Llandovery Whiteface Hill Sheep

The Llandovery Whiteface Hill Sheep Society was established in February 1998 when 34 farmers came together with the aim of improving and promoting the breed.

The Llandovery Whiteface ewe is a hardy ewe with excellent mothering qualities and a lambing percentage in excess of 150%, producing ram lambs of good carcase conformation with the ewe lambs retained as flock replacements or sold as breeding ewe lambs in the autumn sales at Llandovery.

The ewes are in demand in the Llandovery Sale with ewes being purchased for crossing with lowland tups and longwool tups to produce Welsh Halfbred and Mule ewe lambs.

Society members realised the importance of Scrapie Testing and tested rams have been sold in the Society Ram Sale since 1998. By today, this has placed us in an excellent position with the majority of lambs tested falling into Groups 1 and 2.

In 2002 it was decided to further improve the progress of the breed by using AI and performance recording. The members selected 2 rams – only ARR / ARR rams were put forward for selection, and each member was entitled to use AI on 30 ewes.

Lambs are weighed at 8 weeks of age, then weighed and ultrasonically scanned for muscle and fat depth at 21 weeks.

A future aim for the Society is to identify potential reference sires from within recorded flocks and to sell high index yearling rams at our Ram Sale, in the Autumn. These rams will produce lambs that will better meet market requirements, whilst maintaining the characteristics and mothering ability of the breed.