[Beewyched]

Hiya 

We have a 4-acre field on which we keep our pigs within electric-fenced paddocks.  We do not utilise the whole field & as it is stock-fenced with it's own water supply we are thinking of keeping some rare breed sheep, maybe half a dozen Soay/hardy native breed.

Is there anyone in the Renfrewshire/25 mile radius of Glasgow area that would be able to advise/let us come & see your sheep? 

Many thanks.   

[Fleecewife]

Hi there.  We are a bit south of Glasgow, north of Biggar, but readily accessible if you would like to come and see our flock.  We keep Soays and Hebrideans, plus one ancient Shetland, and we are happy to talk about other breeds and other breeders.  Have a look at our website and see what you think www.scothebs.co.uk

[Andrew]

We are in Blanefield 10 miles north of Glasgow. Have a small flock of 8 Shetlands on 5 acres, you are more than welcome to come see them.

[Elissian]

Fleecewife I have just looked at your website, I really enjoyed it, lovely photos and some really interesting bits of information.
what fascinating sheep.I love all the different shaped horns, I've noticed my wiltshire ewes pass their horn shape to their offspring is it the same with the Hebrideans

[Rosemary]

If you decide to have a rare breed - especially a REALLY rare breed, then do buy registered stock and register your lambs - only by doing this can you give the breed the best support.

[bigchicken]

Sad news fleecewife had a look at you site and found out that Tom Findlay has passed away. He was a gentleman and will be sadly missed. When I sat me transportation test ,Tom took the test at the same time and I think it was the first time he had used a computer he managed and passed. He probable had forgotten more about sheep than the folks who set the test knew. I met him many times at many different shows but will always remember speaking to him at Carlilse where I was selling some poultry and he said poultry is making more than Shetlands today, A few years before in 2003 he sold the white tup Rench Dougal at the same sale for £1000. RIP.

[Fleecewife]

Fleecewife I have just looked at your website, I really enjoyed it, lovely photos and some really interesting bits of information.
what fascinating sheep.I love all the different shaped horns, I've noticed my wiltshire ewes pass their horn shape to their offspring is it the same with the Hebrideans

Thank you Elissian    Still lots to add of course. 

Horn shape is fairly heritable down the female route in Hebs, but not totally so. Often you can tell a mother and offspring as they have a similar hornset, but we also have a ewe with very curly horns who is dam to another with very upright horns.  We are trying to find out too what input the sire's hornset has.  There are so many factors - both Nature and Nurture -  that I'm not sure we will ever find out the answer - interesting though isn't it.

[Fleecewife]

If you decide to have a rare breed - especially a REALLY rare breed, then do buy registered stock and register your lambs - only by doing this can you give the breed the best support.

I definitely second that and would add - please also sell on your registered lambs to others who will keep them registered.  Also applies to other species too of course.

[Fleecewife]

Sad news fleecewife had a look at you site and found out that Tom Findlay has passed away. He was a gentleman and will be sadly missed. When I sat me transportation test ,Tom took the test at the same time and I think it was the first time he had used a computer he managed and passed. He probable had forgotten more about sheep than the folks who set the test knew. I met him many times at many different shows but will always remember speaking to him at Carlilse where I was selling some poultry and he said poultry is making more than Shetlands today, A few years before in 2003 he sold the white tup Rench Dougal at the same sale for £1000. RIP.

Tom touched the lives of so many people.  He believed firmly in passing on his experience and expertise, in such a gentle way, to as many 'young folk' as he could reach. He saw the good in everyone.  So many people loved him and will miss him, especially at all the shows great and small where he was either judging or showing. One of a kind 

I think Shetlands were victims of their own success, so that as numbers increased rapidly, prices dropped.  However, there are signs that sheep prices are increasing slightly, and Shetlands are so appealing and useful that hopefully their value will start to creep up again.

[princesspiggy]

you should consider boreray, ours are so friendly, waiting by the gate every morning, come to call, and quite small so easy to handle, and slighty more to the acre. not at all the wild sheep we thought they might be. we still have to round them up to handle them but they are delightful and really pretty. 

[Fleecewife]

For Borerays: I am intending to host a 'help' system for anyone in Scotland wanting Borerays (or Soays) from Julie Suffolk (of Soay and Boreray Sheep Soc) this Autumn.  She will have plenty for sale this year and as Borerays are SO rare but difficult to transport from Macclesfield to the far north in one go, we have come up with this plan.  Julie will bring them as far as mine, I will keep  a group here for the two weeks standstill then either I will deliver further north or they can be collected from us.
This will happen round about the middle of August, once Julie's lambs are weaned and once I have sent my Heb hoggets off to slaughter to clear the isolation unit, but before I absolutely have to take my tup lambs out from with their dams and sisters to prevent hankie pankie  .   If you would like to avail yourself of that scheme, please contact either me or Julie direct.  As you can work out, both Julie and I are committed to improving numbers of rare breed sheep in Scotland. 
Juliet

[Rosemary]

What a brilliant idea! Hope some folk will take you up on it and bring more of these sheep back to Scotland.

[bloomer]

this is some daft questions with good reason behind it so stick with me!!!

having googled borerays and soay and still seriously thinking about being in scotland by july (fingers crossed) i am currently researching like mad into various livestock.

are boreays/soay suitable for novice sheep keepers?

as they are so rare are they much more expensive than less rare but still on RBST listing sheep?

I assume spare tups still become chops?

Do they taste good?

In central scotland can they live out all year round with a field shelter or do they need to come in for the winter?

Are they fairly able to sustain themselves given sufficient pasture or will they need lots of bought in feed?

I know its a list PM me if its easier or you don't want any of the answers on an open forum.

Thanks for helping with my research.

[Beewyched]

Hiya Folks 

Thanks for the invites Stephen & Fleecewife & sorry not been around much - see the latest "Bitch broke my laptop" ...

Fleecewife - my OH has been considering Soays for a while - we would love to come & see yours (your website is great by the way).  We love what you are doing with your holding too - sooo jealous that you have a polytunnel - this year's project for us.

When is the best day/time for slightly eccentric visitors?

 

[Fleecewife]

Beewyched - Polytunnel is in the throes of being renovated - hoping to get a cover back on this coming weekend.
We should start lambing April 1st onwards so you might like to come after then so there are lambs to see, but we are here all the time - almost - so any time is ok for us.  Afternoons suit us best - long story    All our visitors are eccentric so you'll fit right in - and so are we    pm me to discuss a  definite date and I look forward to meeting you and showing you our flock

Hiya Folks 

Thanks for the invites Stephen & Fleecewife & sorry not been around much - see the latest "Bitch broke my laptop" ...

Fleecewife - my OH has been considering Soays for a while - we would love to come & see yours (your website is great by the way).  We love what you are doing with your holding too - sooo jealous that you have a polytunnel - this year's project for us.

When is the best day/time for slightly eccentric visitors?