[Jacob-list] Re: [primitive]

[Linda]

Thanks Thom,

I'm getting a better idea here of just people are talking about when they say 
"primitive." 

Of my two ewes pictured at 

www.patchworkfibers.com/primitive.htmlhttp://www.patchworkfibers.com/primitive.h
tml
The upper ewe is the one that I consider deerlike and would have thought to be 
the most primitive until I read over the input from Edd.  That ewe is Lesseau 
bred and she is about all legs!  And she will spend just about as much time 
browsing, standing on her hind legs eating willow trees as grazing. And 
standing on the fence to eat the wild cherry.

It interesting that Edd picked the lower ewe as the more primitive as Mary 
Spahr is correct, she's from Edd's old stock.

Janice is quite leggy and I think she'll stay that way.   Judz is Dave's 
favorite as he loves her big black spots.  No one loves her voice, however!  Is 
there a "primitive" voice?

Linda


Come and visit the new girls http://www.patchworkfibers.com/newgirls.htmlat 
Patchwork Farm!


On Mon, 16 Jul 2001 13:45:15 -0400, Thomas Simmons wrote:
>    OK Linda, thom weighing in now......
> 
>I tend to start with the same idea as ALBC, that  "primitive" means
>"unimproved;"  that which would  naturally occur if breeding was not
>selective for certain traits but more  "random" in a large feral
>population.  So, to me, the "Park  Look" is the exact opposite:  an
>effort to create a standard of  "beauty" which would not normally
>happen on its own.
> 
>Having said that, my own Jacobs come from about a  diverse a bunch
>of flocks as possible, and to the untrained eye it looks like I
>have 5 or 6 different breeds running around here!  The Killorglins
>are dark  and deer-like; the Lasseaus are light (even yellowed); the
>Northcotes are  apricot; my Maple Hill ewes (Hi Betty!) have about
>the nicest, symmetrical horns  I have ever seen.  I run from 90%
>white to 90% black, and I love the  diversity!  But there are some I
>see as defintiely "primitive" in  look, and others that look more
>"standardized."
> 
>Anyway...as for "primitive" in MY humble  book- - - primitive
>characteristics would be the following:  deer-like  appearance (one
>Canadian border crossing guard thought I was transporting deer  once!
>) with "narrow tracking" and rather "leggy."  In  other words, the
>legs seem to carry them higher off of the ground than the  non-
>primitives....and they tend to be browsers as easily as grazers -
>and will  even pull down saplings to get the leaves, and eat oak and
>wild cherry without  thinking twice (or getting sick).
> 
>I also find that, unlike the typical 60/40 ratio, they  tend to be
>very dark or very light...in fact, I have heard that the feral flock
> on Butter Island (Maine) is exactly this way, with very few in the
>60/40  range.
> 
>Manes, kemp, beards, and a lack of anything - wool or hair - on the
>belly  are also some of those traits.
> 
>I also tend to see asymmetrical horns and eye patches  as being
>"primitive."  One ewe I now have - which I would  consider one of my
>two most "primitive" looking - has 4 horns:   two on the right are
>fused solid, while the two on the left are very seperate  and go in
>quite different directions.  This same ewe has a huge eye patch  on
>the fused side, and a tiny eye patch on the other side; overall, she
>is about  85%-90% white; and has NOTHING (not even hair) on her
>belly.
> 
>In looking at your sheep, the one you named  "Janice" strikes me
>immediately as the more primitive looking,  although she does not
>appear as "leggy' as some I've seen; she is similar  to my Lasseau
>gals.  On the other hand, if my flock is any indication, it's  often
>hard to tell what the adult will look like from the lamb!  And,
>elements like kemp, belly, browsing habits, gait, etc., are not
>something I can  tell from a picture.  
> 
>For the record, I have already fallen in love with Jadz - couldn't
>tell you  why, she just has a "look" about her that captures me!
> 
>thom
> 


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