Overview

Our Breeding Program

British Soay: Conservation Breeding

Our collection of registered British Soay breeding stock represents a comprehensive sample of the genetics of the British Soay Sheep on the North American continent.

Having assembled all these ewes and rams into the fold, we of course want to maintain the broad sampling of genetics that they represent. To this end, we set up each year's breeding groups according to a strict rotational system.

The program accomplishes two interrelated goals.

First, it maximizes the fraction of existing Soay genes that will be transmitted to the next generation and minimizes the number that will fail to be passed on.
Second, the genetically diverse lambs that result can be put together in well-balanced starter flocks for our customers.

Since we use rams for only one season, for breeders who wish to augment their flock's genetic diversity over several years, we can provide new rams unrelated to any flocksires used in prior years.