[Beeducked]

30 years ago My Grandad was the person who taught me my love of sheep with his little flock of Jacobs. I have decided in his memory to follow his tradition of naming the lambs alphabetically i.e. this year all beginning with A, next year B.


As a child I had just assumed that was just how he did it but recently heard someone else say that's what they did. Is it a common system or tradition or was this a coincidence?

[in the hills]

The breeder of our Soay did the same.

[Merrie Dancer]

we do this with our calfs and kids. it helps you to remember how old they are too, especially if they are sold on and new owners discuss them with you.

[kanisha]

All breed registrations for dogs registered wth the french kennel club must start with the letter of the year of their birth I forget which letter it is this year. I prefer to stick to themes.

[Rosemary]

The Ryeland Flock Book has a different letter for each year and all tups registered from that year must have a name starting with that letter. This year it is U.

Ewes don't have registered names but we choose names for our ewes using the "official" letter; so 2007 born ewes are Juno, Jura and Jinx; 2009 are Lyra and Lucy; 2010 is Niamh; 2011 are Poppy, Pixie and Penny and 2012 are Smudge, Stella and Sweetpea. 2013 are Tilly, Tilda, Teazle, Treacle, Trixie, Tansy and Twinkle.

We're finding U a little challenging, so have decided to "cheat" and use V as well, since V isn't used by the flock book.

[Bionic]

Rosemary, I am quite enjoying the U challenge this year. So far we have Una, Uri, Unwin and Ulrika. I have 2 more left to lamb and still some names on the list so I should be ok.

[smee2012]

The Zwartbles SA does that too. This year our letter is B. So far we have: Buttercup, Bluebell and Busby

[Beeducked]

Ooh, better check that there isn't an official letter for Castlemilks!

[Beeducked]

Actually thinking about it there can't be as I was given the choice of 2 registered ram lambs from last year and they were called Sebastian and Horiatio.

[Fleecewife]

Lots of breeders do it - some have even started back at the beginning with Aa......

We don't because our sheep seem to tell me their names somehow so they get what they get.  Sometimes I have themes, such as sailing ships, Scottish lochs, significant women in politics.  Last year for the ewes it was volcanoes     It keeps our registration secretary on her toes 

[Beeducked]

I think if I got all the way round to Z I would just go to A again and assume by that time I could tell the difference between a shearling and a 26 year old sheep!   That and I can think of a few names beginning with Aa but none Bb!   Bbrenda or Bbrian. It would be like have sheep with stutters!

[devonlad]

we started off so well. having spent many hours naming our original 4 ewes a few years ago- Polly, Florence, Penny and Shaun we decided each year that we would adopt a system where ewe lambs were named in a way that connected them to their mother. for some reason I can no longer remember we started by using the second letter of mum's name. hence Florence has produced, Lucy and Lexie , Shaun has had hazel, Penny has had Ellie and so on. however the system went bandy when Polly had a tiddler and we kept calling her Pip. since then Pip has had Ivy and then this year we got bored and decided to rhyme. so penny has just popped out Jenny Polly's had Molly etc. thank god we don't have hundreds cos we'd be lost. the boys are so much easier as they end up with a name that is more about physical attributes. over the years we've had clumpy, biggest boy, curly horns, runty, bullhead, bullheads brother although our fave is probably pip;s ram lamb this year who we call squeak.

[Backinwellies]

Our Llanwenogs also have a register letter .... also U this year.  Rosemary check out some Indian names... there are some great ones starting with u.

[Anke]

I follow the alphabet with my goats, but the lambs get a name starting with the same letter as their dam - both girls and (only ever one)boy.

So Titch (she came with that name at the grand old age of 11) had a Tinkerbell (Tinks for short) before she had to be culled , Tinks then had first Tilly, then Titus (who was sold for meat as his horns were skew-with) . Tilly's first lamb was Tiree... and on it goes. I guess I will eventually run out of T's...

My goat kids all have "proper" quite old-fashioned names... Arabella, Amanda, Beatrix, Cornelia, Cassandra, Dixie, daphne, Debbie, Daisymay and Daisybelle, and this year we are on E - so have Eliza, Edith, Evelyn, Esme and Estelle so far. My girls absolutely love naming the animals - but I have a veto!

[jaykay]

The Rough Fell tups have a 'letter' each year. So I was used to that system and used a letter each year for the pedigree names when I got my Shetlands. So the little ones just being born are Cs.

Then again, I have two pet lambs (don't ask  ) and they are Lester (Leicester x mule) and Tex (texel x mule)