RARE BREEDS TRUST OF AUSTRALIA
powered by TidyHQSheep: Elliottdale
Sheep: Elliottdale
Country of Origin 
Australia, Tasmania
Australian Status
Uses
Meat, Carpet Wool
Breed traits
The Elliottdale is a dual purpose sheep although it was originally bred for carpet wool. The rams may be horned or polled and when mature, generally weigh around 70kg. The ewes are always polled and weigh in a little smaller at around 58kg. The background of the Elliottdale is based on a carpet wool carrying Romney ram. At each shearing, and due to the wool length, there are two per year; the sheep cut around 6.0 - 8.0kg of wool. The wool has a fibre diameter of 38-40 microns and a long staple length of 120-150mm.
The effect of the Elliottdale gene (El) is similar to that of the Drysdale, Tukidale and to a lesser degree, the Carpetmaster (N series genes) in the Romney breed. The El gene is at a different locus on the chromosome. The El gene is semi-dominant, allowing homozygous lambs to be identified at birth, and is not associated with the gene for horns.
History
The Elliottdale was developed in the 1960's and early 1970's at the Elliott Research Station in Tasmania. It was commercialised in 1976, when the Australian Carpet Wool Industry was established. The Elliottdale Project was terminated in 1993 and the Research Station became a Dairy Research Facility. Mr Carl Terrey, a research worker and member of the Elliottdale Research team bought several of the sheep and bred them for many years.
When the flock was at the Elliott Research Station it was performance recorded, and breeding indices were developed by geneticists for both wool and meat. Although the same resources as the Research Station where not available to Mr Terrey, he continued to use traditional stud phenotypic selection, with an emphasis on conformation and carcass market suitability; this being where the economics of the breeding enterprise is based today.
Mr Terrey's attention to the genetics of the breed has been fortunate as he kept the breed alive.
Breed Association
Elliottdale Sheep Breeders Association https://www.assba.com.au/members/members_listing.asp?Breeds=ELLIOTTDALE
Australian Population
2017 Ewes 300
2022 Ewes 21 Rams 5
