A prolific sheep that was bred for an exotic appearance. Brown hair with black points. They breed year round, so they can produce at a higher rate than one lambing per year. Perfect for low input operations where the ram runs with the ewes.

Ewes produce sufficient milk for multiples, and have some potential for use as milk sheep.

Barbados Blackbelly sheep do particularly well in the south, but have potential for sale as a specialty or exotic sheep all across the nation. They are also an excellent breed for use in crossbreeding programs.

They do not produce wool, but shed their winter hair in the spring, which saves on shearing costs.

• Type - meat, possible dairy
• Size - medium
• Production Capacity - twins or triplets common, breed year-round
• Special Features - hair sheep, no sheering
• Best for Farms - often used for game farms, but also good for production of lamb on pasture
• Eggs, Milk, Meat Features - good lamb and mutton on pasture
• Other Products - some market as a game animal, some market for hides
• Historic or Contemporary Significance - an American breed which has good utility function
• Housing and Space Requirement - typical, but they do best on pasture
• Regional Adaptations - good parasite and heat resistance
• Feed Requirement - typical, but they also are well suited to marginal pasture
• Other Considerations - Bred for captive game farms, so there is some market for breeding stock for specialty use.

A NOTE ABOUT SHEEP:

Sheep were not originally on my list for "animals I have to have on my farm", but they have sashayed their way to very near the top for a couple of reasons:

1. They are easy keepers except for some parasite issues.
2. You can produce excellent meat in the same time it takes to grow out a hog, and the meat is better quality than goat meat.
3. They fit in small spaces very well, and are suitable for backyards and microfarms where livestock is allowed.
4. Milk sheep produce milk that is high in milk solids and high in butterfat, and which is one of the best substitutes for human breast milk. 
5. Hair sheep do not require sheering, and many hair sheep breeds produce tender meat no matter the age of the sheep.
6. Sheep may be grazed with either cattle, or goats, and also do well with poultry (in fact the poultry help control parasites).
7. Many breeds are very prolific, and easy birthers. When chosen for those traits, they require very little in the way of maintenance to produce a fairly significant amount of meat each year, from a few ewes and a ram.

This puts them right at the top of my Must Haves, because I have also discovered that I really like the meat. Lamb is very versatile, and can be used in a wide variety of dishes that our family routinely prepares.

There are literally hundreds of breeds of sheep, and they tend to be very regional in nature. This means that when you go looking for a specific breed, it may not be readily available in your area, even if it is otherwise a stable and well established breed. You'll find that most local sheep are of a similar breed, or perhaps two breeds, and nobody much questions whether they are a good breed or not, they just acquire sheep and either raise them for wool or breeding, or they buy the lambs in the spring and butcher them in the fall, much like hogs. As long as they produce, everybody is happy and does not bother to wonder if there is a breed that might work better.

I have also discovered that the average farming community doesn't know hair sheep from toffee. They are completely ignorant of the fact that sheep exist that do not require sheering. When raising sheep for meat, hair sheep can save you a good deal of money in shearing costs, and save you the bother of having to sheer them yourselves when you do not want the wool.

When wool IS a desired crop, the prices are much better for specialty wools. This means colored wool, fine wool, and ethnic wool types. These sheep are actually worth sheering for the price of the wool, but only if the wool is marketed to specialty markets, and fiber artists, and NOT through mainstream wool wholesalers. A few of the specialty wool sheep also have very fine meat, making them a great dual purpose choice.

Milk sheep have been bred for higher milk production, but a high producing sheep will still produce only half to a third of what a high producing goat will produce within a single lactation. Sheep can produce a good amount of milk at one milking, but they typically do not produce for an extended length of time. Their milk is high in milk solids, making it excellent for cheese, and it has a fairly high butterfat content. 

With goats, you can leave the kids on the doe, and milk anyway. Some owners will shut the kids up separately from the doe through the night after 1-2 months of age, and then wean them completely at about 4 months of age (some will earlier). Sheep do not produce as well, and those sheep that are very prolific are the ones that milk the best - but their lambs will also demand more. So keeping lambs on will make it much more difficult to milk ewes. Milk sheep require additional feeding, and if you want to try tandem milking you'll need to increase feed accordingly.

All sheep are NOT created equal, and one of the strengths of the multitude of sheep breeds is that they are often bred for specific climate conditions, and finding a breed that was developed for difficult climates or conditions can make a huge difference in the ability of your sheep to thrive under the conditions which you have available.

It is recommended that you ask about parasite problems in any breed of sheep you intend to acquire, and do some checking on the prevalence of those parasites in your region. Some kinds of parasites are so aggressive they have been known to take down entire flocks of sheep, and fairly rapidly. When prevented, they are controllable, but once well established, are much more difficult to erradicate or maintain damage control. Succeptibility to aggressive parasites varies widely breed to breed as well.