Katahdin sheep

The development of katahdin sheep began in the late 1950s with the importation of a small number of woolless sheep from the Caribbean by Michael Piel of Maine, USA. The Piel farm had several thousand sheep at the time and Piel felt that "progress in selection for traits important to production of meat would greatly enhanced by the elimination of wool as a major factor for selection." His goal was to combine the shedding coat and the hardiness of the Virgin Island Sheep with the meat conformation and rate of growth of the wooled breeds. He began to experiment with crosses between the woolless sheep and various British breeds, especially Suffolk.

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