Sunday 8 November 2009

Tups in Tarset

I did say I hoped to be able to let you know what types of tups came into the area this year, so I had a quick whizz round the valley, camera in hand and have come up with the following:

Hexham type Blackfaced tup
Posted by PicasaScotch type Blackfaced tup from Stirling and a South Country Cheviot tup
Posted by PicasaScotch type Blackfaced tup from Lanark
Posted by PicasaSwaledale tups from St John's Chapel, Weardale
Posted by PicasaSouth Country Cheviots from Lockerbie
Posted by PicasaBlue faced Leicester from Hexham
Posted by Picasamillenium blue and texel from Carlisle
Posted by Picasa
There may be others that I'm not aware of but this gives you a good cross section of tups to be used this year. The horned sheep will all be breeding replacement hill sheep. The cheviots will be used for crossing on the hill ewes to give a better store lamb although some are introducing Cheviot ewes into their flocks

The bluefaced leicester crossed onto a blackface or swaledale sheep produces a breed known as a mule which is the mainstay breed used by lowland sheep producers. Thousands of mule ewe lambs are sold every back end through Hexham mart, they will be crossed with terminal sires such as suffolks or texels to produce prime fat lambs.

The millenium blue (cross between blue de maine and texel) and the texel are crossed onto almost anything to give a good fat lamb, although these two will be used for pure breeding by a farmer with better ground which carries texel ewes.

So there you go - food for thought - because ultimately that is what these boys will be producing - food.

6 comments:

Emma Anderson said...

The Scotch-type black-faced look very nice indeed.

Tarset Shepherd said...

Pleased you liked the Scotchies Emma, they are two very nice examples.

Dr Clive Dalton said...

Has anybody asked the Yowes what colour'bloom' they prefer in their tup?
Some yowes must get a terrible shock to see some yellow-dyed beastie creeping up behind them with an glint in his eye!

Tarset Shepherd said...

The amount of rain we're having at the moment Clive they'll be lucky if they can lift their heads to see what's coming!

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julianqueen said...

Tups in Tarset, the heartland of Northumberland, graze amidst rugged moorland and rolling hills. These sturdy rams, known locally as "tups," roam freely, their thick wool coats protecting them from the harsh elements of the northern climate. They are the pride of Tarset, bred for their resilience and hardiness, traits essential for thriving in this unforgiving terrain.
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