[jaykay]

So talking to LadyGrey about the tups she's used on her Shetlands, the Charollais crosses had nice fleeces and grew well.

But if I'm really honest, I don't like Charollais really  or Texels or Beltex's if I'm honest. That 'pink pig' look.

Apparently the Ryeland crosses weren't good, which had been my first thought. I could do with lambs that finish earlier than my Shetland tup lambs. But then what do you do with the gimmers from a cross?

Anyone else used other tups on their Shetlands, to good effect? Hampshire Downs? Suffolks? Anything else??

[Me]

Can you not sell the gimmers from the cross fat as well as the rams?

[Ladygrey]

Where I bought a group of my shetlands from, they cross with a poll dorset ram

http://www.whaddongrove.co.uk/livestock-sales.php

Also not all charollais look like pink pigs     

The ram I used looked a little like this

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jyxO_Yi2wso/T93cgpYkSRI/AAAAAAAAADc/mwCKIY5CZn8/s320/Builth+Main+Sale+2010+082+QU0067.JPG

and the lambs and adult sheep from the cross dont look piggie at all, very pretty  and both gimmers and ram lambs can be sold as fat

Also ryelands may work for other people, but they just didnt work for me

[jaykay]

I'd have to sell them as fat I think. I'm used to pedigree breeds, so selling the gimmers as breeding stock, just need to re-think a bit.

Ok, that Charollais tup is nice, he'd be ok  Yes, your sheep from the cross were pretty.

[Womble]

I've seen a cross from a suffolk ram before. They looked ok and seemed to grow quickly enough.

[plt102]

I had mine crossed with a GFD ram. Beautiful heavy fleeced, fastish growing lambs that taste great. Very hardy and sturdy too. Not really planned, just that I had my Shetland ewes running with my gfd flock. was worried about the lambs being too big for the shetlands but they had no problems at all.

[Marches Farmer]

Southdown works well on almost anything.  Use ours on Badger Face every other year to give a good "Farmer's Cross" that sells well as a store lamb at market.  Vigorous lambs, no birth problems, well covered and very good conformation.  Lambs look like a Southdown (yes, yes, "Ah, Teddy Bear!") but with slightly mottled white faces.

[clydesdaleclopper]

My flock is Shetland x Gotland which gives lovely fleeces.

[trish.farm]

Romney Ram all the way!! I use my romney on all sorts, wee little hill ewes, suffolk x, coradales, and scottish blackface.  Never had any problem lambing, fantastic growing lambs on just grass, wonderful fleece.  Would never use anything but a romney now. x

[jaykay]

I certainly like the coloured Romney tups. But I've never seen one around here.

[Azzdodd]

I've got a charolias ram from a hill farmer he's got a good wool covering been bred into them for the hill farms

[jaykay]

I think I'd find a GFD tup a bit much to handle - I like them very much indeed but they're pretty big. I'm on my own and don't have good handling facilities.

A Southdown sounds like a possibility.

I'm interested in those Romneys but presumably they come from 'down south' so I don't know how I'd get one up here in the wild north.

What are any of these like size and temperament-wise? I know Shetlands, Rough Fells, Swaledales and Ryelands, for comparison.

[Me]

GFD is pretty much the most docile breed I have owned, the tups are big but very, very placid, great breed for kids but sadly also useless. They don't finish quickly or flesh well and feet are poor - I have a hairy Charmoise I can post to you!

[trish.farm]

Re Romney Tup.  I bought my boy from a breeder in devon, along with 2 unrelated shearling ewes.  Medium size sheep!  Ram is really docile, went nasty last week after a break in and attempted theft of him and his mates, but after a few days back with me he has been fine.  I can move him and his castrated companion around from paddock to paddock with a scoop of nuts and they just follow me.  I always carry a stick with me incase he gets too close but never had a problem with him.  Big pussy cat my shearer says!!  The romney ewes are fab mums, never needed assistance and gorgeous healthy twins each time.  Infact my romney ram has only produced 3 singles in 3 years covering on 13, 12 and 10 ewes. all the rest have been twins, no triplets and no misses.  All offspring from a mixed bunch have lovely fleeces, easy to lamb, and i start to slaughter the larger lambs at 6 months, no creep feed, only grass.  Oh and he is white, but has the coloured gene in him.  I have 2 black little hill type ewes and they always have black twins.

[SallyintNorth]

Other crossing breeds you could consider...

Blue-faced Leicester 
Teeswater or Wensleydale

If you use a nice fleece breed, which to me would include the above, Southdown, Charollais, Dutch Texel (I know, ugly ugly ugly), Norfolk Horn (not Suffolk but I think there is a Norfolk Horn flock somewhere up in the North; Ruth Dalton would know), Romney, then you may be able to sell the gimmer lambs to handspinning  sheepkeepers ....   if you know any, that is 

Someone bought 3 BFL x Shetland ewe lambs at Lanark last year.  Can't think who.    And two Shetland X ewe lambs, one part BFL and one part Castlemilk Moorit at Carlisle the year before 

Oh, and our next door farm has a Romney tup.  Not coloured though.