[Jacob-list] 'rise' v shedding

[gordon johnston]

Just to clarify, the ' rise ' is completely separate from shedding, except in primitives such as Soay and Shetlands.  They shed at the rise (and can therefore be 'rooed' or plucked) as part of a perfectly natural process. This has been bred out of other long-domesticated sheep so they can be shorn, rather than leaving their wool dotted all around the paddock and fences.

Other breeds, at least those of which we have experience including Jacobs, have a less well-defined rise, so they do not shed naturally.  It is still present though in varying degrees, and as Gordon pointed out can be barely visible in animals presenting for their first shearing.  It may well be that in certain climates where there are not clearly defined seasons, or where they are 'reversed' (from our point of view here in Britain) so the winter means lots of lush grass but the summer brings drought and stress, that the occurrence of the 'rise' differs.  We can only speak within our limited experience and it is very interesting hearing about the varying situations you encounter over there.

Shedding in sheep other than those primitives is usually in response to some form of stress, though not in our experience usually immediatety prior to the shedding (presumably the damage to the fibres occurs below skin level so we only see the effect once it has grown a bit) .  There are all sorts of things which might set it off, including pregnancy and lambing difficulties, illness and parasites, presumably internal as well as external.  We have no experience of sheep undergoing a dramatic change of climate, but you would expect that that, and the journey itself, would be  stressful on the animals.

I find it fascinating how sheep can adapt so quickly and so well to new environments, so that they are distributed all around the world, or almost.  Even the same breeds seem able to thrive in widely disparate climates.  It is said that the fleece of Shetland sheep can coarsen when they are moved down to the drier climate of Southern England - I wonder if that happens in Jacobs moved around in the States ?  Has anyone observed this ?

Juliet in Scotland UK
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