Portland (sheep)

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The Portland is a sheep breed that takes its name from the Isle of Portland and was once common all over Dorset, but is now one of Britain's rarest breeds. It is on the "at risk" register of the Rare Breeds Survival Trust since there are fewer than 1,500 registered breeding females in the United Kingdom.^[1]

It has various advantages for the hobby farmer: it is a natural forager; it is unusual amongst sheep as breeding can take place at any time of year and multiple births are a rarity; as a result, the ewe is considered especially maternal with lambing being relatively non-interventional; it is a small sheep and thus easy to handle.

Description: No wool on face or lower legs, which are both tan coloured. Newborn lambs' fleeces are a foxy red colour that changes to a creamy white. Both sexes are horned. They produce 2–3 kg. of 50's–60's down-quality wool with a staple length of 6–9 cm (2.5–3.5 in), which is suitable for hosiery and hand-knitting yarns. The highly prized meat has a more complex flavour than most commercial breeds, which is enhanced if the animal is left until the hoggett stage before slaughter.