Page 30 - The Farming Years proof

THE GooD SHEPHERD
Ivor Williams trailer towed by Jo’s Dihatsu. A bigger and more powerful vehicle would have been better but we managed. We had sold the Range Rover by this point but it was just what we needed.
Dorset Polls had an enthusiastic cult following with enthusiastic breeders who were mainly farmers but some amateurs such as the people we bought our ock from for £750. The Dorset Polls were 100% Sylvia’s deal with my only contribution being holding the ewes’ heads for dif cult births needing Sylvia’s attention at the other end. There is an association of Dorset Poll Breeders that Sylvia belonged to where she collected useful information.
She had the ock for 3 years and they produced 80% twins but, more importantly, they were 70% female which Sylvia sold for a better price for breeding. The males were either fattened for mar- ket or some ending up in the freezer.
It was clearly a pro table operation with all the credit going to Sylvia. Then when she started Padders, greatly in uenced by Lisa, she sold the now 18 breeding ewes for £1,200 i.e. £66 each. So that’s the history of Home Farm sheep over 9 eventful years.
28