The Targhee is an American

breed A breed is a specific group of breedable domestic animals having homogeneous appearance (phenotype), homogeneous behavior, and/or other characteristics that distinguish it from other organisms of the same species. In literature, there exist seve ...

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 ...

. It was developed in the early twentieth century at the U.S. Sheep Experiment Station of the

Agricultural Research Service The Agricultural Research Service (ARS) is the principal in-house research agency of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). ARS is one of four agencies in USDA's Research, Education and Economics mission area. ARS is charged with ext ...

of the

United States Department of Agriculture The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is an executive department of the United States federal government that aims to meet the needs of commercial farming and livestock food production, promotes agricultural trade and producti ...

Dubois, Idaho Dubois (, ) is a city in Clark County, Idaho, United States. The population was 511 at the 2020 census. The city is the county seat of Clark County. The city was named in 1892 for Fred Dubois (1851−1930), a prominent politician in Idaho's ...

, and is named after the

Targhee National Forest Targhee may refer to: * Targhee National Forest, now the Caribou-Targhee National Forest a federally protected woodland in Idaho and Wyoming, United States * Targhee sheep, a domestic breed developed within and named for the forest * Grand Targh ...

which surrounds it. It is a dual-purpose breed, with heavy, medium-quality

wool Wool is the textile fiber obtained from sheep and other mammals, especially goats, rabbits, and camelids. The term may also refer to inorganic materials, such as mineral wool and glass wool, that have some properties similar to animal w ...

and good

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, ...

production characteristics. It is hardy and well-suited to the ranges of the West where it was developed. It is kept mainly in

Montana Montana ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota to the east, South Dakota to the southeast, Wyoming to the south, an ...

Wyoming Wyoming ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States, Western United States. It borders Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho t ...

and

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state, state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Dakota people, Dakota Sioux ...

, and is reared primarily for

History

The Targhee is named after the

, which surrounds the U.S. Sheep Experiment Station in Idaho. Their ancestors were

Rambouillet Rambouillet (, , ) is a Subprefectures in France, subprefecture of the Yvelines Departments of France, department in the Île-de-France Regions of France, region of France. It is located beyond the outskirts of Paris, southwest of its Kilometr ...

Corriedale The Corriedale is a New Zealand list of sheep breeds, breed of Domestic sheep, sheep. It was bred from about 1882 in the South Island by James Little, who cross-bred Australian Merino, Merino and Lincoln (sheep), Lincoln Longwool sheep. The bre ...

, and

Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the 16th president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincoln (na ...

sheep. Development of this breed for the Western ranges of the U.S. began as early as 1900. The flock book was closed in 1966, meaning that only the offspring of registered Targhees could be registered).

Characteristics

Mature body weight in the rams is 200 lb (90 kg) to 300 lb (135 kg), with the ewes weighing slightly less at 125 lb (56 kg) to 200 lb (90 kg). Each ewe will average a 10 lb (4.5 kg) to 14 lb (6.3 kg) fleece; it has a fibre diameter of 21 to 25 micrometers and a spinning count of 64 to 58. The staple length of the fleece will be 3 inches (7.5 cm) to 5 inches (11 cm) with a yield of 50% to 55%.

References

Sheep breeds Sheep breeds originating in the United States {{sheep-stub