Frequently asked questions
Babydoll ewes are supplemented with hay over summer.To keep them in the best condition for breeding and when they are in Lamb.
Babydoll ewe and her triplet lambs. The lambs are wearing handmade lamb coats to help keep them warm during the cold of winter.
Tanjar Ram in his breeding harness with colour crayon
Some of our Babydoll lambs.They will come running for feed when called which is a great way to get your lambs to be friendly.
Coloured and Appendix ewes
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Why is the Babydoll called a Southdown? Southdown is the breed but Babydoll is the name given to distinguish the size difference between the smaller type (Babydoll) and the taller type of Southdown referred to as just Southdown.
ASSBA has recently made a new section in the flock book called just Babydoll without the Southdown breed name added .We are registered with stock in both the Southdown and the Babydoll registries to cater for all breeders in both flockbooks What height should a Babydoll be? Currently, our Australian stud book ASSBA does not have a height restriction on Southdowns but the ASSBA Babydoll breed standard has a height published at 45 to 61cm but Babydolls registered with AABMGS must be under 62 cm.. Babydoll sheep diet? Our sheep graze on pasture grasses. During the summer months when the grass is at its driest our sheep are fed a mixture of local WA sheep pellets and turned out on hay feeders containing our farm-grown meadow hay rolls. Why are Babydoll sheep used in vineyards and orchards? Sheep love vines and orchard leaves and babydolls are no exception. What makes them so different is their height and short length, due to this combination these little sheep find it quite difficult to reach up as high as the taller sheep breeds. Babydoll sheep gestation and how many lambs can they have? Our sheep have shown they range in gestation from 142-152 days with an average of 147 days. Babydoll ewes can have singles, twins or triplets. Babydoll sheep uses? Babydolls are classed as a meat sheep and were originally developed to provide a substantial amount of meat on a small, easy-to-handle sheep. How do you know that your ewes are pregnant? During the breeding season, our rams are fitted with a mating mark ram harness with coloured chalk attached. This lets us know which ewes have been mated so we can determine what date an individual ewe will lamb. Ewes come into oestrous every 17 days from March onward, so we change the rams crayon colour every 17 days and any ewes that fail to get re-marked with a new colour are assumed pregnant. What do you use to measure their height? We use the Piccolo miniature horse measuring stick. It measures heights from 30 cm to 100 cm. . Do Babydolls have horns? No, they are naturally polled but they sometimes have small scurs. How long do Babydoll Southdowns live? Babydolls have a life expectancy between 10-16 years. Do Babydoll sheep make good pets? Yes, they have lovely temperaments and respond well to human interaction. Babydoll lambs make great pets for children. Do we have any American Babydoll bloodlines in Australia No Although we have taken the name there is none of their genetics in the Australia. Do we have any Olde English bloodlines in Australia ? No this is also an American babydoll breed and we have none of this breeds genetics in the Australia. What are these sheep registered as in the Australian stud book ASSBA? Our stock are registered both Southdown and Babydoll . Southdown :This will allow breeders to register Southdown in the flock book and continue to breed the Babydoll type Southdown how they originally began from the Southdown Breed, One with 200 plus years of breeding history in Australia. Babydoll : This is for breeders to register Babydoll sheep in the brand new ASSBA flock book . We have stock registered in both societies so it is important to only select the lambs that have the relevant papers for the ASSBA flock you are registered in . |
Why are there two breeds in the ASSBA flock book that have babydoll looking sheep ?
Since the inception of the ASSBA flock book Southdowns were registered Southdown regardless of what type of southdown there was available ,Breeders of the babydoll southdown had no option other than to register their purebred stock as Southdown but in March 2020 a new section in the flock book was added called Babydoll .
All the registered breeders in the Southdown flock were invited to move over to the new babydoll section this option was given to all southdown breeders.
After much debate a number of babydoll southdown breeders that were registered southdown decided to stay in the Southdown registry and continue today breeding a babydoll southdown and registering the offspring under the breed it has originated from.
The new babydoll flock has closed its registry as of 1st March 2021 and is now a closed flock only allowing the introduction of new bloodlines thru the ASSBA appendix four generation system It is important to know that a registered Southdown can no longer breed to a babydoll and produce a purebred according to the current rules .Southdown can only be used in the appendix programs and have no more value to the babydoll flock than any other breed in producing a babydoll after four generations of appendix breeding EG you can start with a Southdown or a Suffolk and the end product a grade A lamb can be inspected and placed into the babydoll flock book if it passes the ASSBA board inspection.
Breeders who have entered the babydoll flock can now produce lambs with papers that say Babydoll but are limited to the genetics contained in the closed flock book but have a breed standard that suits
Breeders who have stayed Southdown can continue to produce lambs with papers that say Southdown and have the much wider gene pool to work with but they dont meet the breed standard as published for a larger modern Southdown.
Both flocks have their merits and neither is ideal but its up to the breeder /buyer which flock they would like to be in.
We have chosen to move less than half our stock babydoll and kept the majority Southdown the idea of being able to produce lambs with papers that say Babydoll is a dream come true but will pose a problem in years to come when we require new rams as the babydoll flock is very closely related.
Since the inception of the ASSBA flock book Southdowns were registered Southdown regardless of what type of southdown there was available ,Breeders of the babydoll southdown had no option other than to register their purebred stock as Southdown but in March 2020 a new section in the flock book was added called Babydoll .
All the registered breeders in the Southdown flock were invited to move over to the new babydoll section this option was given to all southdown breeders.
After much debate a number of babydoll southdown breeders that were registered southdown decided to stay in the Southdown registry and continue today breeding a babydoll southdown and registering the offspring under the breed it has originated from.
The new babydoll flock has closed its registry as of 1st March 2021 and is now a closed flock only allowing the introduction of new bloodlines thru the ASSBA appendix four generation system It is important to know that a registered Southdown can no longer breed to a babydoll and produce a purebred according to the current rules .Southdown can only be used in the appendix programs and have no more value to the babydoll flock than any other breed in producing a babydoll after four generations of appendix breeding EG you can start with a Southdown or a Suffolk and the end product a grade A lamb can be inspected and placed into the babydoll flock book if it passes the ASSBA board inspection.
Breeders who have entered the babydoll flock can now produce lambs with papers that say Babydoll but are limited to the genetics contained in the closed flock book but have a breed standard that suits
Breeders who have stayed Southdown can continue to produce lambs with papers that say Southdown and have the much wider gene pool to work with but they dont meet the breed standard as published for a larger modern Southdown.
Both flocks have their merits and neither is ideal but its up to the breeder /buyer which flock they would like to be in.
We have chosen to move less than half our stock babydoll and kept the majority Southdown the idea of being able to produce lambs with papers that say Babydoll is a dream come true but will pose a problem in years to come when we require new rams as the babydoll flock is very closely related.
Why do some lambs have more wrinkles
than others? At this time it seems to just be a breed trait in certain Babydoll bloodlines.
All the lambs below are purebred Babydolls but are displaying various degrees of wrinkles.
Interestingly if all these lambs were shorn they would all have the same smooth necks, the wrinkles are in the wool, not in the neck skin folds. All the lambs in the photo are acceptable Babydoll Southdowns and are all registered with ASSBA and AABMGS.
than others? At this time it seems to just be a breed trait in certain Babydoll bloodlines.
All the lambs below are purebred Babydolls but are displaying various degrees of wrinkles.
Interestingly if all these lambs were shorn they would all have the same smooth necks, the wrinkles are in the wool, not in the neck skin folds. All the lambs in the photo are acceptable Babydoll Southdowns and are all registered with ASSBA and AABMGS.
Why do some Babydolls look like their legs are not straight?
Tanjar Little Spice as an adult
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 Tanjar Little Spice as a Lamb
DO BABYDOLLS HAVE KNOCK KNEES ? The way the wool is grown over the knees and the way the wool grows over the shoulders. This can give the impression of wonky front legs OR Knock Knees . These photos show the same ewe Tanjar Little Spice as an unshorn lamb and as an older ewe after shearing. As you can see, her legs are a lot straighter and they have gotten further apart as she has matured. |
Why do Babydolls look so different as they get older?
Babydoll lambs are born with the fluffy lower legs that are often a mousy-ginger colour.
They can have a lot of beard or only just a small amount, some of them are also born with quite woolly faces and woolly ears.
Because Babydolls require shearing they look a lot different once all their wool comes off.
The ewe below is Tanjar Little Bear as a lamb thru to an adult,
Babydoll lambs are born with the fluffy lower legs that are often a mousy-ginger colour.
They can have a lot of beard or only just a small amount, some of them are also born with quite woolly faces and woolly ears.
Because Babydolls require shearing they look a lot different once all their wool comes off.
The ewe below is Tanjar Little Bear as a lamb thru to an adult,
Do Babydolls need shearing? Yes Babydolls require shearing once per year. Their wool is quite short, they are not a self shedding breed. We have our Babydolls shorn in the months of August to October here in Western Australia.
Looking for a shearer? Click the link to go to our shearer's Facebook page www.facebook.com/yourlocalshearer/
Looking for a shearer? Click the link to go to our shearer's Facebook page www.facebook.com/yourlocalshearer/
What is the wool classed as?
Babydoll wool is classed as a downs wool and is often used in the carpet making sectors.
Wool short, dense and fine texture .Wool is covering the whole body down to the hocks and knees.
Babydoll wool is classed as a downs wool and is often used in the carpet making sectors.
Wool short, dense and fine texture .Wool is covering the whole body down to the hocks and knees.
Why do you shear your lambs faces?
Babydoll lambs are renowned for their wonderful woolly faces, this is one of the features of our Australian Babydoll Sheep but woolly faces come summer also mean grass seeds.
To combat this we have all our lambs' faces wigged (shorn) by our experienced NZ shearer.
This ensures our lambs don't get our WA grass seeds in their eyes. It makes the lamb look slightly less adorable, but it is essential for there everyday health and safety.
Babydoll lambs are renowned for their wonderful woolly faces, this is one of the features of our Australian Babydoll Sheep but woolly faces come summer also mean grass seeds.
To combat this we have all our lambs' faces wigged (shorn) by our experienced NZ shearer.
This ensures our lambs don't get our WA grass seeds in their eyes. It makes the lamb look slightly less adorable, but it is essential for there everyday health and safety.
Can babydoll sheep Get TOO FAT ?
Being a meat sheep and early maturing babydolls can get quite fat and often can paddle with their legs due to the short statue and wide loads ,Ewes that get to fat as hoggets can have fertility problems and lambing issues.
All these things can be corrected by maintaining good weights for both ewes and rams.
Being a meat sheep and early maturing babydolls can get quite fat and often can paddle with their legs due to the short statue and wide loads ,Ewes that get to fat as hoggets can have fertility problems and lambing issues.
All these things can be corrected by maintaining good weights for both ewes and rams.
Babydoll sheep care:
To ensure that our Babydolls get the best care year round, they are routinely wormed on a rotation, targeting seasonal worms such as Barbers pole worm and using combination wormers to cover the other gastro-intestinal worms such as scour worm, brown stomach worm and tapeworms.
We vaccinate all lambs at 8-12 weeks of age with Ultra Vac 5 in 1 to prevent the major clostridial diseases in sheep, for the prevention of enterotoxaemia (pulpy kidney disease), tetanus, black disease, malignant oedema (blackleg-like disease) and blackleg including swelled head in rams. Lambs recieve 1 ml in their first dose with a 2nd dose four weeks later. Adults are vaccinated with 1 ml annually. Our breeding ewes also receive a pre-lambing vaccine one month before lambing to ensure their lambs are properly covered at birth.
All our stock are shorn once a year and back lined with Extinosad.
We also mineral drench throughout the year to provide adequate mineral supplements to all our stock from lambs right through to mature ewes and rams, we also provide mineral blocks for everyday maintenance.
Following the Western Australian Department of Agriculture Livestock identification requirement, all our stock are earmarked and tagged with a NLIS (National Livestock Identification System) tag which is colour coded for the year of birth (our Pic number is branded on the ear tag). Right ear for Females, Left ear for Males.
We routinely trim hooves and record weights. Heights are taken at 12 months old and again around the age of 3-4 years.
All our sheep are given selenium and cobalt pellets at 6 months old, the pellets are a sustained release supplement used to treat and prevent selenium and cobalt deficiency in sheep.
Our rams are Brucellosis Accredited which means they have tested negative to the Brucellosis disease.
Ovine brucellosis is an infection that can affect all breeds of sheep and is caused by a bacterium, Brucella ovis (B. ovis).
Infected rams become infertile. We are part of the Ovine Brucellosis Accreditation Scheme (OBAS) No 605 our rams were blood tested Sep 2020 and all returned a negative result to B.Ovis
To ensure that our Babydolls get the best care year round, they are routinely wormed on a rotation, targeting seasonal worms such as Barbers pole worm and using combination wormers to cover the other gastro-intestinal worms such as scour worm, brown stomach worm and tapeworms.
We vaccinate all lambs at 8-12 weeks of age with Ultra Vac 5 in 1 to prevent the major clostridial diseases in sheep, for the prevention of enterotoxaemia (pulpy kidney disease), tetanus, black disease, malignant oedema (blackleg-like disease) and blackleg including swelled head in rams. Lambs recieve 1 ml in their first dose with a 2nd dose four weeks later. Adults are vaccinated with 1 ml annually. Our breeding ewes also receive a pre-lambing vaccine one month before lambing to ensure their lambs are properly covered at birth.
All our stock are shorn once a year and back lined with Extinosad.
We also mineral drench throughout the year to provide adequate mineral supplements to all our stock from lambs right through to mature ewes and rams, we also provide mineral blocks for everyday maintenance.
Following the Western Australian Department of Agriculture Livestock identification requirement, all our stock are earmarked and tagged with a NLIS (National Livestock Identification System) tag which is colour coded for the year of birth (our Pic number is branded on the ear tag). Right ear for Females, Left ear for Males.
We routinely trim hooves and record weights. Heights are taken at 12 months old and again around the age of 3-4 years.
All our sheep are given selenium and cobalt pellets at 6 months old, the pellets are a sustained release supplement used to treat and prevent selenium and cobalt deficiency in sheep.
Our rams are Brucellosis Accredited which means they have tested negative to the Brucellosis disease.
Ovine brucellosis is an infection that can affect all breeds of sheep and is caused by a bacterium, Brucella ovis (B. ovis).
Infected rams become infertile. We are part of the Ovine Brucellosis Accreditation Scheme (OBAS) No 605 our rams were blood tested Sep 2020 and all returned a negative result to B.Ovis