Instructions
Select Corriedale ewes and rams with a desirable body size. Rams should weigh 175 to 275 pounds at maturity while ewes should weigh 130 to 180 pounds.
Buy sheep with desirable breed characteristics and conformation. Corriedale sheep have a white face with wool on the top of the head. The pigment on the ears and nostrils is dark. The wool on Corriedale sheep extends below the knee and the hocks. The sheep are polled and have dark-colored hooves. Avoid animals with brown or black spots, horns, or white hooves.
Breed Corriedale ewe lambs at 7 to 9 months of age. The ewe lambs should weigh at least 65 percent of their mature body weight, from 85 to 117 pounds. Corriedale ewes usually produce two lambs per year.
Breed mature ewes to lamb once a year. While most ewes are most fertile during the fall and early winter, Corriedale ewes may exhibit heat cycles in the late spring. This produces out-of-season fall lambs. The gestation length is about 147 days or five months.
Run the Corriedale rams with the ewes for about 60 days. Ewes have a 30- to 40-hour estrus period every 17 days. A 60-day breeding season allows three breedings per ewe. One mature ram will breed 50 to 100 ewes per breeding season. Young rams reach puberty at 5 to 7 months and successfully breed 15 to 30 ewes.
Flush the Corriedale ewes to increase the number of lambs. Flushing is defined as increasing the energy level of the ration prior to and during breeding. Feed one-half pound to 1 pound of grain per day for several weeks before and during the breeding season. This increases the likelihood that twins rather than single lambs will be born.
Feed Corriedale breeding animals a sound ration. Follow a veterinarian's recommendation for a vaccination program. Treat for parasites regularly. Healthy, well-fed ewes and rams successfully produce lambs.
How to Breed Corriedale Sheep
The Corriedale breed of sheep is classified as a dual-purpose breed. The ewes produce dense, solid white, medium-length wool. The wool is popular with hand spinners. Their lambs also have desirable meat characteristics. The Corriedale breed is a result of a cross between Merino and Lincoln sheep. It is considered to be the oldest of the crossbred wool sheep breeds. The breed was developed in Australia and New Zealand and imported to the United States in 1914.