Gentile di Puglia sheep are raised primarily for wool. The breed is originated in Puglia, Italy. Crossbreeding of local ewes with Merino rams from Spain resulted in Gentile di Puglia sheep.
Gentile di Puglia sheep breed information
The average of wool per ram is 6kg and ewe is 3.5 kg, with a fiber diameter of 18 to 22 microns.
The lambs are slaughtered at the age of 50 to 60 days when it reaches a weight of 12 to 15 kg.
The Gentile di Puglia sheep produces the milk of 80 to 100 liters per lactation.
Things to know
Gentile di Puglia sheep also called Merinos d’Italia or Italian merino.
Crossbreeding of local ewes with Merino rams from Spain resulted in Gentile di Puglia sheep. In order to further improve the quality of the wool, they were cross-bred with French Rambouillet and German Merinolandschaf.
The milk is used to produce pecorino cheeses.
The Associazione Nazionale Della Pastorizia has kept the genealogical handbook for Gentile di Puglia breed, it’s one of the seventeen autochthonous Italian sheep breeds.
In 1983 total numbers for the breed were estimated at 500,000, of which 31,700 were registered in the herdbook. But in 2003 they got dropped to 3532.
Brief characteristics of Gentile di Puglia sheep
| Breed Name | Gentile di Puglia | |
| Other Name | Merinos d’Italia, Italian merino | |
| Country/Place of Origin | Italy | |
| Breed Purpose | wool | |
| Breed Size | medium | |
| Weight Ram(Male) | 70 kg (150 lb) | |
| Ewe(Female) | 45 kg (100 lb) | |
| Kidding | single | |
| Good for Stall Fed | open grazing | |
| Climate Tolerance | local conditions |
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