Selecting Sheep Species for Animal Husbandry

In general, there are two ideal types of sheep, namely the meat type and the wool type. The type of wool sheep is currently not in demand by breeders in Indonesia. This is probably because meat production is still a top priority and Indonesia's tropical climate is not suitable for wearing wool. Based on these conditions, the selection of meat sheep is more suitable for Indonesian conditions. Moreover, coupled with the demand for meat in Indonesia that has not been met. The demand for lamb meat for aqiqah and satay stalls/restaurants is still largely unfulfilled. In addition, the need for Eid al-Adha which is celebrated by Muslims every year can double. The need for exports is no less large, even reaching millions of head each year, such as during the Hajj season for the dam it is estimated that the need will reach 2 million heads.

Southdown sheep

Sheep of the meat or slaughter type have the following characteristics: dense body shape, wide and deep chest, short neck, and straight back and waist lines. In addition, it also has short legs and the whole body is densely muscled. Some of the sheep that belong to the meat type include Southdown, Hampshire and Oxford. Indonesian native sheep cannot be classified into one of the ideal types of the two types above. Even so, sheep in Indonesia generally tend to the type of slaughter or meat. Several sheep are considered native to Indonesia because they have long been cultivated in Indonesia, namely the thin-tailed sheep, fat-tailed sheep, Garut sheep, Wonosobo sheep (dombos) and Batur sheep. 

Dorper sheep

Improvement of genetic quality to increase livestock productivity is also carried out through crossbreeding, for example Suffmer sheep resulting from crossing Merino sheep and Suffolk sheep, then St Croix sheep resulting from crossing West African sheep with local sheep in the Virginia islands in the United States, then Katahdin sheep the result of crossing 3 types of sheep namely St. Croix with Suffolk and Shire sheep. And the popular sheep in Indonesia recently namely Dorper is a cross between the Black Head Persian sheep and the Dorset Horn sheep.

Sheep and goats, although they are quite similar, are actually (species) different. A number of regions in Indonesia have a favorite menu of sheep while other areas have goats. The Special Region of Yogyakarta is an area that has a favorite menu of lamb meat, and you can find lots of stalls or restaurants serving lamb dishes, especially satay. Uniquely in Yogyakarta, even though the name of the stall reads goat satay, the fact is that what is slaughtered or used is lamb. Meanwhile, in areas that are developing Bali cattle breeding, sheep cannot be kept or are prohibited from being raised for fear of Jembrana disease. Areas such as the provinces of South Kalimantan and East Kalimantan are examples of areas where sheep farming is prohibited because it breeds Bali cattle.

Large-scale sheep farming has been carried out in Europe and this should also be done in Indonesia. Integrating sheep farms with energy plantations is a surefire way to create these massive sheep farms. Wood from energy plantations will be a wood pellet product with an export orientation. According to Hawkins Wright's data, from 2020-'21, the demand for wood pellets for the global industry grew by 18.4%, with production only growing 8.4%, especially now with the disappearance of Russia whose volume reached nearly 3 million tons, more details can be read here. While the leaves are used for animal feed, especially sheep farming or it can also be processed into animal feed products such as feed pellets. With the global population predicted to reach 9 billion people in 2050, the need for food, especially protein such as meat, is also increasing as the population increases. Sheep farming and animal feed production are very important as part of fulfilling this food, especially protein, for more details can be read here.