Welcome Blanca & Svetlana!!

Well a few guessed correctly that I had brought sheep home and CeeCee guessed that I brought home a 'Churro or two'. What happened I'll explain as we go, but basically, we now have one Navajo-Churro ewe lamb, (Navajo-Churro Information) and one Karakul ewe lamb.
Please meet Blanca (the Churro) and Svetlana (the Karakul)!!!!
Blanca is Spanish for white, which seemed fitting not only because she is, but because, too, the Spaniards were the ones who had first brought these unique sheep to the SouthWest. Navajo-Churro Origins
Svetlana was so named because her origins are from Russia. Her pretty white face reminds me of a star, and star in Russian is Svetlana.
My intention was only to buy two Navajo Churro lambs, but I fell in love with the color of the Karakul (y'all know how I love my 'tuxedo', black & white critters. And the beauty of the wool and uniqueness of it's history all drew me in to purchase one Karakul to be a special part of Laughing Orca Ranch.

Did you know that the Karakul sheep is a type of fat-tailed sheep, very common to the African and Asian continents, but considered a rare breed in the US and Canada.

The Karakul has some unique qualities. It has a dominant black gene, so a very high percentage of these sheep are born black. A desert animal (originally) that stores fat in its tail for nourishment in lean times, it is very hardy and adaptable. The pelts of the Karakul lambs are historically referred to as "Persian lamb" or "Broadtail". This pelt is a lustrous coat of intricately patterned curls. They were legendary trade items on the ancient Silk Road of China, and were used extensively in America (for the first part of the 1900s) as a fabric for coats, jackets, and hats. For these reasons, the Karakul is often known as the "Fur Sheep".

The US Karakul population has drastically declined, however, and the current estimate is less than 2,000. In light of this, the main interest of Karakul breeders has been to simply sustain the breed's presence in America. The Registry was re-established in 1985 for that purpose. Today, small farm flocks are scattered throughout the US, with a few in Canada as well. The five or six known bloodlines are juggled within breeding programs to perpetuate the breed.

Their devoted shepherds love their exotic carriage, intelligence, hardiness, common-sense instincts, beauty, and independence. And of course, their rich history, which is unparalleled by any other breed of sheep! Jackson can't enough of Svetlana's unique, 'spongy', cushiony, soft wool. Rare Karakul
Karakul sheep are built for living in rugged harsh conditions, and just like camels have a fat-filled body part. Where in camels it is the hump, in Karakul sheep the fat filled area is in the top portion of the tail. Karakul Info. (Click on 'The Karakul')

Click on this photo for a close-up of her amazingly unique wool. I cannot even begin to describe the texture and softness of it.
A Kurakal Farm
I have wanted my own Navajo-Churro Sheep from about 5 years ago, ever since I first read about their rarity and unique history involving New Mexico, the place I call home. When I tried searching on my own, it seemed that Navajo-Churros were sadly and ironically even rarer in New Mexico. I'd have to purchase one from out-of-state and pay more than $300.00 for one female.

So imagine my excitement when someone posted on Craigs List that they needed to downsize their fiber farm and find homes for their animals before they sold their ranch in New Mexico and moved home to Hawaii. I was even more surprised that these sheep were being offered for a 'song'. And the folks selling them were super nice, too.

In case you didn't know, Navajo-Churro sheep are descended from the Churra, an ancient Iberian breed. Although secondary to the Merino, the Churra (later corrupted to "Churro" by American frontiersmen) was prized by the Spanish for its remarkable hardiness, adaptability and fecundity. The Churra was the very first breed of domesticated sheep in the New World. Its importation to New Spain by the Spanish dates back to the 16th century where it was used to feed and clothe the armies of the conquistadors and Spanish settlers.

By the 17th century the Churro had become the mainstay of Spanish ranches and villages along the upper Rio Grande Valley. Native Indians acquired flocks of Churro for food and fiber through raids and trading. Within a century, herding and weaving had become a major economic asset for the Navajo. It was from Churro wool that the early Rio Grande, Pueblo, and Navajo textiles were woven -- a fleece admired by collectors for its luster, silky hand, variety of natural colors and durability.

Livestock, including sheep, came in 1494 when Spain established colonies in the Caribbean and then in Mexico. Colonization expanded gradually into Nuevo España which is now the Southwest of the United States. In 1540, following the initial expedition of Cortez in 1538, Coronado searched for the Cities of Gold expending 5,000 head of sheep on the journey. The few left in New Mexico were not heard of again. Don Juan de Oñate, in 1598, brought settlers and 2,900 sheep that formed the initial colonization of the Southwest. Spanish ranches prospered in Texas, New Mexico and Arizona with flocks numbering in the thousands. Many sheep were trailed back to Mexico to feed mining towns and they supplied the growing population of the Southwest. In 1849 when gold was discovered in California, churros were trailed west to feed the Gold Fever.

During this period of Spanish colonization, Pueblo Indians were hired and enslaved to herd livestock and to weave textiles. The Dine’ (the Navajo people), living on the edge of Spanish occupation, acquired a few sheep and horses by trades and by raids on outlying settlements. Following the turmoil of 1680 when the Pueblos revolted against Spanish oppression, the Navajos acquired more sheep, as did the Apaches. The Apaches ate the sheep they took but the Navajos nurtured their acquisitions and expanded their flocks.

As European settlers came west and the demand arose for fine wool in the American textile industry, the churros were "graded up" by crossing with Merino and English longwools. However, some churros remained in the remote Hispanic villages, among the isolated Navajos and on the West Coast. These isolated flocks eventually formed the landrace sheep, the Navajo-Churro, named to recognize Spanish and Navajo influence.

Because the Navajos resisted the settlers who were encroaching on Dine’ homelands, the U.S. government ordered military actions led by Kit Carson and John Carlton with instructions to destroy Navajo orchards and flocks. There was much bloodshed and in 1865 approximately 9,000 Navajos were forced on the Long Walk of 300 miles to an interment camp at Bosque Redondo, New Mexico. Terrible conditions here caused the death of many people and their livestock. Some Navajos escaped capture and hid with their sheep in remote canyons of New Mexico and Arizona. After three years, the Navajo were returned to their homeland and were issued two "native" sheep per person from Hispanic.flocks.

The Navajo were such good weavers and shepherds that their mixed flocks grew to 574,821 sheep by l930. The large number of sheep, goats, horses and cattle was problematic for the severe drought conditions of the 1930’s, so the U.S. government conducted a stock reduction. Some stock was purchased for $1-1.50 but the reduction progressed so slowly that roughly 30% of each household’s sheep, goats and horses were slaughtered by government agents and thrown into arroyos or burned. This terrifying Stock Reduction is still vivid in Navajo memory.

Cute little Navajo Churro lamb face. Navajo-Churro Sheep
Adorable little Karakul lamb face. Karakul History and Facts
Welcome Blanca & Svetlana!!