The BAANONE flock of Welsh Mountain Badger Face Sheep
The Welsh Mountain Badger Face is a variation of the ancient breed that once predominated in the Welsh hills. The main type is known as the Torddu, which translates as 'blackbelly'. Numbers of this breed fell during the middle ages, when the cloth trade demanded a white wool, but are now on the increase.
The features of the sheep is that it is medium sized, with a black stripe that runs from the underside of the jaw to the join the black belly. There should be no break in the stripe, and grey wool in the black is not desirable. the main fleece varies from white to light tan. Ewes are polled, rams may or may not have horns - if present, they are dark and spiral.
The Badger Face is a versatile breed that is hardy and produces plenty of milk. It is an ideal breed for extensive lamb production on hill ground, or it can be used on lower- ground farms to produce fat lambs straight from the ewe when crossed with a terminal sire like suffolk or texel. Badger cross lambs have a fast growth rate and quickly reach weights ready for butchering.
At Tedfold we have a small flock of fully grown sheep comprising of 15 ewes (registered and un-registered) and 1 ram (un-named at the moment). We keep the ram with his girls all year round and although it prolongs our lambing a bit, we think it makes for a happier flock. When a lamb got caught on the wrong side of the fence last year our old ram stood with it even though feed was being offered until we sorted it out. The lambs jumped all over him when he was lying down and he sat very still, this years lambs used to jump on him when he was standing up and spring off his back.
What is quite something is that the ewes, when the lambs are 2-3 weeks old, form a creche system which is very obvious if you sit and watch for a while. One ewe looks after all the lambs in one area of the field, after a while another ewe walks over touches the first ewe who then walks off. This is repeated over and over until all the ewes have had a turn, the lower the ewe ranks the longer her turn. If the lamb is hungry he feeds from his mum and then returns to the creche. They are cleverer than we give them credit for.
Valentine RIP - naked for the summer
With his coat on for the winter and 100% fertile.
Valentine and his girls after being rounded up for a worming and a manicure