TEXEL BREED
Texel breed
The Texel sheep originates from Texel island, one of the small Islands belonging to the Netherlands. Because of its popularity as a terminal sire, the breed is now very common all over Europe. The Texel is a white-faced sheep with no wool on its head. The face is short with a black nose and the ears are almost horizontally placed. Their wool is of medium length (8-10 cm), crinkled with a fiber of 28-33 micron. An adult ewe weighs about 75 kg and a full-grown ram about 100 kg.
The primary market for the Texel lambs has always been the Western European countries where excess fat on muscles is avoided by the consumer, hence the breed has been selected for its lean meat. Their body is strong, has long loins and well-developed gigots. Due to the low percentage of fat, lambs can be sold over a long period of time without any loss of quality.
The breed is known to pass on its excellent quality to its progeny and thus the Texel is used as a terminal sire in many places. Ewes mature early at an age of 7 months and have a 5-month long breeding season. Litter size is moderate with 1.8 lambs per ewe. Lambing can be challenging due to the well-muscled and big lambs.
THE BREED
HAS BEEN SELECTED FOR
ITS LEAN MEAT
DUAL-PURPOSE
Due to the good milk yield of the Texel ewes and the ability to grow fast, the lambs can gain an average of 250 grams a day. At weaning the lambs weigh about 25 kg and at slaughter (24 weeks old) 44 kg. Their bodies have meat output for over 55 percent, which is relatively high compared to other breeds.
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The wool of medium length and fiber diameter
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Lean meat
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Fast-growing lambs
