[BenBhoy]

hey all.

have a 7 month old dorset (poll) x suffolk ram lamb. we usually castrate but kept a couple entire this year to see if they grow/better conformation than whethers.

the thing is he is a really good looking ram lamb, solid and a good pair on him already! so i'm having second thoughts as to slaughter or not. i've always been a big believer of only using a pure ram as a terminal sire, so just wanted to get people's reactions really on here. would any of you use a ram of this mix as a breeding tup? thanks.

[feldar]

You have two good breeds in one there, you could sell him or why not try him yourself over a few ewes just to see if the lambs finish quicker. He could run with a few ewes as a lamb easily.

[SallyintNorth]

There are a few crosses that people breed as tups on purpose - for instance Beltex x Charollais, and combinations of the Texel breeds with or without Beltex.  I think I have heard of someone using a 'Suftex' (Suffolk cross Texel) but I've no idea how it worked out or what ewes it's best to put him on.

Apart from that, generally people say it's best to keep your tup pure or you get too much variation - especially if you have crossbred ewes of course.

Sometimes you just have to try something - feldar's idea of just a few girls is probably sensible.  However, when BH is trying something he says he gives himself a jolly big dose of it so if it's a bad idea he'll be well and truly sickened and will never do it again!

(Must remind him of that when discussing my putative move into Castlemilk Moorits...  )

[BenBhoy]

thanks for those replies.

i know exactly what you mean salley, and i am the first to admit i've always been bit of a tup snob, would only ever use pure breeds. but i just see something in this lamb, he is big in all the right places, nice conformation. as for the variation, our ewe's are pure so the only variation would be the suffolk dorset kind. i'm gonna give him 3 ewes, 2 'weongs and one welsh mountain and keep an eye. if no action by end november i'll put the three ewes back in with the texel.

[Rosemary]

I suppose the problem with a cross-breed is, as Sally says, you are less likely to get a consistent product. The pure breedshave been bred over many generations to be consistent.

But since they are both down breeds (dorset and suffolk) the variation should be less than if he was, for arguments sake, a Shetland x Texel.

[VSS]

As has already been said, if you use a cross bred ram (unless using something like a texel X beltex which are pretty similar) your lambs will lack consistency. You will get some lambs that take the Dorset side and some that are more suffolk like.

Rosemary is correct in that they are both downland breeds, but the poll Dorset is primarily a maternal breed and the suffolk is mainly a terminal breed.

I don't think I would use this cross on my ewes, but then it really depends on what type of ewes you have got and what you are trying to acheive with your flock.

[BenBhoy]

oohh decisions!! all part of the fun of livestock though i guess.

after taking another look at him i'm going with my head, and what i've always said to others - use pure tup. thanks for advice people.