White alpine sheep
The white alpine sheep (formerly also white sheep or white noble sheep ) is a polled sheep breed that can be found mainly in eastern and central Switzerland , in Ticino and Lower Valais . In Switzerland it makes up about half of the sheep kept. The breed is suitable for both intensive breeding and extensive grazing.
The sheep breed in Switzerland is due to the crossing of imported Merino country sheep and Île-de-France sheep into native old country breeds(White Mountain Sheep) was bred in the 20th century, it has been breeding since 1938. Crossing these breeds into the stock to improve the usefulness is still common today and is allowed according to the breed standard. Today, sheep are also kept in Austria and Germany to a lesser extent. The main use is lamb meat production. The meat is considered to be of high quality compared to other Swiss sheep breeds. White Alpine sheep reach a height at the withers of around 70 (females) to 80 (males) centimeters and a weight of up to 70 kilograms (rams up to 100 kilograms). The annual amount of wool is between 3.5 and 4 kilograms of pure white wool.
The ewe usually lamb three times in two years and produces plenty of milk.
swell
- Sheep breeds in the herd book of the SZV Swiss Sheep Breeding Association: White Alpine Sheep , accessed on March 8, 2016.
- White Alpine Sheep at VDL Association of German Sheep Breeding Associations , accessed on March 8, 2016.
- VDL breed descriptions: Our meat sheep PDF download
Individual evidence
- ↑ Felix Heckendorn, Florian Leiber, Johanna Probst: Lamb meat quality from four Swiss sheep breeds. In: Forum Kleinwiederkäuer, Swiss specialist magazine for breeders and keepers of sheep, dairy sheep, goats, deer and herd protection dogs 8/2009: 11–13.