I should start by immediately disclosing that I’m writing this from the perspective of trying to make dreams come true on a budget! So if you have unlimited funds at your disposal none of this matters and you can just go ahead and full fill your dreams! It is also purely written from MY perspective and from what I have experienced!
Breed Up Program.
We started our program in 2019. A breed up program is all about YOUR choices. You get to choose the foundation breed and the rams and quite frankly- it’s so exciting and so rewarding. Our breed ups will eventually have tremendous impact on the purebred animals, adding health and vigor to a breed that very frankly has a lot of inbreeding going on.
The last TWO years we have gotten only F3 ram lambs which means our program came to a screeching halt. This spring we did get two nice F2 ewe lambs out of our last two lines, so I consider that progress anyway. However, after 5 years of breeding 4-6 ewes, we still “only” have F2 ewes!
In spite of that being rather frustrating, it’s still ok. I absolutely adore my breed ups. It’s so exciting to see what your choices lead to, and so far I’m very pleased and wouldn’t change a thing other than the gender of my F3’s!! 😊 This is not something you make a lot of money on – it’s a labor of love. If I only was happy staying here and not wanting purebreds I would have been just fine- and I wouldn’t have had to ask my husband to keep building barns and putting up more fencing! Alas, I set my sight on embryos.
Embryos
Ok, so I was a little cautious, wanting to see what kind of success other people -either a lot braver or with more money than me- had. When I read 30% success rate I didn’t quite feel like the odds were in my favor. However, people seemed to do a lot better than 30% success, more like an average of 50% – sometimes 100% and then came the pictures of these first purebreds.. oh wow- knowing I could have one of those in my field.. Decision made! So we took the plunge and bought two embryos. Result? One little ram lamb. He did have correct markings and was a big strapping boy, but he did have a bit of a dip in his back.
So we did it again, bought two embryos and got one ewe lamb. Oh the joy. Our Enigma is far from perfectly marked, but she has the sweetest personality of all my sheep and I adore her. In effect the breed up will continue!
This last year, we partnered with CCM Valais (Wales, UK) and sold embryos (semen is still on its way lol), bred ewes and also decided to use some embryos that were paired with a “second class” embryo in recipients here on our farm. We also bought 6 embryos for ourselves as well. We had really high pregnancy percentage- about 80% all in all. But we seem to be doing better for others than ourselves- out of our own 6 embryos we will have 2 lambs!
First one born, a little ewe lamb that is almost perfect- she has a split knee mark on her one knee. As I’m writing this we are still waiting for our last pregnant girl- she’s due in May.
So let’s look at numbers… over the three years, we bought a total of 10 embryos and spent about $22,000 in just embryo costs. Add to that the recipients, the meds associated with the ET and the vet fees, the cost of ultrasounds, feed and minerals and general upkeep. It’s a lot when you really look at it. This leads me to the purebred lambs.
Purebred Valais
Since I already spoke about my own girl this year, let me talk about the other 5 that we got in our partnership. We had decided that since this was a joint venture that they would all be for sale, regardless of quality.
And what do you know… every single one looks perfect! Great markings. Tremendous wool. Straight legs and backs. Perfect little purebred Valais Blacknose lambs- just not mine! And did I mention? 3 ewe lambs and 2 ram lambs.
So I’m going to play devil’s advocate here for a bit… IF I had bit the bullet and bought that perfect purebred instead of embryos, I would have chosen a perfect looking lamb. As you can see from my previous pictures- you never know what you get as far as gender, markings and quality. So that’s my first point. My second- time IS money in this case. That lamb could have a) been flushed for more embryos or b) been bred (live cover or AI). Maybe even both! In either case- I could have had her babies by now. So just looking at the investment I would have been further ahead if I had bought the purebred lamb instead of embryos.
In conclusion I just want to say- there is no right or wrong way. Do the best you can afford and just love the journey!!
Here at Gratitude Acres we do have “something for everyone”; we have a couple of adorable F2 wethers still available, those fabulous purebred lambs for sale and in the fall we will again be offering embryos and semen for sale (And if all goes as planned- from brand new lines). I feel so privileged and full of gratitude to be doing what I love. Because when all is said and done- it is a labor of love- ALL of it!
Valais at Gratitude Acres 