The Dorset Horn (or Horned Dorset) is of conservation interest. Horns have also traditionally been associated with cuckoldry. In the Horn variety, both ewes and rams carry horns. (A polled version of the Dorset, developed in Australia, has in recent years become very popular – but genetically it is not the same as the Dorset Horn, the polled gene having been introduced by cross-breeding. The fleece is of medium length, fine and very white, and the face and legs, clear of wool, are also noticeably white and show another of the Dorset Horn’s distinguishing features – a pink nose and light coloured hooves. The poll gene was introduced into Dorset Horn flocks from two other polled breeds and following a strict back-mating programme achieved close to 100% of Dorset Horn blood. This pink and white look is particularly marked in lambs where it appears to be intensified; a young Dorset has hoofs of mother-of-pearl and a nose like a fresh raspberry. (Polled Dorsets were also developed in Australia earlier in the 1900s, though they originated from the introduction of Corriedale and Ryeland blood into the Dorset Horn.). They have also been used in dairying. Ewes are heavy milkers, easily able to raise their own lambs. Dorsets Horned and Polled sheep, its horn is in the large and curl shape. Their horns are no longer acceptable at a commercial level. Ewes weigh 150–200 pounds, and rams weigh 225–275 pounds. ), See also Navigation Bar at top of this page. There are two different strains of Dorset sheep, the polled and horned. Average live body weight of the Dorset Horn ewes is between 70 and 90 kg. - Carol Ekarius Docile It was covered by a small piece of material and worked with a needle and thread to make a conical shaped button. DORSET HORN SHEEP QUICK PROFILE OVERVIEW; The Dorset Horn sheep breed is versatile, adaptive, calm and docile. Temperament: The first buttons were known as "High Tops" and were made from a disc of horn from the Dorset Horn Sheep. The Dorset Horn, which was developed to its present form in the mid 1800s, and is known for its all round qualities as a meat and wool producer. It is raised mainly for meat production. Some ewes will raise two sets of lambs a year, with multiple births not uncommon. Dorset Horn sheep were imported into the United States about 1860, though the breed did not appear in large numbers until the 1880s. Novice - Intermediate. The Dorset is an ancient breed likely developed from white faced, horned, short wooled sheep that thrived in the sheltered valleys and lush hill pastures of southwestern England. Trials were started in 1937 with a purebred Corriedale ram and a purebred Ryeland ram mated with pure Dorset Horn ewes. The Dormer, a white wool mutton breed, was developed by crossbreeding Dorset Horn rams with German Merino ewes. The sheep are avid grazers and use feed well. The history of the Dorset Horn begins in the 16 th century when valuable Spanish Merino sheep were smuggled or traded into southern England and crossed with the native horned sheep. Uses. The History of the Dorset Button The Dorset Button began In Shaftesbury, Dorset, probably between the years 1680 to 1700. The Continental Dorset Club was organized in 1890. (From Otago Witness, 6 August 1902) Dorset Horn sheep were imported into New Zealand in 1897 . Fleece of the Dorset Horn sheep is strong, close and free from dark fiber. It is pleasing to be able to report that numbers have increased slowly over the past few years. The single most important attribute of the Dorset is its extended breeding season, also called nonseasonal or aseasonal breeding. This characteristic, not found in any other British breed, is an important performance trait. Dorset Horn definition is - an English breed of sheep with very large and in the ram much-coiled horns that has a close-textured fleece of medium-length wool and that has been much used for hothouse lamb production because of the early breeding of the ewes and the high percentage of twin lambs. Photo and info from Wikipedia. - Paula Simmons and Carol Ekarius The lambing rate is good and they are excellent mothers with abundant milk. The origin of the Dormer from a cross between Dorset Horn rams with German Merino ewes (presently known as the S A Mutton Merino) was a direct consequence of a series of extensive slaughter lamb experiments carried out at the Elsenburg Research Station of the Department of Agriculture since 1927 over a period of more than ten years. Its chief distinction is its horns – large and curled – in both rams and ewes. Country of Origin: United Kingdom: Other Names: Dorset or Dorset Horned: Breed Size: Medium: Main Purpose: Meat: Can be used for: Breed, Meat, Wool ** LSC (Landscape Management) Temperament: Sheep of most breeds are seasonal breeders, mating in the fall and producing lambs in the spring. The Dorset Horn Sheep Breeders' Association was established in 1891 for "the encouragement of the breeding of Dorset Horn Sheep at home and abroad and the maintenance of the purity of the breed". And average live body weight of the mature rams vary from 100 to 120 kg. Dorset Horn definition: a breed of horned sheep with dense fine-textured wool | Meaning, pronunciation, translations and examples In the early 1950s, a genetic mutation causing polledness occurred in the flock at North Carolina State University. The term dates from the 15th century. The Dorset Horn originated in Dorset in south-west England. Today, the Dorset is globally distributed and found in two varieties, Horned and Polled. Ewes’ horns are light, curving forward neatly; rams’ horns are heavy and spiral out as well as curving forward. By the early 1990s they had dwindled less than five hundred in New Zealand and were also rare in their homeland, Great Britain. Facts about Dorset Sheep "Scientific name for Dorset Sheep is Ovis aries". The Dorset’s characteristics, the horns and the breeding rate, were bequeathed to it by a dominant ancestor – the now extremely rare Portland Sheep, found originally on and near Portland Island, very close to Dorchester. The Dorset is an ancient breed likely developed from white faced, horned, short wooled sheep that thrived in the sheltered valleys and lush hill pastures of southwestern England. Experience Level: Uses. $24.95, Storey's Illustrated Guide to Sheep, Goats, Cattle, and Pigs. Though differences between the populations have not been documented, anecdotal evidence suggests that the intensive selection of Polled Dorsets for early maturation and rapid growth rate may have been made at the expense of selection for nonseasonal breeding, which has declined as a result.