The University of Findlay’s Southdown flock began in the Winter 2010 with the purchase of a group of bred ewes from Mapolyne Farms. Later that spring we added several ewe lambs and a “Willy” son from Oldenburg Farms. With a nucleus of moderate sized brood ewes and a powerfully made ram the program began. By spring of 2013 the university flock had grown to approximately 65 brood ewes and 5 stud rams.
Our goal is to provide a significant hands-on experience to our students while exposing them to the important aspects of developing and maintaining a quality purebred sheep flock. The program’s intent is to be a source of muscular, structurally correct, moderate framed and productive sheep that still will have a show ring presence. Several breeds were considered before settling on Southdown sheep for the purebred breed here at the university. Southdowns early on became the breed most appropriate for our program. Southdown’s moderate size and easy fleshing ability complimented our forage based nutritional program and our limited acreage on the farm that houses the Animal Science facility.
We intend to continue to select toward a uniform, moderate and productive Southdown sheep with value and predictability.
