Dolly is an adult Hebridean ewe, and was purchased at Masham sheep fair in
October 2000, along with a male ram called Brutus. The intention was to
breed some lambs from Dolly and Brutus off site in co. Durham, and bring
them to Bede's World the following spring. Dolly and her lambs Peter and
Paul arrived at Bede's World late, however - very late, because by the time
she had lambed Foot and Mouth restrictions were in place and she could not
be moved for some months. However, she has now settled in well and is very
tame. She is one of the few sheep that is "halter trained", which means that
you can lead her on a rope. This is an essential skill if you wish to show a
sheep at agricultural fairs, as they must stand and walk calmly and
obediently for the judge.
Dolly is an experienced mum who has bred some fine lambs, and she always
looks after them well. The Hebridean is one of the multi-horned breeds; two
or four horns are common in both male and female sheep, and both sexes can
have up to six horns. Dolly has just two small horns, although those on both
of her sons are very large and striking.
Hebridean sheep were previously known as the St. Kilda, and they derive from
a primitive sheep that was once found in much of Scotland and the Islands.
They have black or dark brown fleece, often streaked with silver as it ages,
which can be seen on Dolly. This is a long-lived breed, valued for its role
as a conservation grazer as it eats long tough grasses and scrub, allowing
finer grasses and flowers to flourish. Their attractive appearance means
that they were, and still are, popular in parklands and estates. On Gyrwe we
keep a variety of native primitive, unimproved breeds of sheep which are as
close as we can get in size and appearance to the sheep that would have been
kept in the Anglo-Saxon period.
We hand-shear our sheep every year, and the fleece is popular with hand
spinners and weavers. Hebridean fleece is pleasant to hand-spin, although
somewhat rough to the touch, and the brown black and silver tinges in their
fleece give a lovely variation in the spun yarn.
Sheep were valued in the Anglo-Saxon for their meat, wool and skins, and it
is also possible to milk sheep if they are trained correctly.
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