Description 

The Hampshire Down was originally established in Hampshire and Wiltshire with its rich grazing land. The breed has a great ability to adapt to various environments - including the Vale of York, where we breed our flock. Hampshire Down Sheep are characterised by having a face and ears of a dark brown colour and powerful, strongly jointed legs.

Wool

The colour of the wool from Hampshire Downs is white, of medium length, with a close, fine texture. It is predominantly used in the production of hosiery, hand knitted wools, flannels and felts.

There is interest as far afield as Japan, with specialist manufacturers who are looking to use Hampshire Down wool for their futons - click here for more information.

Breeding

The lambing season for Hampshire Downs is December. The breed is well-known for its easy lambing, multiple births, and mothering ability. We have found that ewes in good physical condition need little help during lambing. Hampshire Downs tend to produce at least two strong, healthy lambs and the ewes produce enough milk to help ensure good growth. The ewes also exhibit a strong desire to protect their offspring.

Hampshire Downs and SRS 

Hampshire Down sheep breeders are taking the lead over all other breeds recorded by Signet Sire Reference Schemes (SRS). “In 2006, 45% of the Hampshire Down Sheep Breeders’ Association’s lamb registrations were SRS recorded, the highest volume of any breed association or society and a figure that has increase by 100% on the last two years,” according to Signet’s Maurice Jones. “In addition, these breeders demonstrated their commitment to progress by forwarding 46 Hampshire Down rams for Computer Tomography (CT) scanning, the highest number proportionate to the whole breed among all breeds this season.”

Furthermore, Signet SRS combined with whole body CT scanning, the two modern approaches to sheep breeding, are helping the Hampshire Down Sire Reference Breeding Group to identify quality high index ram lambs, of which the top 10% will confer superior growth rate and muscling.

“The average Scheme Index for the group has moved up during the last 24 months from 156 points to 177 points a trend which reflects the permanent and cumulative effects of genetic progress,” says Mr Jones. “Scan weight EBV for growth has improved by 0.69kg, muscle EBV for lean meat content has also improved substantially, while fat levels have reduced slightly.” See table below.

Hampshire Down SRS average genetic trends

[Source: Signet / www.hampshiredownsociety.org.uk - Opens in a new browser window]

AccreditationS

Both of our flocks are MV accredited and licensed - please click the SAC logo (below) for more information about this important aspect of sheep breeding.

Additionally, both flocks are highly resistant to scrapie, are monitored for this condition and are registered as part of the National Scrapie Plan, which involves regular blood tests to ensure the flocks are free of this condition. Please click on the DEFRA logo below for more information.

Useful Links

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