Our sheep are a cross of the Katahdin, Dorper and Painted Desert breeds. Katahdins became a breed in 1987, Painted Deserts in 1997; and, Dorper sheep in the 1930’s. Our crosses have wild and colorful markings – everything from beige to a solid white to a combination of black/brown/white along with some black/white and brown/white. You also benefit from no shearing and tail docking while they can be used for land management too! They are excellent converters of a wide range of forage types and they excel in grazing. Our sheep are a medium size breed with good flocking instinct, docile while producing a lower carcass weight for meat versus larger wool or meat breeds.
The hair coat of the Katahdin cross sheep varies in length and texture among individuals. Their hair generally consists of coarse outer hair fibers and an undercoat of fine wooly fibers that becomes very thick and longer when cold weather sets in and day length decreases. This undercoat and some hair naturally sheds as temperature and day length increase seasonally, leaving a shorter, smooth summer coat. No shearing is needed!
Katahdin crosses are highly adaptable and do well in harsh, extensive conditions. They are very fertile and prolific. The ewes are excellent mothers and heavy milkers. Their lambs are vigorous, alert and have high survivability. They are ideal for pasture lambing.
They are non-seasonal or have an extended breeding season. Lambing rates of 200% can be achieved per lambing on well managed flocks. These sheep are early maturing and will produce a lamb crop at one year of age.
Studies indicate that these sheep are better able to deal with a parasite burden. Our breeding ewes are normally dewormed every two to three years while some have never been dewormed. Ewes needing more frequent deworming are culled and their offspring are processed for meat.
Our sheep are pasture raised and supplemented with grain and minerals. Hay for the winter months is grown on neighboring North Carolina farms.
Lambs produce a high quality, well-muscled carcass that is naturally lean and consistently offers a very mild flavor. They are comparable to other medium-sized maternal breeds in growth and cutability. Lambs are desirable for specialty markets at a variety of ages and weights. Wethers are appropriate for conventional North American markets at 95 to 115 pounds.
Our lambs are taken to a local meat processor, Mitchell’s Meat Processing in Walnut Cove, NC, for harvesting and processing. Our meat is USDA inspected and is available for purchase in our Farm Store. It is vacuum sealed, labeled and frozen by our processor in portion quantities per package. Packages are sold by weight and package weight will vary slightly.
We do NOT offer LIVE, whole, halves or quarter cuts of lamb.
From time to time, we have breeding stock available.
Ewe lambs (ages 2-5 months): $250
Ewe lambs (ages 6-12 months, exposed to herd ram): $350
***Bottled ewe lambs (ages 2 days to 30 days): $300***
NO adult ewes, adult rams, ram lambs or wethers are available.
Contact for availability: 336.969.5698 9AM to 6PM ONLY or email Robin@BuffaloCreekFarmNC.com at your convenience.
Cash is accepted for livestock purchases, no checks.