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To Find Good Katahdin Sheep For Sale Kentucky Should Be Prioritized

By Joseph Davis


The start of the development process of Katahdin sheep was in 1950s. Michael Piel of Maine receives the credit for developing the breed. The initial development occurred on the Piel Farm, which had many thousands of sheep at the moment. Other breeders adopted the breed from Piel Farm, and today, its population in the United States keeps growing. Therefore, when in search for Katahdin sheep for sale Kentucky offers a good place to prioritize. Breeders in Kentucky are careful with their breeding practices so that they produce high-quality animals for sale. The breeders offer reasonable prices.

The development of the new breed was motivated by the realization of the fact that to develop the best animals for meat, some changes were needed. The change related with how selection was done so that instead of depending on wool as the main factor for selection, other factors should instead be prioritized. In his endeavor, Piel intended to combine the good characteristics in Virgin Island sheep and those in wool breeds.

Virgin Island sheep had the prolificacy, hair coat, and hardiness Piel was looking for. So, he combined these qualities with those found in wool breeds, which included fast rate of growth and conformation of meat. Piel kicked off the development by crossing British breeds, Suffolk in particular, with hair breeds.

For the next twenty years, Piel engaged in the development of the new breed by choosing only animals that possessed the required traits. At the end of the experiment, Piel had come up with a flock of ewes that he named Katahdins. The origin of the name is Mt. Karahdin in Maine. In 1970s, the integration of Wiltshire Horn was done as a way of enhancing size and quality of the carcass.

From the original flock, breeders have managed to expand the number of Katahdins in the entire North American continent and worldwide. This is done with careful selection for reproductive efficiency, carcass quality, and hair coat. The KHSI was formed in 1986 for the purpose of registering individual Katahdins, record performance, assist with marketing and promotion, and to encourage research and development on the breed.

Animals are registered when they attain the age of one year and have been inspected thorough to ensure that they conform to breed standards. The breeder needs to be a KNSI member in order to put in a request for inspection or to have the animal registered. There is often no need for inspection before registration of lambs with 100 percent purebred parents. Such parents should not have birthdays beyond 1/1/1998.

There are several qualities in katahdins that are way superior over those in other breeds. Compared to other breeds, this breed has been proven to be more resistant to parasitic attacks. Individual maintain good health and growth even in the face of parasitic attack. Similarly, the breed is more heat resistant.

Other qualities that researchers compare among breeds include fertility factors, prolificacy, meat flavor, growth performance, carcass quality, and out-of-season breeding. The breed is particularly known for its superior meat flavor, which is favored by people around the world. The breed produces one of the best meats ever.




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