AY Honors/Sheep Breeds/Rambouillet

2008-01-12T11:06:33Z

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[[Image:Rambouillet.jpg|thumb|250px|Rambouillet ram.]]
The '''Rambouillet''' is also known as the Rambouillet [[Merino]] or the French Merino. The development of the Rambouillet breed started in 1786 when the French government either purchased or [[Louis XVI of France|Louis XVI]] received a gift of over three hundred Spanish Merinos (318 ewes, 41 rams, 7 wethers) from Lousi XVI cousin, the King of Spain. The flock was subsequently developed on an experimental royal farm at a place known as [[Rambouillet]], not far from Paris. The flock was cultivated by the government with no sheep being sold for many years.

Outcrossing with English long-wool breeds and selection, produced a well-defined breed <ref>{{cite book
| last = Paterson
| first = Mark
| title = National Merino Review
| publisher = Farmgate Press
| date = 1990
| location = West Perth, Australia
| pages = 12-17
| id = ISSN 1033-5811 }}</ref>, differing in several important points from the original Spanish merino. The size was greater with full grown ewes weighing up to two hundred [[pound (mass)|pounds]] and rams up to three hundred pounds, live weight. The wool clips were larger and the wool length had increased to greater than three [[inch]]es.

In 1889 the Rambouillet Association was formed in the [[United States]] with the aim of preserving the breed. It has been estimated that 50% of the sheep on the US western ranges are of Rambouillet blood
<ref> {{cite book
| last = Ross
| first = C.V.
| title = Sheep production and Management
| publisher = Prentice Hall
| date = 1989
| location = Engleworrd Cliffs, New Jersey
| pages = 26-27
| id = ISBN 0-13-808510-2 }} </ref>.
Rambouillet stud has also had an enormous influence on the development of the Australian Merino industry though [[Emperor Sheep|Emperor]] and the [[Peppin Merino]] stud.

The fleece was valuable in the manufacture of cloth, at times being woven in a mixed fabric of cotton [[warp]] and wool [[weft]], known as [[delaine]]s.

The breed is well known for its [[wool]], but also for its meat, both [[lamb]] and [[mutton]]. It has been described as a dual-purpose breed, with superior wool and near-mutton breed characteristics.

== References ==
{{Reflist}}
{{refbegin}}
* [http://rambouilletsheep.org/index.php?page=history The American Rambouillet Sheep Breeders Association]
* [http://www.tumbledownfarm.com/texts/DS/DS_II.html "The Varieties and Breeds of Sheep"] in Henry Stewart's ''The Domestic Sheep: Its Culture and General Management''. Chicago: American Sheep Breeder Press, 1898.
{{refend}}

[[Category:Sheep]]

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AY Honors/Sheep Breeds/Rambouillet