History
Source: http://afs.okstate.edu/breeds/sheep/rambouillet/index.html/
The history of the Rambouillet sheep is a fascinating one that began more than two centuries ago. The Rambouillet breed originated with Spain’s famed Merino flocks, which were known from the earliest times as producers of the world’s finest wool.
The Spanish government was so protective of their Merino flocks that any exportation was forbidden.
This policy changed in 1786, however, when the King of Spain granted a request from the government of France and sent 359 carefully selected rams and ewes to help improve the native French stock. The sheep were sent to the Rambouillet farm near Paris where, according to government records, they have been bred since 1801.
Other Merino sheep were introduced into Germany during the last quarter of the 18th century, and German breeders made extensive use of Rambouillet sires as the sheep’s fame spread throughout Europe. That is why many present day American Rambouillets can trace their ancestry back to either German von Homeyer flocks or the flocks of Rambouillet, France.
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Source: https://www.britannica.com/animal/Rambouillet-breed-of-sheep
Rambouillet, breed of sheep, developed from selections of a few hundred of the best Merino sheep of Spain in 1786 and 1799 by the French government at its national sheepfold at Rambouillet, France.
First imported to the United States in 1840, the breed was successfully molded through selective breeding to meet the needs of a large class of U.S. sheep producers. Rambouillets prevail on the western ranges, where two-thirds of the sheep of the United States are produced.
The Rambouillet is the largest of fine wool sheep. The breed has a white face and white legs. The face covering of wool is rather heavy, even to the extent of causing wool blindness in some specimens, but selective mating has alleviated this problem. Fleeces of Rambouillet sheep are relatively heavy. The lambs grow rapidly under good feeding conditions to produce satisfactory market weights at from six to nine months of age. Rambouillet ewes are crossbred extensively with medium-wool and long-coarse-wool rams to produce choice market lambs and rugged breeding ewes with heavy, attractive medium wool.
Mature Rambouillet rams weigh between 250 and 300 pounds (113-135 kg), ewes range from 150 to 200 pounds (68-90 kg). Mature ewes will have a fleece weigh of 8 to 18 pounds (3.6-8.1 kg) with a yield of 35 to 55 percent. The fleece staple length will vary from two to four inches (5-10 cm) and range in fiber diameter from 18.5 to 24.5 microns or 60 to 80 for the numerical count.
Congratulations to Estelle Cook/Cook Sisters with the top certifying Rambouillet Ram at the Dakota Performance Ram Test.
Additional information
Rambouillet Sheep Breed Information
http://www.raisingsheep.net/rambouillet.html
Videos
France
Le mérinos de Rambouillet
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8SXFKKQKo9E
USA
India
Spain
As we have already explained in previous videos, there is a breed for each purpose. On this occasion #ASAGESP and the Faculty of Agronomy and Veterinary Medicine of the UASLP tell you about the Ramboulliet Sheep Breed, a breed very adaptable to the production conditions of the highlands of Potosí.
Associations
USA
American Rambouillet Sheep Breeders Association:
Website: http://www.countrylovin.com/ARSBA/index.htm
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/American-Rambouillet-Sheep-Breeders-Association-108806002484629/
Canada
Canadian Co-operative Wool Growers Limited
https://wool.ca/page/rambouillet-sheep
