First Place:  3

Entry number: 1126

Exhibitor: 1animalcrazykid

State: TX

Sheep name/number: Lady Baa Baa

Breed: Suffolk/Hampshire

The most complete ewe in the class is 3. She is probably the only non bred ewe in the class and obviously just came off the show circuit, or, may still be on it. From the profile I appreciate the long neck squarely placed. She is balanced with enough depth of chest floor to show thickness and squareness over both the rack and the loin. She is smooth at the points, especially so for a power type ewe, is wide in the chest floor and brings this width to the rear. Some might think she is too flat ribbed, however, I see shape to the rib and fullness in the flank. Her top line is both long and level with an extremely long level hip.

From the rear she has the wedge shape to the rack and loin that we look for. She is wide and flat over the rack and loin and thick and full at the loin edge. She is wide in the pins (blown apart is the term popular with young judges) with tremendous depth of twist and is very expressive in her lower third, especially through the stifle. She is correct on her feet and legs, has excellent breed character and should develop into a great brood ewe.

Second Place:  1

Entry number: 1090

Exhibitor: animalluv34

State: TX

Sheep name/number: Egg Roll

Breed: Hampshire

Website: Esmond Club Lambs on Facebook

I see the power ewe, 1, placing second in the class. She would have more eye appeal, especially on the profile, if she tied in smoother at the hip/loin juncture, however, because of the amount of muscle on top of her hip, it gives her the appearance of roughness in this area. From the profile she has the most correct front end in the class. The long neck is correctly placed and she is tucked slightly in the chest floor and she is extremely clean at the points. The massive forearm suggest a massive top and loin. She is very correct in rib design and full in the flank. She appears to be short hipped, however, this is due to the amount of muscle on top of the hip that gives you that impression.

From the rear she is wedged shape over the rack and loin. She is wide at the pins, deep in the twist and although she is not as muscular in the lower third as the class winner, she still is very thick. she stands correct on her feet and legs with plenty of bone. She should make a very productive ewe.

Third Place:  2

Entry number: 1125

I could have switched the bottom pair, however, I’m placing the Hamp ewe third. Due to the fact she is probably pretty far along in her pregnancy, her barrel makes her look narrow through the hip, however, when viewed from the rear that is not the case. She has the long neck squarely placed, is very clean through her front and is especially clean at the points and she is long and level in her top. She has correct rib shape, is full in her flank and she stands correct on her feet and legs with ample bone. From the rear, I would like to see more width through the pins, more depth of twist, and, more muscle in the lower third. Paired correctly, she could produce marketable lambs.

Fourth Place:  4

Entry number: 1127

Although 4 places at the bottom of the class I see several strong points in this ewe. First, she is probably the longest sided ewe in the class. From the profile she has the long neck, and, I believe it is placed correctly, however, iit could be a tad low. She is balanced with correct shoulder depth. She is very clean at the points. She is long in her top line and level in her hip, especially for a sheep that exhibits a lot of Suffolk characteristics. She is adequate in rib shape, however, I would like to see more fullness in the rear flank. She shows to be a little weak in her pasterns.

From the rear and the side I get the impression she is the narrowest over the rack and loin of any ewe in the class and she gives the impression of sloping over the loin. Although she is not too narrow at the pins, I would like to see her blown apart more in this area. She is the shallowest in the twist and has less muscle in the lower third than any sheep in the class. Bred to a ram that can off set her negatives she could produce good lambs.

Again, I placed the class 3-1-2-4 with cuts of 3-2-1 Let the discussion begin...OG