The Pomeranian Coarsewool or simply Pomeranian () is an old

domestic sheep Sheep (: sheep) or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are a domesticated, ruminant mammal typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus '' Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to ...

breed from the

Pomerania Pomerania ( ; ; ; ) is a historical region on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in Central Europe, split between Poland and Germany. The central and eastern part belongs to the West Pomeranian Voivodeship, West Pomeranian, Pomeranian Voivod ...

region.Phyllis G. Tortora, Robert S. Merkel, ''Fairchild's Dictionary of Textiles'', Fairchild Publications, 1996, p.439, , The first records of similar sheep in Pomerania can be traced to more than 3000 years ago.Site about Pomeranian sheep (in German)
/ref>Site about Pomeranian sheep (in German)
/ref> This breed is raised primarily for

meat Meat is animal Tissue (biology), tissue, often muscle, that is eaten as food. Humans have hunted and farmed other animals for meat since prehistory. The Neolithic Revolution allowed the domestication of vertebrates, including chickens, sheep, ...

and

vegetation management Conservation grazing or targeted grazing is the use of semi-feral or domesticated grazing livestock to maintain and increase the biodiversity of natural or semi-natural grasslands, heathlands, wood pasture, wetlands and many other habitats.

Characteristics

This breed is polled (hornless), and has a black head with slate-blue or grey wool on the body – lambs are born wholly black. The legs are also covered with wool, and the tongue is blue. The fleece has shorter hairs amongst the longer wool. The breed is very hardy and is able to live outside all year, even raising lambs in the snow. The sheep thrive on poor

forage Forage is a plant material (mainly plant leaves and stems) eaten by grazing livestock. Historically, the term ''forage'' has meant only plants eaten by the animals directly as pasture, crop residue, or immature cereal crops, but it is also used m ...

.Ulrich Koglin, Achim Tacke, ''Landpartie: Im Norden unterwegs'', 2001, pp.47,48, , Ewes average around in weight, and rams about . The

fleece Fleece may refer to: Materials * Fleeces, woollen coats of a domestic sheep or long-haired goat, especially after being shorn * Polar fleece, a type of polyester fabric often used in jackets * Horticultural fleece, a polypropylene fabric used to p ...

ranges from .

History

Initially, this breed was called ''Grauwollschafe'' ("greywool sheep"), which in time changed to ''Rauhwollschafe'' ("coarsewool sheep") by dropping the first letter. The breed almost vanished in the second half of the 20th century, when the population dropped below 100 and it was placed on the

Red List The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is an inventory of the global conservation status and extinction risk of biological sp ...

of endangered livestock breeds. The population has since recovered somewhat.

References

Pomerania Sheep breeds originating in Germany Sheep breeds originating in Prussia Sheep breeds Animal breeds on the GEH Red List {{sheep-stub

Characteristics

History

See also

References