Sheep have been domesticated by humans since ancient times. They are bred for wool and meat. The first domestic sheep appeared about 8,000 years ago in what is now Turkey. Gradually, sheep farming began to be practiced throughout the world. Today, large flocks of sheep can be found in China, Australia, India and other countries.
Sheep wool is used much more often than the wool of other animals. Lamb is the favorite meat of many peoples. Sheep milk is used to produce cheese and fat for cooking. The sheep became the first cloned mammal in the world.
Currently, many breeds of sheep have been developed, which are very different from each other. The largest sheep in the world weighs more than 180 kg. To improve certain characteristics of animals, a continuous selection process is carried out.
Description of the 12 meatiest sheep breeds: characteristics and indicators
Good slaughter rates for quality Russian sheep are 43-58% of live weight. Productive lambs gain up to 60 kg at the age of 5 months, so 20-30 kg of meat is obtained from one lamb. Adults grow to 90-100 kg.
But to fully characterize the species, it is not enough just the numbers of the resulting products; in order to evaluate and select a suitable variety, they take into account:
Romney March (Kuibyshevskaya)
Large and strong animals for meat and wool production. They appeared in England by crossing Kentish sheep and Leicester sheep. Resistant to damp, windy climates and sudden drops in temperature, they are accustomed to grazing all year round. Bred in America, Australia, Great Britain, Russia.
Characterized by a heavy build with a large layer of fat and a powerful skeleton. Individuals have short legs, but an elongated massive body. The weight of adult females is 90 kg, rams are 120 kg. Lambs mature quickly, gaining up to 40 kg by the age of 4 months.
They call Romney March semi-fine fleece. They have a semi-fine, semi-coarse fleece in the form of dense, uniform curls of cream, sand, and chocolate color. The structure is staple-braided, 10-15 centimeters long. The average weight from males is up to 13 kg, from queens - up to 6 kg.
The Russian Kuibyshevskaya was bred from sheep. According to external data, Romney repeats, even polled (hornless) remains. The average yield of washed wool is 55%, slaughter – 60%. The meat is labeled as high quality.
Romanovskaya
Sheep are considered one of the best in terms of production of washed wool, but due to their large dimensions (females - up to 60 kg, males - up to 75 kg), they also give high results in the meat sector (at least 50% of slaughter).
The breed is classified as skinny, short-tailed, but individuals are strong, heavy, and hardy. This characteristic indicates a thin layer of fat (10%). Externally, Romanovs are short, with a light head and erect ears. The skin is black, the fleece is bluish-gray.
Advantages:
Prekos
French all-rounder breed. These sheep produce wool, meat, and milk. Externally large with a barrel-shaped body, long legs, and a massive head.
White skin, light hair. Thanks to their developed muscles, prekos have a strong immune system; they resist even the most severe viruses and infections, and can withstand frost.
By the age of 4 months they gain 40-50 kg of live weight. Adult rams weigh about 130 kg and are bright - 70-80 kg. Normal offspring - 4 lambs per year.
The meat is lean and of high quality. Average slaughter is 40%. With high-quality feeding, a male gets 60 kg of meat and 5 kg of wool. Females produce up to 130 liters of milk during the lactation period.
North Caucasian
The goal of breeding the species was to create animals adapted to the climate of the Caucasus. They used the English Romney March, Lincolns and Stavropol. The result was large meat sheep with semi-fine wool. White-skinned with gray or beige hair, short limbs, powerful thighs and chest.
Despite the fact that the lambs are small (up to 60 kg), they give birth to 3 lambs, which by 4 months gain 35-40 kg. Rams – 120 kg. The slaughter rate is 40-43%, with an adult getting up to 55-60 kg.
Gorkovskaya
Created on the basis of aboriginal sheep at the beginning of the last century. It is in demand due to its unusual appearance: black skin, grayish-red fleece. Wool is short and fine, so it is not processed. The direction is meat, the final product is nutritious and full of useful substances.
A characteristic feature is a lightweight skeleton with external coarseness. Therefore, ewes weigh 60-75 kg, and rams - 90-100 kg. With natural feeding, the daily weight gain in babies is 150 grams. Lamb can be slaughtered by 4-5 months (weighing 20-33 kg).
Edilbaevskaya
Kazakhstan fat-tailed sheep with a high yield of meat - 50-55% by weight, fat - up to 14 kg, wool - 3-5 kg and milk - 150-160 l. Despite the fact that the direction of production is meat-fat, high-quality cheese and cottage cheese are obtained from full-fat milk (9%). But the productivity of queens is low (100-120%).
Animals are heavy – 70-160 kg. Babies mature by 4 months. They are harmoniously built: long legs, a voluminous tail, a long thin head and drooping ears. Color – black, red. The fleece is coarse, with a high fluff content.
Gissarskaya
This is the largest breed in the world, the average weight of rams is 190 kg, ewes - 150 kg. The animals are tall, strong, strong, with a large fat tail and a protruding chest bone. The head is small with long ears. They can be dark, red, brown. They are used in wool production (coarse fleece is suitable for felt), meat production, meat production and lard production.
High meat yield - 58-60%, but the total harvest per individual is no more than 1.5 kg per year. Females are fertile, babies add 500 grams daily.
Latvian darkhead
They were bred in Latvia with an emphasis on meat production, but due to the high quality of fine wool (similar to merino), sheep are used in wool and dairy production. Trimmed - 5.7 kg per year. The resulting slaughter percentage is 55%, the queens produce milk of medium fat content (180 kg per lactation period).
The breed is distinguished by thin bones, but meaty shapes: rounded hip, voluminous fat tail, wide back, loin. The muzzle is black, the body is light. Both the ewes and the rams are large – 95-150 kg. Young animals - 50-52 kg.
Saradzhinskaya
Homeland - Turkmenistan. Sheep were needed to produce wool with a high fluff content. Now the animals are considered meat-haired. An individual produces up to 4 kg of braided fleece per year, which is used for carpet production. As for meat, normal slaughter is 40%, from an adult male weighing 30-40 kg.
Ungulates are medium-sized, rams - up to 100 kg, ewes - up to 75 kg, young animals - 5-6 kg at birth and up to 33 kg by six months. They can be white or brown with a red head and legs. Weak muscles and bones.
Tajik
Brought out on the territory of Tajikistan in the middle of the 20th century as an improved version of the Gissar. Farmers sought high quality wool and good shearing. The new sheep are called “semi-coarse wool”; 2 shearings per year yield up to 5 kg of fleece.
The animals are large with wide rounded hips, a weighty head, and a large belly. The skin is white. The average weight of males is 120 kg, queens are 70 kg. Lambs gain 56% of their mother's weight by 5 months. Meat yield - 43%.
Katumskaya meat
Bred near St. Petersburg in the late 90s of the last century on the basis of Romanov animals. Farmers' demands are to improve the quality of meat and increase slaughter weight. The breeders decided that the meat breed did not need productive wool, so they crossed the queens with American Katahdins.
The work yielded results - the sheep are covered only with guard hair, the undercoat appears in the cold season. This means that the body does not spend extra energy and nutrients on producing fur fat and maintaining fleece. And there is no need to trim such ungulates.
Interesting! Katum meat is low-calorie, lean, low in fat (44 mg per 100 g), can replace veal and pork in taste, and has no odor.
Sheep are small, rams - up to 110 kg, ewes - up to 80 kg. Lambs gain 33-40 kg by 4-5 months. Females are fertile and give birth to 3-4 babies. The coat is short, light in color (fawn, red, gray), the skin is white, there are no horns.
Vendée
One of the largest sheep with short fleece. Bred in France, their meat is characterized by the absence of fat (leanness) and thin veins. Despite their thin hair, ungulates are accustomed to year-round grazing on pastures.
The weight of an adult ram is 150 kg, the uterus is 120 kg. And lambs are already born weighing 6-10 kg, so by 4-5 months they gain up to 65 kg. The slaughter rate is 50%. The direction of productivity is meat.
How to remove the skin correctly?
Step-by-step instructions on how to skin a dead sheep:
- Place the carcass on its back and make a cut on the back leg, near the knee. The length of the incision is about 2 cm;
- Insert the tube into the resulting cut and blow well. As a result, an air bubble forms under the skin;
- Using light pats, begin to move the air under the skin throughout the body, with the exception of the sternum;
- After this, the skin should easily separate from the carcass. It should be removed first from the hind leg, where the incision is made, moving to the groin, and then to the second hind limb;
- The skin must be removed smoothly, without sudden movements. Carefully cutting the tendons in separate places;
- Once the skin has been removed everywhere except the back, it should be carefully trimmed and separated from the spine with a sharp carving knife.
After the skin is completely removed, it must be preserved as soon as possible. This should be done no later than two hours after killing the ram. Otherwise, it will rot and become unusable. The first sign of such damage is the appearance of mucus on the inside, which means that time has been lost and irreversible rotting processes have begun.
Stages of skin preservation:
- Remove any remaining pieces of meat or fat from the inside;
- Spread on the floor, wool side down. Sprinkle well with table salt (at the rate of 300 g per 1 kg of weight), or with a special mixture (according to the instructions). Rub in the salt or mixture with your hands. Then roll the skin into a roll, with the wool facing inward. Also treat the edges of the roll with salt;
- Place in a tight bag and leave for 4 days to salt out. The temperature in the storage room should not be lower than +8 degrees; the skin should not be allowed to freeze.
What breeds of sheep are most profitable for breeding in our country?
For Russia, the main criterion is stability and physical strength.
Sheep must be hardy to certain conditions (northern cold, southern and steppe winds). Of course, direct profitability is important. If animals eat more than they give, production efficiency goes down.
Good lambs give birth to 2-3 lambs twice a year. Meat babies grow up quickly, and by 4-8 months they gain the required weight for slaughter. The queens are inseminated from six months. This allows you to quickly increase the number of herds and start trade turnover.
If, in addition to the meat business, it is necessary to develop the sale of wool, then attention is paid to the quality of the guard hair and its quantity. Experts recommend looking for a sales market outside the post-Soviet countries or using fleece for yarn and light industry.
The most profitable varieties:
Source
Reproduction
Mating in sheep is almost always free; shepherds do not monitor the signs of heat in the queens, but simply graze both sheep and rams together in the herd. This allows you to have offspring from sheep almost all year round.
The Gissar sheep bears offspring for 145 days. During this period, it is advisable to transfer her to the most fruitful pasture before the appearance of offspring.
Lambing almost always occurs quickly and without outside intervention.
Born lambs quickly gain weight. With properly organized grazing, the availability of succulent nutritious grasses and additional feed, lambs can gain up to 600 grams in weight per day. As soon as they begin to grow stronger, they are either driven to poorer pastures or sold for meat.
The largest breeds of sheep
The largest ram in the world was recorded in the American state of Oregon, located on a farm.
Gissarskaya
Gissar sheep are one of the largest breeds in the world. A young lamb gains 0.5 kg of weight per day. The rapid increase in weight is due to the milk production of sheep. The breed is characterized by endurance. The Gissar sheep covers a distance of up to 500 km, feeding only on plant foods. The only drawback of this type of ram is the wool of poor quality. The minus is compensated by a large volume of meat and dairy products.
Description and characteristics:
Gissar sheep were bred in Azerbaijan using a selection method.
Kalmytskaya
The Kalmyk breed of sheep is inferior in size to the Gissar rams. Distinctive features of this variety are a large head, drooping ears, and a huge fat tail. Description of Kalmyk sheep:
An interesting feature of Kalmyk sheep is that during grazing, individuals do not gather in a herd, but are dispersed throughout the territory. This allows you to maintain the integrity of the pasture and makes it easier to monitor the animals.
Edilbaevskaya
This breed comes from Kazakhstan and is one of the oldest - about 200 years old. The ancestor is a heavy-weight fat-tailed ram brought from Astrakhan. Features of Edilbaev sheep:
The Edilbaevskaya sheep produces not only high-quality meat and lard, but also dense wool, which is usually used for the production of carpets.
Lambs are characterized by rapid growth, but subject to feeding with mother's milk. Already at the age of 5-6 months they are ready for slaughter.
Gissarskaya, 150-180 kg
Among the cultivated breeds of sheep, the largest is the Gissar breed, which is classified as a fat-tailed sheep. This is a breed of meat and hairless sheep. Often found in Central Asia. Its homeland is Tajikistan, named after the Gissar Valley, as it was bred on these pastures.
The record holder is the Gissar ram, which appeared in the Tajik SSR in 1927-28, weighing 188 kg. There was also, according to unconfirmed reports, a representative of this breed weighing 212 kg. This is a hardy breed of sheep, capable of withstanding long journeys of 500 km.
The largest sheep in the wild
In the wild there are huge breeds of sheep, reaching 200 kg in weight. The largest representatives are argali (argali) and maned ram. The Argali breed is characterized by the following features:
Females become sexually mature at 2 years of age, males at 4-5 years of age. Argali are highly fertile and often produce twins. For the attention and favor of females, rams fight each other using their powerful horns.
Argali horns are often used as souvenir trophies and are very expensive on the black market. The animals are listed in the Red Book, so hunting them is prohibited. The maned sheep is slightly smaller in size than the argali, but is considered a fairly large species in the wild. Animals are found only in North Africa. Description of the breed:
An interesting feature of maned rams is that the animals are able to remain motionless for a long time (about 3-4 hours) if they sense danger towards themselves.
The largest breeds of domesticated sheep are Gissar, Kalmyk and Edilbaevskaya. They belong to the meat varieties according to the type of production of the main product, and have a significant fat tail. Its fat is used in cooking and as a preservative.
Source
Second level of rating
The second place among representatives of this group of animals living in the wild, in terms of size, is given to the maned ram. Representatives of this breed are found exclusively in North African lands. They reach 1.2 m in height, and can grow up to 1.7 m in length. Body weight can reach 150 kg. In addition, only males can be so large.
Females are half the size and weigh 3-4 times less. The coat color of the maned ram is beige or reddish-brown, there are light stripes in the chin, belly and along the inner surface of the limbs. The size of the horns reaches about 80 cm, they do not look as impressive in comparison with the argali.
Important! Maned rams are characterized by an amazing ability to camouflage. They can remain completely motionless for many hours if they sense danger.
Breeds of odorless meat sheep: names and countries of residence
Beginning sheep farmers will be very interested to learn about the best odorless breeds of meat sheep, consider the features, and also learn about the pros and cons of the animals. This post discusses the most popular meat breeds, not only in domestic agriculture, but also in neighboring countries.
The content of the article:
Important! Meat sheep are unpretentious in keeping, are characterized by good meat yield and a high degree of fertility. In truth, there are a lot of meat breeds, so if you are thinking of breeding them, you just have to decide on the choice.
Technique for cutting the legs and head of a ram (video)
What delicious dishes can be made from sheep meat, but first we must learn how to cut it correctly. The tools for this procedure, as for butchering a beaver, are sharp knives. Before cutting up a sheep carcass, it must be slaughtered. How to slaughter a ram? There are two ways to slaughter an animal.
- Leg cutting. First, remove excess fat from the surface, as well as interior fat.
- We cut the vein on the shin, take it to the side and separate it with a knife.
- Then we remove the muscle located at the back of the thigh.
- Between the hip bone and the muscle there is a vein that we remove.
- Trim the anterior and posterior thigh muscles.
- We isolate the hip from the joint.
- Cut the meat from the hip bone.
- We separate the thigh and shank.
Head cutting. First, we make cuts in the head, then we tear off the mouth. Cutting must begin from the bottom. Cut out the tongue and clean it. We trim the meat from the neck. We make cuts in the back of the head and remove the meat. The video clearly shows the process.
How to butcher a sheep. Video
The main features of the meat breed of sheep
First of all, sheep from this breed are characterized by a rapid increase in muscle mass (meat). By the age of four months, lambs can reach half the weight of an adult.
The average meat gain, depending on the breed and how they are kept, is at least 300-400 grams. By the year of keeping, the sheep reaches its peak (standard weight) and it accounts for up to 90% of an adult, average ram.
Breeds of odorless meat sheep are usually divided into the following groups, for example:
The sheep breeds presented above have their own distinctive characteristics, among which general data can be highlighted.
North Caucasian, 60-120 kg
This is a meat-and-wool breed, bred between 1944 and 1960. North Caucasian sheep are distinguished by their large stature. They are white in color but may have small patches of darker color on the ears, paws and nose.
Sows of this breed weigh from 55 to 58 kilograms, and rams weigh from 90 to 100 kilograms, with a maximum weight of 150 kilograms. It is most common in the North Caucasus, Armenia and Ukraine. Another advantage is high fertility. 100 cows can give birth to about 140 lambs.
Breeds of sheep for meat production in Russia
Romanov breed of sheep
If we talk about Russian meat sheep breeds, we cannot help but mention the Romanovskaya. These animals were bred two centuries ago. Among Russian breeds they have excellent meat productivity. I note that they are prolific. The average level of fertility among females very often reaches 300%. During two years of keeping the eggs, lambing can occur up to 3 times.
The lambs of these individuals grow very quickly. By the age of six, their weight can reach up to 40 kg. The live weight of the most mature ram often reaches 100 kg. The eggs certainly weigh half as much. Sheep of this species have a strong, well-knit, meaty body and good bones. Visually, this breed can be distinguished by its humpbacked head profile. They can easily adapt to almost any weather conditions. In general, they are not fussy to grow.
North Caucasian breed of sheep
No less famous breed of sheep in Russia than the Romanovskaya is the North Caucasian breed. This animal was bred from the Stavropol kachkars. To increase meat production, sheep farmers crossed Lincoln sheep with Romney Marsh sheep. As a result, they got a meat, Caucasian breed of sheep not only with good productive characteristics, but also with better adaptation to the most diverse climatic conditions of the south and north of Russia.
An adult ram can weigh up to 120 kg by the year it is kept. A lamb of this breed has a live yield of no more than 65 kg. Sheep of the Caucasian breed are distinguished not only by their tasty meat without much odor, but they can also produce semi-fine, high-quality fleece. By 3-4 months, small lambs already weigh up to 35 kg. and have a built, meaty physique: large meaty thighs and powerful chest.
West Siberian breed of sheep
This breed of sheep was bred by North Caucasian sheep breeders. Rumor has it that this breed has no analogues at all. This conclusion was made by English scientists who spent 18 years looking for data on how the West Siberian breed of sheep was born.
After some time, the secret was revealed. This breed of sheep was obtained as a result of mating Siberian sheep with Kuban kachkars. The main difference between these animals and other sheep is that they can produce more meat than the above breeds. Sheep farmers get up to 50% meat from one head, while other breeds produce no more than 40% meat yield.
The West Siberian breed has a high level of fertility. By 5 months, a young lamb weighs 40 kg. An adult male in some cases can reach a weight of 125-130 kg. Yarochka weighs a little less - 70 kg.
Volgogradskaya, 65-125 kg
This breed was bred in the Volgograd region, on the Romashkovsky state farm between 1932 and 1978. This breed produced animals with thick white wool, the length of which, as a result of long-term work, can reach 8-10.5 cm. A ram can produce up to 15 kilograms wool, and the queen - up to 6 kilograms.
We should not forget about the meat qualities of the Volgograd breed. Sows weigh up to 66 kilograms, and rams weigh up to 110-125 kilograms. This breed is bred in the Volga region, the Urals and central Russia.
The number of this breed is constantly growing, as it has many advantages: early maturity, fertility, produces a lot of wool and meat, quickly adapts to breeding conditions, withstands any weather conditions, and has excellent resistance.
The best breeds of sheep for meat production
| Breed name | Weight of an adult ram | Box weight | Meat outlet |
| Romanovskaya | 100 kg. | 37 kg. | 40% |
| North Caucasian | 120 kg. | 65 kg. | 45% |
| West Siberian | 125-130 kg. | 70 kg. | 50% |
| Gorkovskaya | 110 kg. | 80 kg. | 45% |
| Romney March (Kuibyshevskaya) | 100 kg. | 70 kg. | 40% |
| Katumskaya | 110 kg. | 80 kg. | 45% |
| Edilbaevskaya | 120-160 kg. | 70 kg. | 50% |
| Gissarskaya | 140 kg. | 80 kg. | 55% |
| Saradzhinskaya | 90 kg. | 75 kg. | 40% |
| Jaidori | 110 kg. | 60 kg. | 45% |
Gorkovskaya, 80-130 kg
A domestic breed bred on the collective farms of the Gorky region of the former USSR in the period from 1936 to 1950. Sheep are quite large animals: rams can weigh from 90 kg to 130 kg, sows - from 60 to 90 kg. They have long white fur, but the head, ears and tail are dark.
The Gorky breed is considered early maturing, quickly pays back all feed costs and is quite prolific. The disadvantages are a small amount of wool and uneven fleece.
The most prolific breeds of sheep for meat production
Most foreign meat sheep breeds date back several centuries. For example, the Texel sheep breed can boast of its pedigree. Many of the breeds that we will consider below were registered not so long ago, in the last century, but have already been able to please sheep farmers with excellent results. They are actively bred on farms in order to obtain the best meat characteristics.
Dorper is a meat breed
These animals are descendants of the South African sheep breed - Dorper. These individuals are distinguished by good meat yield. Sheep wool is short and grows unevenly on the animal.
The meat characteristics are incomparable to any other: without a specific smell or unpleasant taste, low-fat and very tender. Kachkar producer weighs up to 140 kg. Yarochka is much smaller, but also does not lag behind and reaches up to 100 kg.
The average daily meat gain for a young lamb is 70 grams. By 4 months, a lamb can weigh up to 65 kg. At birth, very young lambs already weigh almost 6 kg.
The Dorper sheep breed is early ripening, can bear a lot of fruit and have high meat productivity. This breed can mate no earlier than 6-7 months. In the first lambing, as experienced sheep breeders say, a lamb can produce 1 lamb, then the number of lambs increases to 2-3 individuals. This is one of the best breeds of odorless meat sheep.
Vendée sheep breed
This type of sheep is the oldest in Europe. Vendée sheep has the lean taste of lamb, odorless, with the best delicate aroma. The meat is tender with “marbled” uniform veins.
Very hardy and unpretentious in maintenance. They have thick wool, so they can withstand any climatic conditions, even the most severe. They can quickly gain weight while grazing on pastures. The fertility rate reaches 200%. The rams are very large and reach a weight of 150 kg.
The eggs are a little smaller - 100 kg. At birth, the lamb is born weighing up to 6 kg. At 3-4 months, a young sheep reaches 60 kg. The average daily hi meat is up to 500 grams.
Texel meat breed of sheep
This breed of sheep has Dutch roots. The main distinguishing feature of these sheep is the delicious marbled meat with an unrivaled delicate taste, without any specific smell or fat.
A newborn, young lamb reaches up to 7 kg in weight. The eggs have high milk production and multiple births. The average among this breed is 150-250%.
By 4 months, young lambs reach a weight of up to 65 kg. By almost a year, the weight of sheep can reach up to 105 kg. An adult Texel ram can weigh 135 kg. The eggs are a little smaller, 120 kg.
The breed belongs to meat sheep and is distinguished, like many higher animals, by good endurance, unpretentiousness and adaptation to different weather conditions. They prefer to develop most of all in open pastures.
Feeding and caring for animals
Gissar sheep are very unpretentious in food. In the summer, animals accumulate fat on pasture and gnaw young trees. Their food in the pen is limited to the supply of clean water and mowed grass. In winter, they enjoy crunching on root vegetables, hay and grains. In addition, it is beneficial for them to be given mineral supplements and vitamins.
Despite their unpretentiousness, these animals need attention and care. The problem for this type of animal is the fur, which really bothers them. Dirty fur is a nuisance. Therefore, it needs to be cut twice a year. It is important to regularly treat sheep for parasites and disinfect the area where they are located. The procedure is carried out outdoors using special drops and shampoos. After processing the flock, the pasture should be changed. Gissar sheep almost never get sick. They are resistant to colds. But they still need some vaccinations.
To keep a flock, it is quite possible to get by with an open enclosure with a canopy that will cover it from precipitation. Like most fat-tailed animals, sheep do not like moisture.
Animal slaughter is easy to do at home. Why do they hang a sheep upside down and cut the arteries in the neck, releasing the blood? The cutting of the carcass begins in five minutes.
The best meat is obtained by slaughtering young lambs and lambs. On farms, mass slaughter is often carried out in slaughterhouses, which are equipped in a special way. Usually several dozen lambs are born in a flock, and after 3-4 months they can be slaughtered. Farmers in mountain and steppe regions live by selling meat, milk and lard from sheep.
The best breeds of sheep for meat production in Russia
| Sheep breed name | Kachkar weight | Box weight | Meat productivity |
| Kuibyshevskaya | 130 kg. | 80 kg. | 45% |
| South | 110 kg. | 55 kg. | 40% |
| Kalmytskaya | 100 kg. | 50 kg. | 40% |
| Tajik | 160 kg. | 120 kg. | 55% |
Varieties: main characteristics
The table provides a description of the breeds by weight, wool quality and fertility:
| Name, area | Origin | Weight, kg | Sheared unwashed wool, clean yield in % | Fineness, quality or microns | Length, cm | Fertility, % |
| Edilbaevskie (western Kazakhstan, Ural) | Astrakhan rough-wooled rams were crossed with Kazakh fat-tailed dams | 110-120,65-70 | 3–3,5/2,3–2,6 | Down – 18.0, transitional hair – 33.1, awn – 57.5 | 15 | 110–120 |
| Gissarskie (Tajikistan, Uzbekistan) | Ancient origin | 110–160, 70–80 | 1,2-2,1/1–1,4 | 166–168; 23,5–23,8 | 7-5 | 100-115 |
| Jaydara (Uzbekistan) | Ancient origin | 80–110, 60–70 | 2,8-3/2,0-2,5 | 66/13 | 8-11 (braids) | 100-105 |
Appearance of argali
These large sheep have a high potential for survival in harsh conditions at altitudes of up to 6000 m above sea level. They tolerate frost and drought well. They know how to get their own food - grass, leaves, branches - not only in open Altai meadows, but also in inaccessible gorges. They are distinguished by their powerful health. They almost never get sick! Over the entire period of their study (since the end of the 18th century), not a single mutation has been recorded in representatives of this breed.
The argali's fur is thick and warm. The color on the back is darker than on the belly. An interesting feature of the largest ram in the world is that in winter its wool becomes several tones lighter than in summer (like that of hares). This helps to camouflage against the background of snow-covered mountain slopes.
