General types of information

Demographic Data

This category includes census-like information such as the sheep's Name, Sex, Date of Birth, Ear Tag, Sire, Dam, Other registrations, Breeder, Owner, etc. This sort of data is objective and generally easy to come by. Most of the animals recorded in the OFP database are well-described in this respect.

Phenotypic Data

In this category we use descriptive or phenotypic term associated with particular genetic traits. We are currently tracking five characteristics. The first three — pattern, color, spotting — are each principally determined by a specific single gene. The other two traits, fleece characteristics and horn type, on the other hand, are determined by more than one gene.

Demographic Data Fields

NAME

The full formal name, as it appears in registration documents: Flock Prefix + Name, e.g., Saltmarsh Romeo. If the sheep hasn’t been registered elsewhere, we still need a flock prefix and name. No two sheep can have the same full formal name, that is, Prefix + Name

SEX & STATUS

Ewe, ram, wether

DATE OF BIRTH

OK if exact date not known, best available data

SIRE

Full formal name

DAM

Full formal name

BIRTH NUMBER

1 = single, 2 = twin, 3 = triplet

BIRTH SIBLINGS

Names of other twin or other triplets

DATE OF DEATH

CAUSE OF DEATH

E.g., failure to thrive, tetanus, coyote, stillborn, whatever

REGISTRATIONS

Registration numbers are sometimes useful for linking up different breeders’ flocks into a unified pedigree. We can keep track of up to three separate registrations. If the animal has been birth notified with the RBST but not registered, please provide the birth notification number.

SCRAPIE TAG NUMBER

Also optional, also a useful additional means of tracing sheep

OTHER FARM ID TAGS

For your convenience if you use baby tags or have some other internal system you’d like to have appear on profiles and other reports

BREEDER

Person/farm who owned the dam at time of conception

CURRENT OWNER

Name

PRIOR OWNER

Name

OWNER BEFORE THAT

Name

Phenotypic Data Fields

Six general physical characteristics, or phenotyes, are currently tracked in the Open Flockbook Database.

PATTERN

This describes the distribution of pigment in the wool and pigmented areas on the body. We expect only two alternatives:

Wild

The common "agouti" or "mouflon" appearance characterized by a lighter belly and rump

Self

The rarer "non-agouti" or "self- colored" uniformly colored pattern
(Any splotches of white about the head and elsewhere are described under Spotting, below)

COLOR

In this field we indicate the phase of the animal, i.e. is it light or dark, as well as a more subjective description of its fleece color. It can be tricky to distinguish the light and dark animals on the basis of overall fleece color alone, especially if viewed from a distance, and more especially if the fleece has been bleached by the weather. The surest way to make the call between light and dark is to look closely at the skin around the edge of the animal’s eyes and lips. Example Is that skin area light brown or tan (indicating light phase), or is it dark brown, as though the animal were wearing eyeliner (dark phase)? This distinction should be fairly obvious; let us know if you encounter a sheep that is difficult to classify. Follow this link to a table of Color Terms.

SPOTTING

Does the animal have patches of white on its head and elsewhere? If so, where is the spotting and how big is it? We are interested as well in transient white spots that disappear as the animal matures.

FLEECE

For breeders who want to keep track of animals with particularly long and luxurious fleece. Please use whatever terms you want us to use in tracking; we will work with those of you who have these sheep to find consistent terminology.

HORN TYPE

In this field we indicate whether the animal is polled, scurred or horned; provide a general description of the scurs or horns, length and shape; and the age of the animal when the observations were made. In our system, "polled" means the complete absence of horns. Scurred animals have horns that are button like, short, misshapen, round, or otherwise funky.

MARKINGS

This is where we put descriptive information that doesn’t fit in the five categories above, using a free form format. Anything remarkable or unusual goes here, in whatever terms serve.