Certainly, the basic beginnings of a distinctive Cheviot breed existed in the Cheviot Hills of Northern England as far back as the Battle of Bannockburn – a race of sheep described as small hardy animals with a “long white face” and other physical attributes of the present Cheviot. Other stories from this period tell of the “almost incredible tenacity of life” when many sheep survived the most wicked storms, even though buried in snowdrifts so that they had to be dug out. Cow The breed also has proved it’s ability to withstand the cold, wet winters of Southern Australia, and it’s vigor in foraging through the hot, dry summers when feed is scarce. From the breed’s early origin in the Cheviot Hills and along the River Tweed, the name “twill” or more properly “tweel” accidently became corrupted to “tweed.”  Under that name, Cheviot tweed went on to earn world renown. The Cheviot has an alert, appraising eye and a bold carriage. The date of origin of the Wicklow Mountain sheep can only be guessed at, but there is concrete evidence to show that in the middle of the fifteenth century, there existed in the Wicklow Mountains a valuable breed of fine woolled sheep. Merinos, Lincolns, Leicesters, Southdowns, even a local breed of goat, are said to have played a part in the development of the breed – to say nothing of the native stock present in the hill country from the time Caesar’s legions brought to Britain the cultural and sheep husbandry of Rome. Cheviot (n.) range of hills between Scotland and England, named for one of them, The Cheviot, attested from 12c. These are the Illinois, Iowa, and Ohio Cheviot Breeder’s Associations, and the Pacific Cheviot Society. Under favorable conditions, these weights are often exceeded. Not all efforts to improve the breed with Lincoln and Leicester blood where as successful as Robson’s. Various explanations have been offered for the fineness of the Cheviot wool during this period. Quail The bone is light, and the legs covered with white hair from knee to hock. The Cheviot sheep breed was introduced into the United States in 1838 from Scotland. Along with the availability in it’s native area, the breed is also rarely found in the United States, New Zealand and Australia. About 1370 considerable numbers of these “longfaces”, as they were called, found their way north from the English hills into the border country in the south of Scotland. The Cheviot sheep is a dual-purpose breed of domestic sheep which is valued for both meat and wool production. The latter importation and the few that followed furnished the seed stock for virtually all the Cheviot flocks in this country. They have a distinctive white-face, and their head and legs are wool free. The wool of the Cheviot sheep enabled the Scottish crofters to make a special type of cloth appropriately called “Cheviot”. The majority of them are pointed like cones; their sides are smooth and steep, and their bases are nearly in contact with each other… “On the upper part of that hill in Northumberland, which is properly termed the Cheviot, a peculiar and most valuable breed of sheep is found. Where there’s a really tough clean-up job to be done to convert waste land into dollars, more and more sheepmen are discovering that “Cheviots can take it!”. The Cheviot sheep is a dual-purpose breed of domestic sheep which is valued for both meat and wool production. Though Cheviots may come in small packages, they contain for the breeder a surprising combination of highly desirable qualities:  hardiness, long life, productiveness, and a high quality of meat and wool. A number of flocks have been established on the West Coasts of Canada and the U.S. with small flocks under way in such remote and inhospitable places as Kodiak Island (off the Alaskan Coast), where sheep need to know how to take it. The modern American Cheviot is primarily a mutton sheep. Rams are expected to shear 9 to 14 lbs., ewes 7 to 10 lbs. An upright ear is covered with fine white hair. Ostrich It is considered the longest lasting of all makes of cloth. Subscribe ROY'S FARM newsletter for news, updates and receiving notifications of new posts by email. This breed developed around the border of Scotland and England and was adapted to the barren, windswept weather of the region. Sir John selected the native long wooled hill sheep found in the Border’s Cheviot Hills from all the breeds he had seen and named them Cheviots for the first time. The earlier tendency toward high and bare shoulders has been largely overcome by the better breeders. ); America’s sheep Trails, E. N. Wentworth (1948). The Cheviot sheep are very hardy breed of domestic sheep. The wool of the Cheviot sheep enabled the Scottish crofters to make a special type of cloth appropriately called “Cheviot”. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. The Cheviot originated in the Cheviot Hills, on the border of England and Scotland. The cheviot sheep can be traced back to as early as 1372 when they were popular as a hardy breed. As rustlers they have few equals. Chicken Most people chose this as the best definition of cheviot: Any of a breed of hornles... See the dictionary meaning, pronunciation, and sentence examples. The mature Cheviot ewes on average produce about 2.25 to 4.5 kg of fleece. Fish As a breed of sheep, 1815. The Cheviot sheep were first introduced to Scotland by Sir John Sinclair who brought 500 “long hill” ewes he selected from the Cheviot Hills near the English border of the counties Sutherland and Caithness in Northern Scotland. In 1945, the organization was reformed into the existing North Country Cheviot Sheep Society for registration, exporting, promotion and breed improvement. Today the breed is raised as a dual-purpose animal. They have the characteristic of adapting easily to different climates. There where losses, of course. Sitemap They have never any other food, except when they are fattened, than the grass and natural hay produced on their own hills.”. Le cheviot est une race de moutons anglaise et écossais originaire des monts Cheviot, entre le Northumberland et les Scottish Borders. This adaptability was possible especially because of their robust features, easy lambing and fast growing abilities, matured mothering instincts. Turkey, About Us During winter the hills are covered with snow for two, three, and sometimes four months, and they have an ample proportion of bad weather during the other seasons of the year, yet a sheep is to be found that will thrive even in the wildest part of it … They have a closer fleece … which keeps them warmer in the cold weather, and prevents either snow or rain from incommoding them. Characteristics Details of Cheviot Sheep: The Cheviot sheep is a mainly meat-producing breed. As a large animal, average live body weight of the mature Cheviot rams is between 72 and 90 kg. Sir John had 500 Cheviot gimmers taken to his Langwell Estate at Ulbester, Caithness for a trial. Let us turn the pages of history to find out. What witches’ brew went into the genetic make-up of this enterprising breed is not pin-pointed for us with any degree of certainty. Contrary to this picture of delicate refinement, the Cheviot is actually a rugged and vigorous sheep.