Caucasian breed of sheep: description and characteristics, features of the content

Most farmers raise sheep for wool or meat. Therefore, it is important to choose the right breed of animals. A popular choice is Caucasian and North Caucasian sheep breeds. Breeding work was started by livestock specialists of the Stavropol Territory in the 30s of the last century. It should be noted that when growing the North Caucasian breed, some sheep breeders note the low fertility of animals.

Description and characteristics of the breed

Animals of the Caucasian breed are distinguished by a proportional physique, an elongated and rounded body. Adult males gain weight up to 120 kg, females - up to 70. Sheep grow at the withers up to 75-77 cm, females - up to 70 cm.

The breed also demonstrates good performance in terms of wool: 8-9 kg of wool is sheared from a ram, 7-8 kg from a sheep, the length of the fibers is 10 and 8 cm, respectively. The fleece usually has a pastel cream color with a whitish tint. The yield of pure wool is 55-56%.

Once a year, the female brings offspring (usually 1-2 lambs). During lactation, milk yield can be 100 liters of milk with a fat content of 5 to 8%. Therefore, lambs quickly recover and already at the age of four months gain weight of 35-40 kg.

Pros and cons of Caucasian and North Caucasian sheep

Due to the high quality of the fleece, sheep's wool is used for the production of clothing. The popularity of the breed is also explained by other positive qualities:

individuals grow large, quickly gain weight (one-year-old females weigh 65-70 kg, males gain weight up to 120 kg);
one carcass produces a large meat yield of 55-60%;
high fecundity of Caucasian females (100 females produce 140 lambs a year);
Animals of the North Caucasian breed grow and develop well in an arid climate.

The negative quality of Caucasian sheep is that wool grows unevenly on certain parts of the body. Most often on the head and abdomen. North Caucasian lambs are sometimes born with a sparse coat.

Maintenance and Care

In the hot summer period in grazing areas, it is necessary to provide animals with a resting place, access to fresh clean water. In winter, insulated rooms without drafts are suitable for keeping sheep. On frosty days, the temperature in the sheepfold should not fall below 12-14 ° C. Wooden shields are used to form individual pens.

A prerequisite is the presence of a hard floor (on a soft surface, animals may have problems with ligaments).The best option is to cover the concrete floor with a boardwalk. To make it easier to maintain cleanliness, the floor is laid with a slight slope for the natural drainage of sewage.

Eating Rules

It is recommended to allocate a separate feeder for each sheep in the sheepfold. Drinkers are installed voluminous, since an adult can drink up to 10 liters of water per day. The diet is divided into summer and winter. In the warm season, the basis of nutrition is the green grass of pastures. In winter, dry food and juicy food are combined.

Approximate daily ration of an adult animal: 2-2.5 kg of silage, 1.5-2 kg of hay, 0.5-1 kg of feed.

It is natural that the portions of adult animals and lactating females are larger than that of juveniles. Be sure to provide free access to minerals. To do this, separate feeders are filled with chalk, bone meal and table s alt.

Where are they bred?

Cultivation of Caucasian sheep is mainly done by farmers in Ukraine, Armenia, and the North Caucasus. When breeding a herd, sheep breeders practice to distinguish several breed lines: with high wool shearing, bulk weight gain, high fecundity.

Diseases and prevention

The greatest danger to animals are infectious diseases that are quickly transmitted from individual to individual (scrape, catarrhal fever). Brucellosis deserves attention because the infection is transmitted to humans. The disease proceeds slowly, sick sheep are sent for slaughter. Common infection prevention measures are quality nutrition, isolation of sick animals, quarantine of new sheep.

In the spring-autumn periods, the probability of infection of animals with piroplasmosis caused by tick bites increases. To avoid the disease, it is necessary to periodically inspect animals, graze sheep on clean pastures, treat grazing areas along the perimeter with special means.

Caucasian sheep breeding does not cause excessive trouble. Unpretentiousness to the conditions of detention, the transfer of breeding properties to offspring are the hallmarks of the breed. A special advantage of Caucasian sheep is their high productivity in terms of meat and pure wool.