Drysdale sheep facts for kids
The Drysdale is a special kind of sheep that first came from New Zealand. These sheep are mostly raised for their unique, coarse (meaning rough and thick) wool.
Contents
Drysdale Sheep: Woolly Wonders!
The Story of the Drysdale Sheep
The Drysdale sheep breed started in 1931, thanks to a scientist named Dr. Francis Dry. He noticed something very unusual: a Romney ram (a male sheep) that had extremely coarse wool. This was a genetic "accident" – a natural change in its genes.
Dr. Dry decided to breed this special ram with other sheep. By crossing two Romney sheep with Cheviots, he created a new type of sheep. This new sheep produced a lot of this coarse, thick wool, which is what the Drysdale breed is known for today!
Super Coarse Wool
Drysdale sheep are famous for their very coarse fleece. Each sheep can produce about 6 kg (13 lb) of this wool. The individual wool fibers are quite thick, about 40 microns in diameter. (A micron is a tiny unit of measurement, showing how thick the wool fiber is.) The wool strands can also be very long, from 200 to 300 mm (7.9 to 11.8 in) in length.
Horns and Size
One interesting thing about Drysdale sheep is that both the males (rams) and females (ewes) have horns! This is because of the special gene that gives them their coarse wool. A male Drysdale's horns look a bit like those of a Wiltshire ram. The female's horns are much smaller, usually only about 8 to 9 cm (3.1 to 3.5 in) long.
These sheep are also quite sturdy. An adult Drysdale sheep usually weighs between 60 and 70 kilograms (about 132 to 154 pounds).
Where Are Drysdales Found?
While Drysdale sheep started in New Zealand, they are also found in other parts of the world. One of the biggest groups of Drysdale sheep outside of New Zealand belongs to Nathan Drysdale, a well-known farmer in Peterborough, United Kingdom.
