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Welcome to JM
Katahdins. I have had sheep for over 20 years. I started with a
few Finnsheep, just to train young Border Collies. As time went by,
we started to see some Katahdins, and acquired a few of those. We
started crossing the Finnsheep with the Katahdin rams. Things were
going along pretty good.
We had some real
nice sheep (all commercial), good parasite resistance, shedding
good, (most of them were 3 generations or more from the Finnsheep)
great for working dogs, and lots of twins. Really nice sheep.
Then we went to
The Sunbelt Expo in Moultrie Ga., and met Mark and Sara Dennis, and
“MCD Loaded Wagon”, (their 330 pound Full blood Registered Katahdin
Ram), from New Iberia, La. What an experience! We wound up buying
6 Full Blood Registered daughters of “MCD Loaded Wagon”, and we were
started in the Full Blood business.
We purchased a
Full Blood ram that came from Jubilee Farms in Kansas, and bred all
the commercial ewes and the Full Blood ewe lambs to him. We planned
to upgrade our commercial ewes to registered status. When the lambs
started arriving, you could see a marked difference. The Full Blood
ewe lambs were out producing the mature ewes. Better mommas, more
milk, their lambs looked a lot better! Shortly thereafter, we sold
all of our commercial sheep. We had an opportunity to add 7
granddaughters of “MCD Loaded Wagon”, so we went to Louisiana and
got them.
Today we have 35
head of ewes that are daughters and granddaughters of “MCD Loaded
Wagon”. We are extremely pleased, and proud of these animals. We
focus on Growth, Mothering ability, Milk production, Parasite
resistance and Hair coat, (all our sheep are A or AA hair coats. We
are dedicated to, and have the Genetics to raise the very best
Katahdin Hairsheep available. Our flock is (Codon 171) genotyped,
all are QR and RR We provide complete Health records that show
birth weights, 60 day/weaning weights, 120 day weights,
vaccinations, parasite control, hoof trimming, etc. We cull with a
ruthless hand, and will only sell the very best Breeding Stock.
Our program is
forage based, and thanks to our moderate winters, we have green
grass nearly 12 months of the year. We plant Annual Ryegrass and
Ball clover in the fall, and use MIG techniques to graze it through
the next June. All of our lambing is done outside in Feb and Mar.
We never put anything in the barn, and we don’t even have a Jug.
One of the best things about the Katahdin is the maintenance free
quality. They can lamb in 20 degrees or less, and the lambs will be
up nursing in 10 minutes or less.
We are members
of: Katahdin Hairsheep International, South Central Katahdin
Hairsheep Assoc., (Board of Directors) the Meat Sheep Alliance of
Florida, (Board of Directors) and the National Sheep Improvement
Program (NSIP).
JM Katahdins is
located in North Florida, near where I-75 and I-10 meet.
Visitors are always welcome |
