well in conformation. At maturity, rams weigh and ewes on average. They have good carcase characteristics. In comparative trials in Hungary for meat production, crossbred lambs sired by British Milksheep had a superior carcase grading, a higher killing-out percentage than crosses sired by Ile de France, Suffolk and Mutton Merino rams, and the meat was the most tender as measured by shear force. Milking Characteristics It is the most prolific British breed. Mature ewes achieve an average litter size of more than 3.00 and this advantage carries through to lambs weaned per ewe. Before the breed settled to the desired level of prolificacy, some remarkable records were achieved in the early stages of the project, with sextuplets being not uncommon and one ewe achieving a lifetime record of 44 lambs in 10 crops. Comparative trials carried out by the Scottish Agricultural College in the 1990s showed that half-bred ewes sired by the British Milksheep achieved a level of productivity 11% higher than half-breds sired by Bluefaced Leicester and Border Leicester rams, and 26% higher than those sired by Bleu du Maine and Rouge de l’Ouest rams. Average milk yield depends on the standard of management of the flock and can vary from 250 to more than 400 litres in a 210-day lactation, with 6% fat and 6% protein. Some pure flocks continue to be used for dairying and produce milk for consumers with allergy to cows’ milk, ice-cream, and speciality cheeses in northern England and Canada. There are claims that ewes produce to of milk in a 300-day lactation with a 5.5 to 9.5% fat content but those claims have not been verified. In comparative trials for milk yield in Hungary, using the local Merino population with a milk yield of 30-50 litres per lactation, British Milksheep crosses proved superior to crosses by Lacaune and Awassi rams. They yielded 90-130 litres compared with 60-80 litres from Lacaune crosses and 80-105 litres from Awassi crosses. Wool Characteristics Ewes produce and rams fleece with a spinning count of 50 to 54s. The staple length is . References External links British Milk Sheep, Sheep101.info Canadian co-operative wool growers limited Sheep breeds originating in England Sheep breeds