Greener Pastures Farm - Why Raise Sheep?

Breeding stock for sale (income). Rare breeds are becoming more popular as people realize the many benefits of raising them.

Wool for sale or use (income). Hand spinning has become very popular in recent years. It is a soothing, gratifying and useful hobby, and naturally colored wool is sought after by handspinners.

Meat for sale or use (income). It must be noted here that grassfed lamb is the most healthful meat you can eat, as it is highest in the cancer fighting/cancer preventing Conjugated Linoleic Acid. Soay sheep are one of the very few rare breeds that naturally contain little cholesterol and an unusually high ratio of polyunsaturated to saturated fats.

Manure for your pastures and gardens (fertilizer that you would otherwise need to buy).

Raising your own food is beneficial to you and the earth. Corporations producing feedlot meat (factory farms) are a polluting blight on the face of the earth, and do not provide adequate nutrition; factory farmed meat contains very little of the enzymes necessary for nutrition, whereas grass farmed meat provides a balanced diet.

Sheep beautify your surroundings with their graceful presence.

Sheep improve your pastures, making them lush and keeping them mown.

Children (and adults!) find sheep and particularly lambs wonderful to interact with. There is nothing to compare with watching newborn lambs

wobble onto their feet within moments of

birth, as the Soay lamb shown at right

is doing, or skipping and jumping

across the pasture at only a day or

two of age.

Sheep reduce stress: Try sitting in the

barn after dark, listening to the sheep munch

their hay... you can feel your blood pressure

lower, your heart rate slows and you experience

a sense of peace, that all is right with the world.