Guteschaf
| Guteschaf | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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| Origin: | Gotland ( Sweden ) | ||
| Alternative names: | Gotland Wild Sheep Gotland free-range sheep |
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| Type: | Landscape | ||
| Weight: | Bock: 70–100 kg Aue: 45–60 kg |
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| Wool type: | mixed puffy | ||
| Wool color: | light gray to black, rarely white or brown | ||
| Stack length: | approx. 15 cm | ||
| Badge: | Flour mouth, blaze, badge | ||
| horned ?: | both genders | ||
| Duration: | approx. 4000 animals in the Baltic Sea area | ||
| List of sheep breeds | |||
The Guteschaf (Swedish Gutefår) is a breed of domestic sheep from the group of Nordic short-tailed sheep , which is mainly kept in Sweden . It was created through breeding work from the original sheep populations of Gotland, the so-called free pasture sheep (Utegångsfår). It is not to be confused with the Gotland sheep , another breed of sheep that also comes from the island. There are also holdings of the Guteschaf in Germany , Denmark and the Netherlands . In Mecklenburg and Saxony the animals are also used to maintain the landscape .
origin
The estate is mainly derived from the stocks on the island of Lilla Karlsö off Gotland, which are part of the free-range sheep that have been kept on Gotland for a long time. The name Guteschaf, in Swedish gutefår, was created in 1974 as a combination of behornade g otländska ute gångs får (horned Gotland free pasture sheep) as a distinction to the polled Gotland sheep . On Gotland they are still known as "hornlambi" or "hornfår" (Gotland or Swedish for horn sheep). The own name Guteschaf for the horned sheep from the island of Gotland has not yet become generally accepted in Germany. Often the term "Gotland sheep" is still used, but actually stands for the hornless fur sheep (Swedish Gotlandfår). Guteschaf and Gotland sheep are two different breeds, both of which have their origins in the Gotland free pasture sheep (Utegångsfår). Other misleading names are circulating in German sheep breeding associations: "Gotland wild sheep" - however, it is not a wild sheep, but a domestic sheep breed. The name “Gotland free-range sheep” is also not clear, as both Gotland sheep breeds are robust free-range sheep.
features
In the estate, both sexes have horns. The bucks have snail-shaped and the floodplains sickle-shaped, clearly smaller horns. The wool consists of two types of wool fibers, the coarser outer hair (awns) and the finer under hair. The colors vary between light gray and dark gray to black, white is rare. Sheep rams have a height at the withers of 64 to 84 cm and weigh between 70 and 100 kg, the floodplains are much more delicate at 65–71 cm and 45–60 kg. The breed is considered to be frugal, robust and weather-resistant and has only low demands on feeding and keeping.
The rut is seasonal between late October and early December, and lambs are usually born in March and April. Usually one or two lambs are born, triplets are relatively rare.
Breeding history
Good sheep are considered to be the oldest Swedish breed of sheep. At the beginning of the 1920s one began to work on the free pasture sheep of the Guteschaf type on Gotland in the direction of today's Gotland sheep. At about the same time, attempts were made to bring together the remaining horned sheep of the old type and to preserve them as a separate breed. In the 1940s there were only around 15 animals left, from which today's farm sheep descend. The population of Lilla Karlsö also comes from these animals. About 1000 animals are on the island off Gotland .
Duration
Today there are good sheep everywhere in Sweden and occasionally in Denmark and Germany, especially in the north. According to Föreningen Gutefårets there were 4200 animals in 2006. According to GutefårAkademin, however, there were only around 2000 pure-bred animals in 2007.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Föreningen Gutefårets avelsplan. (PDF file; 2.83 MB) Archived from the original on August 12, 2010 ; Retrieved April 27, 2010 .
- ↑ GutefårAkademin accessed on July 3, 2018 (Swedish)
- ↑ Gutefår Akademins avelsplan (PDF file; 1.13 MB)
