world-wide because of it's many natural colors.
White, cream, peach, various shades of gray,
blue-gray, slate, and silver-gray. Chocolate
(called moorit), various blacks, (brown-black,
blue-black, silver-black, jet black) tan, oatmeal,
lavender, and champagne. These colors are arranged in 6 basic patterns, with many different
variations on those patterns. The lanolin content
of the Icelandic wool is only about 20-25%, as opposed to "modern" sheep with a lanolin content
of as much as 50%. The inner wool (called 'thel')
is soft and downy, and can be used to make undergarments and baby clothes. The outer wool,
(called 'tog') grows up to 18 inches long. Lustrous
spun together with the thel to make the world-famous Lopi sweater. When the
patterned fleeces are spun together, they produce a true tweed yarn which is like a
wool/mohair blend.
Attempts to improve the breed through crossing with other breeds have never been successful, and any breed improvement is acheived from within the breed itself, often through artificial insemination with semen from the finest rams in the nation, kept at various "semen-stations"-facilities where their semen is harvested after the rams pass a battery of disease tests.
The lives of many a shepherd have been saved by the homing instinct of their
"Leadersheep" Only found within the Icelandic breed, this rare Icelandic sheep has
the ability to sense the advance of a dangerous storm hours before it's arrival, and
lead the flock back to the barn. Even if caught in the mountains during a blizzard,
the strong homing instinct of the leadersheep have enabled it to guide both flock
and shepherd to safety.
ing with excellent mothering instincts,
long-lived reliable twinners, efficient
grass to meat conversion ratio, gourmet
meat served in the world's finest res-
taurants, colorful fleeces, and short tails with no need for docking. A more versatile sheep is hardly to be found! With the ability to express emotions...joy, love, jealousy, anger, compassion, peace,
