?
Hmm. I'm not sure. Most people want bigger sheep for meat.
Maybe a babydoll sheep?
In utah trying to pick which breed to get.
I liked Dorper in Utah.
But Katahdin would work well. So would Painted Desert.
If you have enough space, most hair sheep would do well in Utah.
@@homesteadingwithPJ thank you 😊
Hi what is your opinion about fat tailed sheep
I like them, but I haven't seen any near me.
What would you recommend for NC?
I've had Katahdins for the past 9 months and they've done great. St. Croix are famously parasite resistant.
@@homesteadingwithPJ thanks. Do you have chickens by chance? And if so, have you ever pastured them together?
We do have a small laying flock, but they don't run with the sheep. We used to have ducks on the pasture, just for parasite control, but that didn't seem to help much@@user-jj2in8dz7f
I am looking to switch from goats to sheep because I want to focus on meat vs milk. But it's for personal use, I'm not a farmer and only sell my extras to friends, family, or neighbors.
The breeds I'm considering are hair breeds to avoid the requirements of sheering. This is my extremely uneducated assumption of sheep though. Why? Because I can only learn so many things at once. I need to check my, "I raised a sheep box" before I take on sheering or finding someone to sheer. From my experience with livestock, especially, non cattle... no one knows anything about anything! You're on your own with books & CZcams 'University'.
I have a good working relationship with a family homestead who raise St. Croix. I 100% trust their ethical practices, but I don't always share their passion necessarily for why they raise what they raise. They want parasite resistance over meat production. Maybe for good reason, but they've only ever raised that breed too.
I'm in N. VA, so I have to consider parasites heavily, and have worked very diligently to manage them in my goats. In fact, parasites are the leading reasons i haven't tried sheep or boar goats yet. Thankfully, I have a few acres (about 5 wooded & 10 grassy) that they help clear of brush, invasive weeds and condition the grassy areas as well, rotating throughout the year. However, there are times they are in the barn or barnyard; heavy rain or anytime it's overly wet. They aren't keen on standing in heavy snow either, so it's hay in the barn. I try to wait until the sun is out to dry things out. But goats HATE rain! They become stressed & then...here come the worms. So, I just don't.
I have never lost a goat to parasites and rarely need to deworm my goats, maybe once a year. I probably get on my vets nerves with all the fecals i run though. And famacha is just part of the milking stand routine. So, the thought of having an animal that is so sensitive is enough to stall my transition. And how would I monitor if I'm not milking? Can sheep train to a stand? Is that crazy?
On the other hand, I am pretty passionate about providing for my family and doing right by my animals that we consume. So I'm willing to put in the work.
This past year I decided to try a heritage breed pig vs getting our usual feeder pigs. It was a huge let down!!! We were sold on their less destructive pasture management possibilities and their love of forage. I wouldn't say that's accurate to the degree we need. Maybe our pugs were just jerks, who knows? But, i had to pull them off pasture for the ruts and move them to woodland clearing & we are pouring money into feeding these extremely slow growing pigs that will never produce half of what the feeder pigs did. They also, despite being "lard" pigs, my feeders still have more. It was a wake up call.
The lesson, i prefer turnover for meat animals. 3-4 months of more intense work is acceptable if processing day & my bank account have good results. I'm not looking into greed or having an "operation", but we aren't millionaires and I don't want to neglect my livestock because something is too expensive or is just plain unavailable (which were running into in these current times).
Maybe all of that is too much to place on one breed or one kind of animal. But when you're a homesteader, you ask a lot of yourself and your livestock.
i dont know but weve done ouer every ivomec and wurm teatment every4 months and we havent had problems
lots of local farmers moving from Dorpers to Australian Whites here in AU
Correct. Like me . After decades of having wool sheep got some dorpers. Pricks of things, bad hoves .They don't like wet conditions. Then you can't keep them in alloted paddocks . Got some Wiltipol rams joined the ewes to them & kept the female offspring. Happiest day of my life when I sold the Flipping dorpers. For the 6 years have been using Aussie whites with good results. They are not perfect but better than dorpers.......... I am getting stressed thinking about those F@#£ing dorpers.
The Australian white sounds like an amazing sheep! If money were no object for me, I think I'd move to Australia and farm Australian Whites!
What do you think about Suffolk Sheeps?!
Good prolific sheep that does well in Europe and some parts of the U.S. From what I hear, many people in the US need to grain-finish them to get a good size.
Dorper cheap in parts of Cali 250 to 300 each is easy to find.
In addition to my last comment crossing breeds is the best way to get better resistance to parasites and painted desert when crossed to stockier sheep make a great carcass they grow very quickly and when crossed to stockier sheep like icelandic like mine and I have seen some crossed to dorper and katahdin that look amazing and grow faster then both parents. If you ever decide to introduce new lines I would say painted desert have a better resistance then katahdin even and they make just as good hybrids as katahdin to larger sheep for fast growth but katahdin is not a bad choice either. Not sure if that is anything your interested in doing but I feel painted deserts are often overlooked for commercial crosses because they are small but they grow fast and cross well with bigger meatier sheep.
I have wondered about the painted desert sheep, I haven't seen many around me, but they'd be a good cross.
I've just started to raise dormer sheep
Nice, I've heard nice things about those sheep.
To Start with you need really good blood Stock . And you Should have Set aside a lot of money to get the best Ram and ewes to Start your flock as this will be the platform too Start your flock really. Thanks Shayne
I am in Missouri and have 25 registered black head Dorpers I got them locally from a woman who has been culling for weak parasite resistance, feet issues ect for 20 plus years. I have my 25 on 80 acers integrated with cattle and chickens to help brake the parasite cycle and I let them free range that entire area.
You must have a great flock. I love that idea.
@@homesteadingwithPJ seems to be going well so far been thinking of doing some videos of my journey on CZcams kinda like your channel but I don't know if I have ad much advice to offer as you
You have to get the correct genetics and breed for what you want line and selective breeding, cant do that with 10 or 20 sheep , small holdings will always be the victim for buying inferior genetics except if they buy their sheep from a already established firm with established lines 💲💲💲 the buyer also have to know what's the breeder goal for each line put it to the test select ,sell inferior and do it over and over again ... I tried to share a link witch I think you may find very interesting but it seems youtube doesn't allow me ..good content PJ
Juan, you are doing it right. Small producers really do depend on larger folks who have a large enough flock to selectively cull and breed better genetics.
That's why for right now I'm finishing out rams.
@@homesteadingwithPJ Research Diatomaceous Earth for livestock
We having the same problem here in Mississippi with the parasites in these sheep. Lost has been heavy even with dewormer, vets, and stillbirth. These sheep are not the best.
Thanks for sharing your experience. Good to hear the good, and (more importantly) the bad. Helps people set realistic expectations.
hey i live in mexico i have dorper we have a good rate with them but i agree with u they are very good sheep for meat but also wityh reproduction
Where you at?
I live in North Carolina.
I watched quite a few of your vids as I was planning to start with Dorper (in the Netherlands, so quite a wet country) but I ended up starting with Nolana sheep. A newly developed breed of hair sheep from Germany (project started in 1997). Two types were developed, a white meat sheep and a brown type more suited to living with lesser quality pasture and less input in general. I own a small flock of the brown, hardier type. These should still provide a high quality (decent yield) meat and I prefer the look of them compared to the basic white meat specific type nolana. The next few years should be enough for me to learn how hardy they actually are!
Sounds very cool. Good luck!
What about the Royal White Sheep? This Sheep was developed from Dorper and St Croix in the United States. Thanks LAM
A Royal White breeder has told me that they are very hardy and tough sheep.
I've heard good things about them. But they are hard to come by (near me at least).
I live in Trinidad and Tobago i hv 2 Blackbelly ewes, 1 kathadin ewe...all 3 pregnant and 1 West African Ram
do you sell sheep by any chance?
Not currently.
But it seems to carry each year. But I'm probably two years out from selling any right now.
Why is a wetter climate more parasite-inclined than a drier climate?
I'm not exactly sure the science of why. But when I think about parasites, they are essentially little worms. I never see a wet worm dead on the sidewalk, they are always dry 😂 But seriously, I think they just thrive in a wetter (and warmer) area because it replicates where they want to be (inside an animal).
I prefer Icelandic
Correction: Dorpers were bred in South Africa by crossing European Dorset and East African “Persian” Black Head.
Diatomaceous earth is a good preventative for worms
I've recently started sprinkling it onto the dry food (pelleted alfalfa), how do you give them D.E.?
Nothing is perfect.
The best sheeps in the world is Gissar sheep!😀😀😀😀😀
I've heard great things. I even mentioned them in my Top 10 Hair Sheep Breeds video.
It is not the genetic. It is the management. There's less room for error in your environnement than in a dryer one.
Hi I'm a long time follower I've been following from almost day 1. I to have a youtube channel on sheep farming ect. Im 12 and it would mean a lot if you could mention me in 1 of your videos if you like what content make . I would really appreciate it!!
dessert like climate?
say what?
If you farm with the wrong animal in a area expect losses. PART OF YOUR SCHOOL FEES PAYING FOR YOUR ONLY IN EXPIERIENCE ABOUT FARMING WITH SHEEP. ITS not about flock size what crap you talking to other people . Color to conversation . If you want to farm do your homework and dont blame the animals .
Agreed. I'm in northwest Louisiana. Had three dorpers and only one made it to slaughter and he was thin. We have a khatadin and he is a chunky boy. I have only dewormed him once.
I mean it’s a known fact that dophers are a arid breed…bringing them to a humid and rainy state like NC of course there’s going to be problems especially for them to adjust. How about u stop being so aggressive he didn’t not once blame the animals he could get rid of them but choose to keep them obviously and it’s obvious he already did his homework or he wouldn’t be keeping the breed.
You live in a cold miserable climate
Dorper is not the problem, you and your poor decisions as a business man is where the problem is. You DO NOT take a grown sheep out of its environment and transport it to another completely different weather system. It will deteriorate. Simple. You should have either sold or slaughtered your flock. You should have acquired new flock better suited to your new environment once there. Also, just to buttress my point, do you notice that all the young ones that were born in the new location did well?? And also, many American farmers make me laugh with the eagerness with which they throw good money away in a bid to get the "best animals". The question is - it is best for whom? What is the ultimate goal of raising sheep? To produce meat or to look at?? Conformity is important, but not to the degree where many have taken it. They have turned animals into an art form and the prices paid is now much like stock exchange speculation! In any case, pure breeds are hardly ever hardy - they are bred to conform to very narrow and stringent standards. Pure breeds are best used as breeders to get mixes (with other breeds) that give far greater vigour and hardiness. Get a good hardy herd that grows quickly and reproduces efficiently. Those are the three most important characteristics - Hardy, Fast growth, Reproductive efficiency. Leave the looks and conformity to the show guys! Get meat on people's table for good price and make money!!
Advice for anyone looking to make more from ur dorpers is instead of slaughtering ur Rams pick out the best ones and sell them on shows or auctions. Not easy to start a stud but these sheep are money makers u just have to improve your tactics
That's true. It's not something I'm interested in, but some people make it work.
What's the best place for a dorper? The freezer. You don't need to own dorper's, talk your neighbour into buying them....they will become yours after they destroy your fences😁 Aussie perspective