Dairy breeds of sheep: top 5 names and main indicators, industry in Russia

Sheep breeding has been one of the most important and profitable branches of agriculture since ancient times. A sheep is a calm and docile animal, giving a person a lot of products - wool, meat, tail fat, sheepskin and milk. Despite low productivity, dairy breeds of sheep have a development prospect. Their milk is used for high-quality and expensive cheeses - soft cheese, ricotta and feta, aged pecorino, spicy Roquefort with mold.

Popular dairy breeds of sheep and their main indicators

Before considering dairy breeds, it should be noted that highly specialized varieties of these animals do not exist.All sheep after lambing give milk, the question is only in its quantity. There are breeds that are able to give a little more of this valuable product than others. Therefore, they all belong to mixed varieties: meat-and-milk, meat-skin, giving meat and high-quality wool, and so on.

East Frisian

This is a versatile breed bred in Germany. East Frisian milk is used to make ricotta and roquefort cheese.

Pros and consDairy sheep of this breed are capable of producing up to 400-450 liters of milk per season.Large live weight of animals.Large lambs.Compliant and calm character.Insufficient endurance.I like1 Dislike

Tsigai

The oldest breed has the following characteristics:

Pros and consVersatility - milk, meat, wool.Up to 150 liters of full-fat milk per lactation.Endurance.Disease and helminth resistance.Great for central Russia.Negative attitude towards stalls.Demanding on pastures and grass quality.Feeling unwell in cold, damp, windy weather.I like1 Dislike

Ascanian

This Ukrainian breed produces the largest merino with fine fleece and the following differences:

Pros and consFertility.Valuable fine wool.Tender lean lamb meat without a specific smell.Bad curl.I like1 Dislike

Romanovskaya

An old Russian universal breed, more often used as a meat breed, as well as for the production of high quality sheepskins.

Pros and consFertility.The skins are used to make warm and light fur coats and sheepskin coats, which are considered among the best in the world.Undemanding to food.Small amount of wool.Insufficient resistance to diseases, especially to lung lesions.Tendency to helminthiasis.I like1 Dislike

Balbasskaya

These are large mountain animals often found in the Caucasus.

Pros and consDry body.Large size females and males.Long fluff in the coat.The use of wool for the manufacture of carpets.Local varieties of cheese such as Adyghe are cooked from milk.High milkiness.Average fertility.Satisfactory wool quality.Limited breeding area.I like1 Dislike

Each of the dairy breeds of these farm animals has its own advantages and disadvantages, so there is a wide choice for building a herd.Dairy females can be selected for a variety of characteristics, ranging from milk production to nutritional requirements and living conditions.

Final ranking tableEast FrisianoneTsigayskayaoneAscanianoneRomanovskayaoneBalbasskayaone

Content Features

Sheep are herd animals, so some people may get the impression that it is enough to drive them out to pasture for food. However, this is not enough. Of course, succulent feed is the basis of a sheep's diet, so grazing and harvesting a large amount of high-quality hay for the winter is indispensable. However, dairy sheep need to be provided with more nutritious compound feed, as well as mineral supplements, clean drinking water.

At the same time, feed produced by enterprises for goats or horses is not suitable for sheep. They contain copper, which accumulates in the liver and gradually becomes the cause of poisoning.Therefore, for dairy sheep and other breeds of these animals, it is necessary to purchase specialized feed produced by experienced manufacturers.

Sheep are driven out to pastures only after the dew has disappeared or the grass has dried out after rain, as wet grass causes fermentation in the gastrointestinal tract. However, animals should always have free access to water. In winter, root crops are added to the feed, and hay should be legumes, since for a constant supply of milk, food must be plentiful and balanced.

Also important is the timing of weaning lambs. While they suck, you can not hope for milk, so it is necessary to transfer the offspring to artificial feeding as soon as possible.

Milking rules

Sheep are milked both in the pasture and in the stall, but it is better to do this in a special cage, so the animal behaves calmer.It is better to take dishes for collecting milk deep, because sheep can turn it over by raising and lowering their hind legs. It is also necessary to drain the milk more often, because dirt from the wool can get into it. Manure contamination is not uncommon, because sheep can empty their intestines at the wrong time. Sheep have a small udder, so you need to adapt to milking by choosing a position that is suitable for yourself and for each animal. Milking can be done in the following way:

1. Behind the female.
2. Side.
3. Riding an animal. This makes it easier to restrict his movements when milking on pastures and ranges.

Sheep give a modest portion of milk, but you should not try to empty the udder to the last drop. During milking, it is necessary to act quickly, but carefully and accurately, without unnecessary fuss, so as not to unnerve the female. So she will give milk more willingly.

How much milk does a sheep give per day?

The productivity of sheep queens is determined by measuring the milk sucked by lambs. To do this, the offspring are weighed before and after feeding at regular intervals for 48 hours.

Each breed of sheep gives a different amount of milk, so only an average figure can be given. Each lactating animal is capable of producing 1200 milliliters of milk within 24 hours. During the lactation period, a dairy sheep is able to produce up to 140 liters of fatty and he althy milk. Fat content reaches 9%, and the composition contains dozens of vitamins and minerals.

Sheep dairy farming in Russia

For the Mediterranean and some other countries, breeding dairy sheep is a centuries-old practice. At the same time, dairy sheep breeding as an independent industry does not exist in the Russian Federation. Only in mountainous regions is there a practice of making cheese from sheep's milk, and throughout the country sheep breeding is used exclusively for the purpose of obtaining meat, fat, wool and sheepskins, astrakhans.

The reason for the insufficient use of dairy sheep is the lack of tradition, as well as climatic and geographical features. Ideally, flocks of sheep graze in mountainous and steppe areas, and part of Russia is forests and forest-steppes with a humid and cold climate.

However, the breeding of dairy sheep is an exceptionally promising industry, if we take into account the sanctions that have blocked the flow of expensive cheeses such as Roquefort and Pecorino into the country. Professional Russian cheese makers and amateurs have a chance to vigorously fill the vacant niche, so sheep dairy farming is a rational way for the development of agriculture and a way to create your own competitive products.

Recommended