The Breed For All Seasons

It is said that centuries ago, Merino sheep were brought into Shouthwest England and were crossed with the Horned Sheep of Wales, which produced a desirable all-purpose sheep. Thus, the birth of the Horned Dorset sheep, the ancestors of the present day Dorset.

Dorsets in America

Horned Dorsets were imported into this country in 1860 to the West Coast. Horned Dorsets were the dominate type of Dorset sheep in America until the development of the Polled Dorsets in the 1950’s. Polled Dorsets were developed from a gene mutation. The polled strain has helped Dorsets become one of the most popular sheep breeds in the country today, where it has the largest white face breed registry in the country and second overall.

Dorsets Place in the Sheep Industry

Dorsets breed out-of-season, are excellent mothers and milkers, lamb with relative ease, and produce a high percentage of multiple births. They are meat-type sheep with excellent carcass traits. Due to their moderate size and fast, effcient growth, they are profitable producers of lamb, milk, and wool. Because of these qualities the Dorset sheep are adaptable to all types of sheep enterprises, from the full-time large commercial producer to the small part-time farm flock owner.

Dorsets for Youth Projects

Considering all of the desirable attributes of the Dorset breed they lend themselves to make excellent youth breeding projects and market lamb projects.
The Continental Dorset Club has several programs for its youth from the Ewe Lamb Futurity program to the sanctioned Regional and National Junior Shows.