The Breeding Aim for Barbados Blackbelly Sheep
From the agricultural literature of those countries with greater populations of this breed, the following figures have been taken:
Weight Development of Barbados Blackbelly Sheep
Birth weights | |
Single lambs (ø of ♀+♂) | 3,2 kg |
Twin lambs (ø of ♀+♂)
Triplets (ø of ♀+♂) Quadruplets (ø of ♀+♂) |
3,1 kg
2,4 kg 2,1 kg |
Weaning weights at 120 days | |
Single lambs, ♀
Single lambs, ♂ |
13,7 kg
12,8 kg |
Twins, ♀
Twins, ♂ |
13,4 kg
12,3 kg |
Weight development | 80 – 140 g/day |
Carcass weight (red meat with remarkably low fat content) | 15-20 kg on average |
Life weights | |
Rams | 50-70 kg, height at withers 60 – 65 cm |
Ewes | 32-43 kg, height at withers 50 – 60 cm. |
Barbados Blackbelly Sheep – Prolificacy
Barbados Blackbelly sheep are extremely fertile (see table). They have two breeding seasons per year, with a lambing interval of only 8 months. This way, under good conditions, 2,5 lambings per year are possible in the long run. The age at the first lambing is 10-13 months. Twin births are the norm, triplets are frequent and quadruplets and even quintuplets are not rare.
Incidence of: | Frequency |
Single births
Twin births Triplet births Quadruplet- and Quintuplet births |
25 – 30%
45 – 50% 20 – 25% 2-5% |
However, in poorly managed flocks lamb losses are high because the ewes cannot raise more than three lambs. The milk production is high. Some authors ascribe the high milk production to the fact that during the English and Dutch colonial times, European marsh sheep were bred into the Caribbean sheep population. Those marsh sheep were the ancestors of today’s East Friesian Milk Sheep. Under the conditions in experimental stations where lambs are raised in boxes, the weaning results are especially good due to the good milking ability of the Barbados ewes and the creep feeding of the lambs. Under controlled management conditions, the average losses, until weaning are 25%.
Barbados-Blackbelly Sheep – Coat Characteristics
The Barbados Blackbelly sheep is a true hairsheep. Like all true hairsheep it has a thick short coat with coarse kempy hair and little under-wool. The rams carry a dense ruff which in temperate climates not only hangs under the throat but covers the whole neck and withers area. The skin covering the legs and face is comprised of short, coarse kemp-hair.