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Dorper is a breed of sheep that has a short and extremely clear history of origin. The breed was bred in the 30s of the last century in South Africa. To provide the population of the country with meat, a hardy sheep was needed, able to exist and gain weight in the arid regions of the country. The Dorper breed was bred under the direction of the South African Department of Agriculture for breeding meat sheep. The Dorper was bred by crossing a fat-tailed Persian black-headed sheep of a meat direction and a horned Dorset.
Persian sheep were bred in Arabia and passed on to Dorper their high adaptability to heat, cold, dry and humid air. In addition, the Persian black-headed sheep is distinguished by fertility, often bringing two lambs. She transmitted all these qualities to Dorper as well. Along with these characteristics, Dorper sheep also inherited color from the Persian Blackhead. The coat turned out to be “medium”: shorter than the Dorset, but longer than the Persian.
Dorset sheep are famous for their ability to breed all year round. The same ability was inherited from them by Dorper.
In addition to the Dorset and Persian Blackhead, Van Rooy sheep have been used in small quantities in Dorper breeding. This breed influenced the formation of the white variant of the Dorper.
Officially, the breed was recognized in South Africa in 1946 and very quickly spread throughout the world. Today, Dorper sheep are bred even in Canada. They began to appear in Our Country.
Description
Sheep of the Dorper breed are animals of a pronounced meat type. A long massive body with short legs allows you to get the maximum yield of products with a minimum of waste. The head is small with small ears. The muzzle of the Dorper is short and the heads are slightly cube-shaped.
The neck is short and thick. The transition between the neck and head is poorly defined. Often there are folds on the neck. The chest is wide, with rounded ribs. The back is broad and may be slightly arched. The loin is well muscled and level. The “main” source of Dorper lamb is the thighs of this animal. In shape, they are similar to the thighs of the best meat breeds of cattle or pigs.
The color of most representatives of the Dorper is two-tone: a white body and limbs and a black head and neck. But there is a fairly large group of completely white Dorpers in the breed.
Completely black animals may also come across. Pictured is a black Dorper sheep from the UK.
Dorpers are short-haired breeds, as they usually shed on their own in the summer, growing a relatively short coat. But the length of the Dorper fleece can be 5 cm. In the USA, Dorpers are usually shown shorn at exhibitions so that you can appreciate the shape of the sheep. Because of this, a misconception has arisen that Dorpers have no long hair at all.
They have wool. The fleece is often of a mixed type and contains long and short hairs. The Dorper coat is quite thick to allow these animals to live in cold climates. Pictured is a Dorper sheep on a Canadian farm in winter.
During the summer molt, South African Dorpers often leave patches of hair on their backs, protecting them from insects and sunlight. Although, as a defense, such shreds look ridiculous. But the Dorpers know better.
Dorper sheep are early maturing and can start breeding from 10 months old.
Dorset sheep can be either horned or polled. Persians are only polled. Dorpers, for the most part, also inherited polled. But sometimes there are horned animals.
American nuances
According to the rules of the American Association, the livestock of this breed is divided into two groups:
- purebred;
- purebred.
Purebred animals are those that have at least 15/16 Dorper blood. Purebred – 100% South African Dorper sheep.
According to South African rules, all American livestock can be divided by quality into 5 types:
- type 5 (blue tag): very high quality breeding animal;
- type 4 (red tag): breeding animal, above average quality;
- type 3 (white label): meat animal of the first grade;
- type 2: productive animal of the second grade;
- type 1: satisfactory.
Evaluation and division into types is carried out after examining the animals by articles. On examination, evaluate:
- head;
- neck
- forelimb belt;
- chest;
- hind limb belt;
- genitals
- height/size;
- distribution of body fat;
- color;
- coat quality.
The tail of this breed is not evaluated due to its docking immediately after birth.
The number of Dorpers in the US continues to increase and the number of evaluation shows will also increase.
Productivity
The weight of an adult ram is at least 90 kg. In the best specimens, it can reach up to 140 kg. Sheep usually weigh 60-70 kg, in rare cases they reach up to 95 kg. According to Western data, the modern weight of rams is 102-124 kg, ewes 72-100 kg. Three-month-old lambs gain from 25 to 50 kg of weight. By 6 months they can already weigh 70 kg.
When gaining more weight, lamb will contain too much fat.
The productive characteristics of Dorper sheep are superior to many other breeds. But it is quite possible that only on western farms. An American breeding animal owner claims that just two Dorper ewes brought him 18 lambs in 10 months.
In addition to lamb, with a slaughter yield of 59% per carcass, Dorpers produce high-quality skins that are highly valued in the leather industry.
Raising lambs
This breed has its own nuances in raising young animals for meat. Due to the adaptability of Dorper lambs to a dry, hot climate and feeding on sparse vegetation, the characteristics of Dorper lambs are such that young animals need little grain for fattening. On the other hand, with hay deficiency, lambs can also switch to grain feed. But this is undesirable if there is a need to get high-quality lamb.
Advantages of the breed
Sheep have a very docile nature and do not require much effort to manage the flock. Unpretentiousness in content makes this breed more and more popular in America and Europe. Fears that the southern breed is not able to endure frosty winters are not very well founded in this case. It is not necessary to leave them overnight in the snow, but Dorpers may well be in the winter on a paddock all day long, having at their disposal enough hay and shelter from the wind. Pictured are Dorper sheep on the run in Canada.
They also feel good in the Czech Republic.
At the same time, in hot regions, these animals are able to do without water for 2 days.
Breeding Dorpers is also not difficult. Ewes rarely have complications during lambing. Lambs can gain weight by 700 g daily, eating only pasture.
The meat of the Dorper sheep breed, according to the reviews of the chefs in the restaurant and visitors, has a much more delicate taste than ordinary lamb varieties.
The absence or small amount of wool with a decrease in demand for sheep’s fleece today can also be attributed to the pluses of the breed. The thicker leather goes into the production of Cape Gloves and is highly valued.
Disadvantages
The disadvantages can confidently include the need to stop the tails. Not every sheep breeder can handle this.
Reviews
Conclusion
The breed is able to adapt well not only in hot steppes and semi-deserts, but also in a rather cold climate, since in fact South Africa is not such a hot climate as we used to think about Africa. The continental climate is characterized by cold nights and high daytime temperatures. Dorpers feel great in such conditions, excellently increasing live weight.
In conditions, with an increase in the number of this breed, the meat of these sheep can be an excellent substitute for pork. Considering that in many regions of Our Country, due to ASF, it is forbidden to keep pigs, then Dorpers have every chance to win their niche in the market.