Sheep : FINNSHEEP

Origin: Finland

Australian Status:

International Status:

Arrived in Australia: 1980's

Australian Population: Ewes 120,   Rams 9 (2018)

Distribution:

History: The Finnsheep, also known as the Finnish Landrace or Finn, is a very old breed that originated in Finland. It is considered to be several hundred years old and has descended from the mouflon that live in the wild on Sardinia and Corsica. The breed is also said to be related to other Scandinavian short-tailed sheep, such as the Icelandic, the Shetland and the Romanov. Much of the Finn’s adaptability has come from living in the rugged climate with the high roughage feed that is available.
The first importations of Finn genetics to Australia occurred in the mid 1980’s, when the University of New South Wales imported semen from the North American rams. This semen was used to upgrade the Finns, largely from Border Leicester and Merino ewes. Progeny from this breeding program are still available. However, the base Australian flock largely descends from the original importation made by Lamb XL into New Zealand in 1986. The animals were selected from 13 different flocks in Finland and Denmark to ensure the widest genetic sample possible. After 7 years of intensive breeding during the quarantine period, purebred offspring of these animals were released to the Australian sheep industry in March 1993.
The importation took advantage of more than 20 years of genetic selection for growth made in Finland. It also ensured the stock available for the Australian release were from only the top performers within the very intense genetic evaluation undertaken in NZ from 1986 to 1993. From 760 Finns in the Lamb XL flock only the top 114 ewes were selected, which included 72 ewes with superior genetics from the 1992 drop. In the male side only the top 14 were brought to Australia.

Breed traits: Finnsheep are medium to large sized animals that are hardy, strong and active. They can appear in almost all colours. Both rams and ewes are usually polled. Face and legs of these animals are generally free of wool, and they are naturally short tailed animals. As a medium to large sized animal, average live body weight of the mature Finnsheep rams is between 68 and 90 kg. The fully grown ewe’s body weight varies from 55 to 86 kg. The breed is notable for its high incidence of multiple births. In most cases, it is common for a ewe to have 3, 4 or even 5 lambs at once. The lambs are often small, but are vigorous at birth and grow very well. They mature early and can be mated at around six months of age. Finn ewes can breed out of season and some may lamb twice in a year.
The breed is often used in crossbreeding programs to increase lambing percentage, and Finnsheep blood is found in many of the newer sheep breeds. The breed is very good for wool production, with a mature ewe producing about 1.8 to 3.6 kg fleece with a high yield percentage. Meat from Finn sheep is also of good quality.

Finnsheep are used for many different purposes. They are good for meat, milk and wool production.

Uses: Meat, milk and wool production

Breed Organisation: Australian Finnsheep Breeders Association https://www.finnsheep.org.au/

Additional Notes:

Photo courtesy of Fairfield Finns

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