Mudchute Farm sheep wins prize

By Simon Hayes on July 28, 2008 9:00 AM |

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HAVE we got “ewes” for you – the Isle of Dogs has its very own prize-winning sheep.

It is not something you would naturally associate with the gritty urban landscape of east London but Mudchute Farm, at the heart of the Island, is rapidly becoming a centre of excellence in the breeding of rare animals.

Amy, a three-year-old ewe from Mudchute, scooped the best in class and best in breed awards at the Singleton Farm Show in Sussex last week. She missed out on the overall sheep award at the show but Amy’s success is great news for Mudchute, according to farm manager Tom Davis.

He said: “It means we know exactly what the breed standard is now. We know what the sheep should look like and that will greatly help our breeding programme.

“And it’s a great boost for Mudchute because Amy was home-bred, which means we are getting a reputation for livestock excellence.”

Since its foundation in the late 1970s Mudchute Farm has specialised in the preservation of rare British breeds and now houses endangered species of cow and pig, as well as sheep.

Amy is one of 20 Oxfords in the Mudchute flock and she was in good company at the show, with the farm’s Oxford ram, Simba, coming second in his class.

Mr Davis said: “We’re going to mate him with Amy and hopefully it means they will produce some nice lambs. But the most important thing is it means we are able to continue our valuable work in breeding rare native species.

“We’ll be entering Amy in more shows next year and fingers crossed she’ll be bringing home more trophies.”

For more information on the farm visit www.mudchute.org.