Leicester Longwool Sheep

Why Leicester Longwool (LL) sheep? The Leicester Longwool sheep is a heritage breed originally developed in England by Robert Bakewell in 1755. He was a pioneer in developing breeding programs to improve marketable livestock. His sheep combined hardiness and thriftiness with long, lustrous fleeces, and an increased ability to produce marketable meat carcasses. The Leicester Longwool sheep is the first animal to have an actual breed standard and was highly prized by George Washington. The became the foundation stock of most of today’s long wool breeds.

Recognized by the Livestock Conservancy they are part of the effort to protect an irreplaceable piece of earth’s biodiversity as they (and other heritage breeds) offer traits that may be needed in the future – traits that may be lost if the breed becomes extinct.

The LL is noted for a strong, lustrous fleece that can be used for many different things. It is prized by hand spinners for its curl, soft handle, and sheen. The wool dyes exceptionally well producing bright, clear colors. They also produce an exceptional carcass on very little or no grain. The meat flavor remains sweet and does not tend to get “gamey” even in older animals. They are highly productive milk producers and have no problem feeding the typical set of twins.

We have raw fleeces, roving, yarn, (coming – blankets), meat, and (sometimes) pelts available as well as breeding stock. We are proud to have been raising a pure-bred flock since 2010 and to have contributed to many new start up flocks.