[Crag Wood]

I'm wanting to sell some of my purebred Shetland sheep. Do you think I should sell them at the local mart, or have them slaughtered and try to sell the meat directly? Any ideas how much we might get for either option? Has anybody done either of these with Shetlands?

[lachlanandmarcus]

If unregistered, I would go for the second option as pure Shetlands arent terribly in demand at marts,  but it kind of depends on how many - ie the kill option preferable provided you are resigned to eating them yourself if you dont sell it all.
Altho not Shetland, there was an ad in our local paper for half a Blackface lamb, delivered, for £90.
So a bit less for a Shetland (not as much meat) and need to factor in delivery element in the £90 but it might give some idea.
Slaughter plus full butchery for us here is about £50, tho some other places in the UK can get it cheaper.

[Crag Wood]

We've kept Shetlands for a couple of years and really enjoy having lambs.  We bought them mainly to keep the grass short but we've really enjoyed them and have just bought another field.  I'm wanting to do something a bit more commercial but really like the Shetland breed, especially the easy lambing and 200% lambing rate that we've enjoyed.  We'd love some advice.

[Mallows Flock]

I keep Shetlands.... have seen them go at market last time (July) for 10 prime ewes with 15 lambs at foot for a mere £32 per head. 
The posh butchery here that specialises in Shetland and Salt Marsh lamb sell them at £85 per half, delivered.
I will be selling mine (if I ever get them butchered!!!!!) at £50 per half lamb - costs £18 kill, split and rough butchered her (i.e comes in 2 large bags, not vacuum packed, cut up but need to bag up yourself) or £12 kill and split  plus £20 for posh vauccum pacxking, labelling etc of you want to sell it out.
The problem with Shetlands is it costs the same for slaughtering and butchering a small breed as it is a large breed which carries more killing out  weight. They also take longer to rear as they are slow growing but their meat is far superior IMHO!
The good thing about Shetland is that (dare I say it) they are pretty cheap to pick up compared to some other breeds/commercials etc, they are hardy and survive on little, and their fleece actually makes you money rather than costs yoou money as in the case of commercials! IMHO!
Now just to clarify, this is a generalisation based on my own PERSONAL experiences of keeping Shetlands, Commercials, and Shetland x commercials, just in case it offends anyone!

[landroverroy]

If you want to sell them live  then you will get a much better price by advertising them privately than by selling in your local mart. Either try the local paper or some of the free online sites like freeads or Preloved.
Where I live (Yorkshire) anything, be it sheep or cattle gets a rubbish price in the market unless it's a recognised commercial breed. I have sold all my highland cattle through Preloved this year, mostly to people who just wanted a few. And  the beauty is that you know where they're going to and they're not just shuttled round fom one sale to another.

[Sylvia]

Whereabouts are you, Crag Wood?

[Fleecewife]

If you want to sell them live  then you will get a much better price by advertising them privately than by selling in your local mart. Either try the local paper or some of the free online sites like freeads or Preloved.
Where I live (Yorkshire) anything, be it sheep or cattle gets a rubbish price in the market unless it's a recognised commercial breed. I have sold all my highland cattle through Preloved this year, mostly to people who just wanted a few. And  the beauty is that you know where they're going to and they're not just shuttled round fom one sale to another.

I agree that selling direct rather than through a mart is the way to go.

[Bramblecot]

Our prices for slaughter are almost exactly the same as Mallows (maybe we use the same abattoir near Chard?).  We sell at £50 -55 a half, bagged and labelled.  Smaller joints than our other breed, GFD, but our customers prefer that - older couples mainly, not doing big family meals anymore, and they love the taste .
The skins are beautiful and I sell those at £50 -55 each too.  I have been told that this is far too cheap but that seems to be the ceiling for my customers - and I have a waiting list for the ones that are currently bouncing around the field.

I would rather kill them locally than put them through a mart and not know what happens to them - but that is just me being soft .  Have a look at what happened at Ramsgate this week (link is Compassion in World Farming)

[jaykay]

Where do you have the skins done? I hadn't thought about that, but the extra income would be welcome!

[Crag Wood]

Thanks for all the advice.  I wouldn't have thought of using preloved.
Sylvia, we live in Wall, near Hexham, Northumberland.

I'm also wonder what people do with their fleeces, we've got loads in potato sacks in the loft.

[jaykay]

Well old ones aren't much use, except they're good as mulch or compost, and you can felt things from them.

But new Shetland fleeces, especially if shorn well (ie as soon as the break appears and without lots of second cuts) and not full of vegetable matter, will sell to spinners for £5-8 each, depending on quality.

[Fleecewife]

Ooh - more than that Jaykay for good quality 

[jaykay]

I must make sure I get mine better and earlier shorn next year 

[SallyintNorth]

Whilst most long-stored fleeces are, as jaykay says, fit only for compost, old fleeces may be okay to use - a lady came to my Friday Fibre group who had just spun an 18 year old fleece from her loft!  She said there were two, one was mothed and the other was fine.

If the fleeces are washed before storing and are stored correctly they could be fine.  If they were stored unwashed, besides the increased likelihood of moth damage, the grease could have hardened so much that they have become unusable - but if they are otherwise nice fleeces it could be worth having a little go with a bit (give it a good hot detergent wash first and spin it somewhere nice and warm to keep the grease mobile) and see how you get on.  I think a 'fermented suint wash' could maybe recover a long-stored fleece - it would certainly be worth a try if it is otherwise a nice one.

And another lady at the group had with her fibre from a 2001 clip.  It had not been washed but had been 'rainbow dyed.'  She did a load and has been spinning it for 11 years (not exclusively!)   She's going to give us a workshop on 'stove-top rainbow-dyeing' at our next month's session - I am providing the fleece.  She wants raw, unwashed fleece, she says, skirted and bits of VM and any second cuts removed but otherwise exactly as it came off the sheep.

[twizzel]

We are opting for option 2 as well; our 6 fat lambs will be slaughtered + cut for £25/head.