Presents!
Horns, Manes, & Ears
of the Black Hawaiian, Painted Desert, & Texas Dall Sheep
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HORNS: Painted Desert, Black Hawaiian, & Texas Dall rams will have horns. Sometimes they take different shapes. The Texas Dall rams usually seem to maintain the supracervical (heart shaped) horns more than the Painted Desert Sheep and the Black Hawaiian Sheep; however, you may see any of these type of sheep with the heart shaped horns. There are also webbed horns and the most common type is homonymous or horns that spiral out. A few Painted Desert Sheep bloodlines carry the polycerate or multi-horn gene from their Jacob Sheep ancestors. It is rare to find a true Painted Desert ram with polycerate horns.
Horns can be wide spread (usually preferred) or have a close spread.
Horns are white or black or sometimes variegated with both white and black colors in the horns.
Ewes can have horns too. Some people believe that this will just help to provide good horn genetics while others simply prefer ewes with horns as the horns make it easier to hold the ewes. The ewes' horns will not be as large and impressive when compared to rams' horns but some ewes really have beautiful horns!
HORN CLASSIFICATIONS: There are horn classifications. For Corsican Sheep, horns are measured (to the 1/8th of an inch) down the middle of each horn and around any curls. This gives you the length. Measure each horn. Measure around each base - DO NOT measure any of the hair. Taking the longest length divide that by 2 and then measure the circumference of each horn at that point. If the longest horn is 25 inches, measure down 12.5 inches, note that spot and then measure around the horn at that point. Repeat by measuring at the 12.5 inch spot on the other horn also. Add length, base and "mid" circumference from each side. This is your "score" and will tell you what class horns your ram has! For 4 horn sheep -measurements are taken as above on all horns. The only difference is the mid circumference is taken at the actual mid point of each horn, not based on teh mid point of the longest horn. One can never guarantee what the ram's horns will look like or if they will ever reach a certain "class" or length or shape. So you start with the best horns you can. This is why, at Rafter SB, we went to Texas to bring back most of our great foundational rams. These rams have the horns and their male offspring have the horn potential for trophy horns as well. We also now have the top trophy horn genetics in our new ewes from Sandoah Achers in Michigan.
MANES: Rams sport luxurious to minimal manes at maturity though most may shed their manes at least partially during the summer. Occasionally, ewes will exhibit a small mane also.
SHEDDING: These sheep will shed a wooly undercoat in the Spring/Summer. This leaves the sheep slicked down and some folks may mistake them for goats. These are not goats and have not been crossed with goats. While in the process of shedding, the sheep can look rather grungy!
EARS: There are three types of ears found on these type of sheep. Normal Ear length, a little shorter ear called Elf Ears, and basically no external ear cartilage which is called Gopher Ears.
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2005.
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2005.
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