Rough Fell is perfectly conditioned to life on the hills

THE Swaledale may dominate the Teesdale landscape, but just over the border into Cumbria the Rough Fell has always been the traditional breed and it has been making a comeback in recent times.

Rough Fell Sheep Breeders Association secretary, Ben Williams, works Adamthwaite farm, near Ravenstonedale, where he runs a flock of 600 ewes on challenging land which includes common at up to 2,200 feet above sea-level.

The Rough Fell is the largest of all the hill breeds, tough enough to cope with the high annual rainfall and often harsh conditions which prevail on the Cumbrian hills.

Ewes are milky, with a very strong mothering instinct and their large size and good conformation means they retain value as cast sheep, says Ben.

He farms with his wife, Laura, and his parents, Barry and Jackie, who took over the hefted flock of Rough Fells when the family moved to the 260-acre hill property almost three decades ago.

At Adamthwaite, a group of 160 Rough Fell ewes go to the Blue-faced Leicester and their Mule gimmer lambs are the farm’s most profitable sheep enterprise, going on to sell at the annual Ambleside Fair.

A highlight of the year is the tup auction, which is always held at NWS Junction 36 (Kendal mart); a date of October 14 has been confirmed for this year’s event.

In 2015, the bidding went to 10,000gns and this is a modest sum, compared to prices for the best Swaledale tups, which can run into tens of thousands of pounds, Ben points out.

There is also a sale in late January, where producers congregate to buy in-lamb Rough Fell ewes, gimmer shearlings and geld hoggs.

The purebreds usually achieve a scanning percentage of 110-120. They will receive some supplementary forage over the winter, while the crossbreds, which lamb on April 1, generally scan at 150per cent.

Pure-bred ewes and their mid-April born lambs are turned out on to the fell when the lambs reach three weeks old and at finishing they are sold either live or deadweight, depending on market conditions.

The first batch of Mule wethers will leave the farm in early autumn, with the horned lambs following on after Christmas.

Hardiness is the number one priority for the Williams’ flock, largely due to the farm’s height and the annual rainfall of 200-250cms. A group of 180 hoggs is kept for replacements and the partners have developed a policy to ensure that only the best ewes in both flocks are retained for breeding, operating a strict culling regime for any negative traits considered to be genetically-inherited, including prolapse, recurring lameness and infertility.

“The three-crop and four-crop ewes are inspected each year and the best of both batches will go to the Rough Fell tups, with their ewe lambs marked for breeding,” explains Ben, who has worked for the association for four years.

“As long as they perform well, they will be kept on for another couple of years after that.

“This system helps to maintain healthy bloodlines and their female progeny will also stay in the flock for as long as they remain productive; we have a number of seven-crop ewes to go to the tup again this autumn. An exception is made for shearlings which fail to get in lamb the first time round.

“They will be given another chance, as long as everything else is up to standard. As a rule, I also like to cross three-crop ewes, when they are at their peak.”

While no official recording scheme is in place, detailed written performance records are kept for individual animals and the flock is condition-scored on a regular basis. Due to the stringent selection programme, only a handful of breeding tups are produced each year.

“The Rough Fell was originally prized for its wool, which is favoured by carpet manufacturers because it is white and can be dyed any colour. It is worth twice as much as fleece from a Swaledale, but since wool values have plummeted, breeders have moved away from types with heavy wool, in favour of animals with good conformation which will produce a tight-skinned lamb.

“The Rough Fell ewe is ideally suited for breeding pure or for crossing with any terminal sire and the Rough Fell Mule is becoming more popular, as breeders are looking for a sheep that lasts well and produces a lamb with good conformation.

“It is hard to imagine any other breed which would match the productivity of the Rough Fell on this farm and many sheep breeders in this area feel the same way,” says Ben.




ROUGH FELL RAM DATA

Body weight - in excess of 85kgs

Fleece weight - 3.6-6.35kgs

Ewes per ram - 60-90

Working life – approximately six years




ROUGH FELL EWE DATA

Body weight – 60kgs

Fleece weight – 2.7kgs average

Lambing % - 100-150

Lamb birth weight – single 5kgs, twin 3.kgs




ROUGH FELL SHEEP BREEDERS ASSOCIATION (RFSBA)

THE RFSBA was formed in 1926, with the majority of breeders based in Cumbria, although the breed can now be found in all over Great Britain.

The Association is divided into three member districts: K (for Kendal), S (for Sedbergh) and T (for Tebay, Orton and Ravenstonedale).

For more information about the Rough Fell, contact Ben Williams on 07979 142809 or email him at rfsbasecretary @gmail.com