Our World Famous Corriedale Sheep

words and images supplied by Barb Demmocks

Corriedales. Everyone with a rural background in North Canterbury, and as I found out, many parts of the world, has heard of these popular woolly cud chewers.

A true New Zealand sheep breed, it began its development back in the mid 1800's in the hands of James Little, a Scottish shepherd who worked on the Corriedale Station near Oamaru.

Back then New Zealand was exporting wool to the UK and fine wool was much sought after and the Merino sheep dominated our pastures. In 1882 after our first shipment of frozen mutton arrived in the UK in good shape that all changed.

The possibility of exporting meat created interest in crossing the Merinos with their lovely fleeces but not so meaty frames, with coarser wool but heavier bodied English breeds to produce a sheep more suited to thriving in NZ conditions and more useful to the UK market.

While pastoral farmers throughout the country were experimenting with these hybrid crosses it was James Little, with the blessing of Corriedale Station owner Dr George Webster, who had the finely honed vision of what he wanted his versatile inbred halfbred to look like: an animal that offered a heavier fleece, a higher lambing percentage, faster growing and with a stronger constitution than the Merino. Twenty years and quite a few twists and turns later Little had arrived in Hawarden with his flock. He first leased a property then purchased the property next door which he named Dalmeny.

The NZ Sheepbreeders Association officially sanctioned the breed and the name in 1902. There had been a strong push by the New Zealand and Australia Land Company to name the breed Southern Cross. The stoush over the name took 15 years to resolve but Little's stubborn determination eventually won the day.

Hawarden can claim to be the home of the world famous Corriedale sheep, New Zealand’s first indigenous breed and one of the most populous domestic sheep breeds on the planet.

The Corriedale has been exported all over the world and has done particularly well in South America. While it is true Oamaru was the early breeding ground of these inbred line breds, they weren't officially Corriedales until after they arrived in Hawarden.

Across the Tasman in Victoria, Australia, a similar breed of sheep was being developed slightly before the Corriedale. A Mr H.H. Wettenhall was working on his breed which he called the Comeback, and he wasn't too impressed with New Zealand's version. Wettenhall felt that NZ breeders wouldn't be as attentive to type as he was and that the breed would eventually revert back to the ordinary crossbreed. By the time the 1939 Annual Amberley Ewe Fair rolled around, Wettenhall may have been interested to note Corriedales were represented in 72 of the lots listed. However, he need not feel too miffed as his breed went on to become the popular and well-respected Polwarth.

As we are aware wool is not the commodity is used to be. Cows and trees have taken over a lot of what was previously sheep pasture and sheep numbers have declined. There are glimmerings of hope though. Wool prices are creeping back up and daily it seems creative uses are being found for wool. It would be inspiring to see the indigenous Corriedale reinvent itself.