Quick comparison of the Downs Breeds

Now that I have finished working on the Downs family of sheep for the British Breeds Project I noted that a lot of the sheep in that family look the same or so similar that it is easy to confuse one breed for another.

I know that some are different sizes and each have become adapted/been bred for the specific landscape/climate/weather conditions of the area in which they were developed. 

I'm going to go into an depth written comparison here as I have already written up what information I could find on each of the breeds but a visual side by side comparison of their overall visual appearance (but not their size in relation to one another) is a good start.  The Southdown and the Suffolk definitely stand out from the other four, of which the Oxford appears to be the only one with 4 woolly legs.

Suffolk Sheep

The Suffolk sheep is part of the "Downs family" of sheep.  They were developed in the Bury St Edmunds area by crossing Southdown rams with original pre-extinction Norfolk Horn ewes and were originally referred to as "Southdown Norfolks" but this was finally changed some 60 years after Arthur Young, author of the 1797 book called "General View of Agriculture in the County of Suffolk", wrote "These ought to be called the Suffolk breed, the mutton has superior texture, flavour, quantity and colour of gravy". Actually, they were not known by the name of Suffolk until around 1859.  They were recognised as a pure breed in 1810.  In fact the improved Southdown was cross bred with other native breeds in the downland counties and the improved Southdown bloodlines runs through all other Downs breeds, making the Southdown the grand ancestor of all of the other Downs breeds: Dorset Down, Hampshire Down, Oxford, Shropshire and Suffolk.

The Suffolk sheep, at the time of writing, is in the Rare Breeds Survival Trust category 6: "Other UK Native Breeds" (over 3000) registered breeding ewes.  Breed numbers in the UK in the 1980's were around 500,000 but by 2020 this had dropped to around 14,000. Suffolks are usually found across the entirety of the UK and around the world and are a leading breed in the production of meat.  

The Suffolk is a large build sheep with a black head, black legs, black ears and both sexes are polled (hornless). The legs should be woolled to the knees and hocks.

They produce a good size fleece of 1.8kg-3.5kg in weight  with a staple length of 2-3.5 inches (5-9cm).  The fleece dense with short blocky staples that may be hard to distinguish from one another.  There is no hair or kemp in the fleece from this breed. The fleece should be white and free from dark fibres.**

Shorter fleeces can be carded, longer ones will want to be flicked or combed.  Keep the draft light and open and the twist moderate to maintain the loft and springy character of the wool.  The wool is "chalky" but does take dye nicely but the colours won't be lustrous but neither will they be flat.  Has enough crimp to be nicely elastic and it doesn't felt very well.  

Yarns spun from Suffolk fleece are great for socks, mittens, hats, sweaters and the finer fleeces will be great for next-to-skin items.

**There is a statement in the Fleece & Fibre Sourcebook (published 2011) about there being a processed fibre sold as "Grey Suffolk" that demonstrates very few of the qualities and characteristics of Suffolk wool and they traced it back as far as they could but could not determine exactly what it was.  

I too had purchased this "Grey Suffolk" in a multi-British breed pack from one of my usual suppliers (who I have since found out gets a lot of their fibres from a larger supplier that I use) when I first started collecting fleece and pre-prepared fibre of various British breeds.  After reading this comment just before I started spinning, it stopped me in my tracks, and I decided not to spin this "Grey Suffolk" and I got in touch with the Suffolk Breed Society who confirmed to me that there is no such thing as a Grey Suffolk.  All Suffolk sheep are white.  

I also contacted the larger supplier that I use, who only sell Suffolk in this grey type, to inform them that there is no such thing as a Grey Suffolk and to ask them if they know what it actually is and to challenge them politely on the description as it is not a true representation of the breed.  It took a bit of time but they got back to me and told me that it is 80% Suffolk Wool/20% Half-bred Wool and they have now changed their description to state this.  I am surprised that there is as much as 80% Suffolk wool in the blend though as it really is quite grey but at least I have been useful in making sure that the Suffolk breeds stops being mis-represented, from this supplier at least. They still don't sell Suffolk in the natural white form though.

The is "Grey Suffolk", it contains kemp and other stuff that is not in a Suffolk fleece

So, I had to find a new source of Suffolk fleece or pre-prepared fibre. I found some being sold on Ebay by a young-ish female farmer (in her 20's) and so I bought and paid for 300g of raw Suffolk fleece plus delivery charge. I won't name and shame her because I'm a grown up but I will explain what happened because I still can't quite believe it. What arrived was just 50g of raw fleece.  I politely queried her error and was met with a tirade of abuse and attitude so I politely pointed out her legal responsibilities under the Long Distance Selling Regulations that she entered into when putting her sheep fleece up for sale on the internet and was met with a refusal to correct her error as that would mean she would be out of pocket as she would have to pay for delivery costs again and also a refusal to refund me for the 250g of fleece that she didn't send.  She couldn't see that she was committing theft/fraud so I had to put my case to Ebay/Paypal and I won, in part due to her mother getting involved and apologising profusely for her daughters behaviour, WOW, that was the unexpected part!

Shall we get on to the fleece then?  The 50g of fleece that she had sent me was not all that great to be honest and certainly did not live up to the boastfulness of the ribbon and award-winning descriptions of the sheep, flock and young farmer/shepherdess that I had read about. I think winning a few ribbons had gone to her head and caused some kind of disillusionment or God complex.

50g of dirty fleece with lots of black hairs

The same washed fleece with lots of black hairs

Just washing this fleece dropped the weight from 50g to 35g and I had to comb it yet so knowing there wouldn't be enough I managed to find some washed fleece for sale with the lady I've been getting quite a lot of the smaller amounts of raw, washed and pre-prepared breeds from.  I don't know why I didn't check her shop first, maybe I did and she hadn't got any in at the time.  Her stock is always changing because she gets it direct from the farmer and prepares it herself so it depends when the shearers can get round to the farm and when she can wash and dry it etc.

50g of washed fleece, very few black hairs

Sourcing this breed has been a bit of a nightmare.  Firstly the "Grey Suffolk" issue, then the "I've won ribbons so I'm a God and better than you" farmer and now, thankfully, I have been saved on my third attempt at bringing this breed in.

After combing both lots of the fleece separately, I got 25g of mediocre quality hand combed top from the first lot and 35g of lovely quality hand combed top from the second lot.  I could see that they were different shades of white and so I spun them separately and then plied them together.

Left: Mediocre wool from the farmer with the "God complex"
Right: Lovely wool from a regular supplier of mine

My finished yarn is of medium quality to the touch of the hand and you can feel the slight coarseness caused by the poorer quality of the first bit of fleece I bought in but overall its not too bad and I have 53g/102m. My knitted piece for the project took 19g/37m so I have some left to do whatever with.

Southdown Sheep

The South Downs, an area of about 68 miles long of chalk hills along the English Channel that encompasses the counties of Hampshire, West Sussex and East Sussex, that has been home to short woolled, dark-faced, speckle-legged sheep since Medieval times named after the area in which they lived but their breed name is one word, not two.  In the late 1700's several breeders improved these sheep for better mutton production and by 1800 the improved Southdown sheep was the most important breed in England.  Originally they were quite small but became larger after they were improved and breeders then used the improved Southdown to cross breed with other native breeds in the downland counties and the improved Southdown bloodlines runs through all other Downs breeds, making the Southdown the grand ancestor of all of the Downs breeds: Dorset Down, Hampshire Down, Oxford, Shropshire and Suffolk.

The Southdown sheep, at the time of writing, is in the Rare Breeds Survival Trust Category  6:"Other UK Native Breeds" (over 3000) registered breeding ewes.  

Southdowns are usually found in the South East of England, where they originate, but there are specialist flocks across the UK and in other parts of the world too and they have developed into three different sized types within the breed: the standard sized that is still used in commercial agriculture to produced lamb and mutton and two smaller varieties that are often raised as pets and for fleece, the Baby Doll Southdown and the Miniature or Toy Southdown, the later being less than 24 inches tall at the withers.

The Southdown is a medium build sheep with a mouse-brown face and legs covered in wool, small ears that are also covered in wool, but are wool free around the eyes and across the bridge of the nose and they have black nostrils.  Both sexes are polled.  They are docile and easy to handle with affectionate dispositions.

They produce a medium size white fleece of 1.5kg-2kg with a staple length of 2-3 inches (5-7.5cm).  The fleece is dense, relatively short with blocky staples that my be hard to distinguish from each other.  The wool is really fine and is one of the finest in Britain.  The fleece should be white and free from dark fibres but some may occur.  Some breeders have cultivated the dark-fibre genes and produced sheep with full coats of coloured wool so you may find coloured Southdown fleece but its not the norm.

Shorter fleeces can be carded, longer ones will want to be flicked or combed.  Keep the draft light and open and the twist moderate to maintain the loft and springy character of the wool.  The wool is "chalky" but does take dye nicely but the colours won't be lustrous but neither will they be flat.  Has enough crimp to be nicely elastic and it doesn't felt very well.  

Yarns spun from Southdown fleece are great for socks, mittens, hats, sweaters and the finer fleeces will be great for next-to-skin items.

I have bought this breed in as pre-prepared fibre in a box containing 50g each of four British Breeds and because of this you can see a few dark fibres that have transferred from the other breeds in the box and I picked them off before I spun the yarn.

My finished yarn is of medium quality to the touch of the hand and has a nice amount of bounce but not too much and is 50g/107m.  My knitted piece for the project only took 23g/46m so I have a small amount left to do whatever with.  It certainly gives good stitch definition.

Shropshire Sheep

The Shropshire sheep, is part of the "Downs family" of sheep and was developed during the 1800's from the local native sheep, known as Morse Common sheep, who were small, horned and had black or brown faces and a superior quality of wool.  It is said that Southdown rams were crossed with these ewes to help remove the horns and then Cotswold and Leicester rams were used to improve staple length and density of the fleece.  By 1853, the Shropshire was recognised as a breed. In fact the improved Southdown was cross bred with other native breeds in the downland counties and the improved Southdown bloodlines runs through all other Downs breeds, making the Southdown the grand ancestor of all of the other Downs breeds: Dorset Down, Hampshire Down, Oxford, Shropshire and Suffolk.

The Shropshire sheep, at the time of writing, is in the Rare Breeds Survival Trust category 6: "Other UK Native Breeds" (over 3000) registered breeding ewes.  

Shropshires are found throughout the UK but particularly in the Midlands.

The Shropshire is a medium sized sheep weighing in on average at 120kg for a ram and 80kg for a ewe. It has a soft black face, ears and legs with wool on the forelock and cheeks   Both sexes are polled (hornless). 

They produce a good size fleece of 2-3kg in weight with a staple length of 2-5 inches (5-12.5cm).  The fleece dense with short blocky staples that may be hard to distinguish from one another.  There is no hair or kemp in the fleece from this breed. The fleece should be white and free from dark fibres.

Shorter fleeces can be carded, longer ones will want to be flicked or combed.  Keep the draft light and open and the twist moderate to maintain the loft and springy character of the wool.  The wool is "chalky" but does take dye nicely but the colours won't be lustrous but neither will they be flat.  Has enough crimp to be nicely elastic and it doesn't felt very well.  

Yarns spun from Shropshire fleece are great for socks, mittens, hats, sweaters and the finer fleeces will be great for next-to-skin items.

I have bought this breed in as 100g of pre-prepared fibre ready to spin.

My finished yarn is of medium quality to the touch of the hand and a good sturdy yarn.  I have 94g/183m of sport weight yarn.  My knitted piece for the project took 27g/53m so I have some left to do whatever with.

Hampshire Down Sheep

The Hampshire Down sheep was developed more than 150 years ago, so around about the 1860's, from a three-way cross when Southdown rams were crossed with the local native Wiltshire Horn (a hair sheep that still exists but I'm not blogging about this one because it doesn't produce wool) and Berkshire Nott (now extinct) and both of these breeds had white faces and horns.   In fact the improved Southdown was cross bred with other native breeds in the downland counties and the improved Southdown bloodlines runs through all other Downs breeds, making the Southdown the grand ancestor of all of the other Downs breeds: Dorset Down, Hampshire Down, Oxford, Shropshire and Suffolk.

The Hampshire Down sheep, at the time of writing, is in the Rare Breeds Survival Trust category 6: "Other UK Native Breeds" (over 3000) registered breeding ewes and they are found all over the UK, Scotland and Northern Ireland

The Hampshire Down has a rich dark brown or black head, face, ears and legs with wool on the top of the head and around the eyes.  Both sexes are polled (hornless). 

They produce a good size fleece that is 2-4.5kg in weight with a staple length of 2-4 inches (5-10cm).  The fleece is dense with short blocky staples that may be hard to distinguish from one another.  There is no hair or kemp in the fleece from this breed. The fleece should be white and free from dark fibres, although there are a few coloured Hampshires being bred.

Shorter fleeces can be carded, longer ones will want to be flicked or combed.  Keep the draft light and open and the twist moderate to maintain the loft and springy character of the wool.  The wool is "chalky" but does take dye nicely but the colours won't be lustrous but neither will they be flat.  Has enough crimp to be nicely elastic and it doesn't felt very well.  

Yarns spun from Hampshire fleece are great for socks, mittens, hats, sweaters and the finer fleeces will be great for next-to-skin items.

I have bought this breed in as 100g of pre-washed fleece so all I have to do is comb it and spin it.

After combing I am left with 49g of lovely handcombed top.

My finished yarn is of medium quality to the touch of the hand and is quite creamy and it is not as bouncy as the Dorset Down or the Oxford Down.  I have 49g/156m of sport weight yarn.  My knitted piece for the project took 20g/64m so I have some left to do whatever with.

Dorset Down Sheep

The Dorset Down sheep was started to be developed from the 1840's when Southdown rams were crossed with the local native Wiltshire Horn ewes (a hair sheep that still exists but I'm not blogging about this one because it doesn't produce wool) and Berkshire Nott ewes (now extinct).  After several generations the improved rams were crossed with Hampshire Down ewes and then continued to add more Southdown and Hampshire over the next several generations of sheep until they achieved a breed that was similar to the Southdown but better suited to the wetter climate of Dorset. The breed was stabilised by the late 1800's.  In fact the improved Southdown was cross bred with other native breeds in the downland counties and the improved Southdown bloodlines runs through all other Downs breeds, making the Southdown the grand ancestor of all of the other Downs breeds: Dorset Down, Hampshire Down, Oxford, Shropshire and Suffolk.

The Dorset Down sheep, at the time of writing, is in the Rare Breeds Survival Trust category 5: Minority (1500-3000) registered breeding ewes and they are found mainly in the South West of England

The Dorset Down is a medium sized sheep with ewes weighing about 70kg and rams weighing about 110kg and has a rich dark brown or black head, face, ears and legs with wool on the top of the head and around the eyes.  Both sexes are polled (hornless). 

They produce a good size fleece that is 2-3kg in weight with a staple length of 2-3 inches (5-8cm).  The fleece is dense with short blocky staples that may be hard to distinguish from one another.  There is no hair or kemp in the fleece from this breed. The fleece should be white and free from dark fibres.

Shorter fleeces can be carded, longer ones will want to be flicked or combed.  Keep the draft light and open and the twist moderate to maintain the loft and springy character of the wool.  The wool is "chalky" but does take dye nicely but the colours won't be lustrous but neither will they be flat.  Has enough crimp to be nicely elastic and it doesn't felt very well.  

Yarns spun from Dorset Down fleece are great for socks, mittens, hats, sweaters and the finer fleeces will be great for next-to-skin items.

I have bought this breed in as 100g of pre-washed fleece so all I have to do is comb it and spin it.

After combing I am left with 60g of lovely hand combed top.

My finished yarn is of medium quality to the touch of the hand and is quite creamy and it has good bounce.  I have 60g/152m of sport weight yarn.  My knitted piece for the project took 17g/43m so I have some left to do whatever with.

Oxford Down Sheep

The Oxford Down sheep, also referred to simply as "Oxford" was developed during the 1830's when Cotswold rams were crossed with Southdown and Hampshire Down ewes.  Over the next 50 years or so the breed stabilised and, given that most of the flocks were around the town of Witney in Oxfordshire, the name "Oxford Down" was adopted. In fact the improved Southdown was cross bred with other native breeds in the downland counties and the improved Southdown bloodlines runs through all other Downs breeds, making the Southdown the grand ancestor of all of the other Downs breeds: Dorset Down, Hampshire Down, Oxford, Shropshire and Suffolk.

The Oxford sheep, at the time of writing, is in the Rare Breeds Survival Trust category 5: Minorty (1500-3000) registered breeding ewes.  

Oxfords are found throughout the UK but particularly in the Midlands and the Cotswolds.

The Oxford is the largest and heaviest of the British downs breeds weighing in on average at 147kg for a ram and 91kg for a ewe and this makes it the second largest of all of the British breeds, right behind the Lincoln Longwool.  It has a dark chocolate brown face and legs with wool on the forelock and cheeks and also most of the legs.  Both sexes are polled (hornless). 

They produce a good size heavy but open fleece of 2.5-4.5kg in weight with a staple length of 2-5 inches (5-12.5cm).  The fleece dense with short blocky staples that may be hard to distinguish from one another.  There is no hair or kemp in the fleece from this breed. The fleece should be white and free from dark fibres.

Shorter fleeces can be carded, longer ones will want to be flicked or combed.  Keep the draft light and open and the twist moderate to maintain the loft and springy character of the wool.  The wool is "chalky" but does take dye nicely but the colours won't be lustrous but neither will they be flat.  Has enough crimp to be nicely elastic and it doesn't felt very well.  

Yarns spun from Oxford fleece are great for socks, mittens, hats, sweaters and the finer fleeces will be great for next-to-skin items.

I have bought this breed in as 100g of pre-washed fleece so all I have to do is comb it and spin it.

I got 78g of hand combed top

My finished yarn is of medium quality to the touch of the hand and is quite white.  I have 70g/175m of sport weight yarn.  My knitted piece for the project took 22g/50m so I have some left to do whatever with.