[Jacob-list] New Booklet "Guide to Selection of Jacob BreedingStock"

[Betty Berlenbach]

Well, I have had as much luck selling two horned jacobs as four horned jacobs. Considering all aspects of the animal, a good two horn and a good four horned animal has always been saleable here.  THere are those who prefer four, and those who prefer two.  I know some breeders who use two horned rams and four horned ewes; others who use four horned rams and two horned ewes, others who use only two horned animals and others who use only four horned animals. Personally, I figure the more options I have, the more sales I’ll have, so I have two and four horned jacobs for sale each year...and generally, sell them to people who are interested not only in horns, but in fleece, conformation, markings, etc.  Those “breeders” who say the only true jacob is a four horned jacob are just not really well educated or open minded breeders.  In fact, I’d find it hard to call them breeders, for they can certainly CHOOSE to only raise four horned, but to say two horned aren’t true jacobs means they really haven’t studied the breed very well.  To them, I would give a copy of Ingrid’s book, “Jacob Sheep in America” and ask them to do a bit more research before making such a comment. Preferences are one thing; facts are another.  Genetic diversity includes two horned jacobs as well as four.  However, that said, I really didn’t see the guidebook intentionally excluding either two or four horned animals, nor pigmented nor black muzzled, nor white legged nor black socked animals...Perhaps there were leanings one way or the other, but I don’t think that was meant as exclusionary of the other types.  We really need to relax a bit here, and just appreciate the guidebook.  It is perfectly okay to say to someone, “Here is the guidebook which you might find helpful.  I need to add, however, that I really prefer....for .....reasons.  You need to decide for yourself.”

From: SovreignFarms at aol.com 
Sent: Monday, September 05, 2011 5:15 PM
To: paintedrockfarm at aol.com ; mvanbeek7 at gmail.com 
Cc: jacob-list at jacobsheep.com 
Subject: Re: [Jacob-list] New Booklet "Guide to Selection of Jacob BreedingStock"

Hello Everyone

I have read everyone's comments on the new guidebook with great interest and everyone has some very good points in their statements. Its too bad this input could not have happened prior to the book going to print.  Every single breeder I have met around the world in the last 38 years of breeding various livestock has their own criteria for doing the breeding's they do, as well as keeping the offspring they do. There is nothing wrong with this, and in the Jacobs case it's probably the "individualists" among  Jacob breeders and the fact that the breed is far flung has contributed greatly to their health, and genetic breed soundness. Cheryl Terrano at Painted Rock Farm mentioned that we always need to remember a guide book or standard of any breed is meant only as a guide, but that she felt it imperative to consider the overall animal.  But I was quite taken with Peggy's statement that she has heard more than one breeder stating that the only "true" Jacob is a four horn animal, and she is tired of having exceptional two horn rams having to be destroyed because of the their inferred inferiority to 4 horn animals. She states they are just not saleable.  I think she was basically saying that it would have been nice to have JSBA support both 2H & 4H and not infer the 2 horn animals to inferior status simply by not properly representing them as a"norm" and that both are perfectly acceptable.  I have to concur with Peggy;  I too have heard breeders state the two horn animal to be inferior to the 4 horn, this is in fact very common.  I have had one breeder tell me that the #1 consideration of a breeding pair was 4 good horns.  I never got any other details on selecting breeding pairs.  I would have thought this platform would have been a great one to have addressed this issue once and for all. This breed has so much to offer everyone in any location in the world. Jacobs are tough, they are survivors where other breeds die like flies under any adversity.  As Peggy mentions, not showing the 2H among the "ideal" category, means they will continue to be suffer prejudice. There are so many reasons to pick a sheep for your breeding program, and too many people I have met over the years, completely lose sight of the "overall animal".  Bear in mind I have no idea how the JSBA organization works, nor how this was put together.  Forgive me if I am a little in the dark here.  My guess is that a committee put this together and it was board approved.  But it now sounds as though folks are suddenly looking at their sheep going from being "within the norm" to suddenly being identified as "less than ideal" by default.  Perhaps it would be better to have had a preview of this going to every breeder within JSBA for final input before going to print. I know this must have been an enormous project, and I have no idea whom was involved in putting it together, but as someone sitting on the outside and listening to everyone from both sides it just seems that it would have been simpler to have taken it from committee via draft to the membership before going to final print and distribution on something so important. Of course on the bright side, this seems to be the sole complaint on a very good guidebook and everything is fixable if everyone wants it to be. The offending pages could be re-done and replaced to everyone who received a copy.  Thank you everyone for your input, it was very informative.  

Sharon Lehrke
Sovreign Farms




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