Shiqu Tibetan Sheep [Sichuan Shiqu Specialty]

What are Shiqu Tibetan sheep? Authentic Sichuan Shiqu specialty: Shiqu Tibetan sheep

Summary:Do you want to know what Shiqu Tibetan sheep are? This article is a detailed introduction to the Sichuan Shiqu specialty - Shiqu Tibetan sheep. It was compiled and edited by the editorial team of China Specialty Network after reviewing and collecting relevant information on Shiqu Tibetan sheep. The full text takes about 14 minutes to read, mainly including the basic introduction of Shiqu Tibetan sheep and the product characteristics of Shiqu Tibetan sheep? How did the history of Shiqu Tibetan sheep come about? Wait

Basic introduction of Tibetan sheep in Shiqu

Shiqu is located at 32 ° 19 ′~34 ° 20 ′ north latitude and 97 ° 20 ′~99 ° 16 ′ east longitude, in the northwest of Sichuan Province, at the junction of Sichuan, Qinghai and Tibet in the southeast edge of the Qinghai Tibet Plateau, starting from the southern foot of Bayan Har Mountain in the north, reaching the Mora Mountain section of the Shaluli Mountains in the south, bordering Yushu Prefecture in the northwest, facing Jiangda County in Xizang across the river in the southwest, adjacent to Seda County and Dege County in the southeast, with an average altitude of 4000 m. The county covers an area of 25191 km2 and has 1908342.8 hectares of usable grassland (according to a survey conducted by the Sichuan Remote Sensing Center in 2001, Shiqu has 30256 hectares of wetlands and 1837732 hectares of desertification, accounting for 72.95% of the total area). It is a purely pastoral county with 5 towns and 18 townships, and a population of 86800

Shiqu Tibetan sheep is a high-altitude Tibetan sheep in China. It is a primitive local breed bred by the Tibetan ethnic group through long-term closed breeding. It has the advantages of coarse feeding tolerance, high cold tolerance, and strong adaptability. It is an advantageous breed and valuable gene bank in the northwest pastoral area of Sichuan. It is one of the main economic sources for the livelihood and survival of the Tibetan ethnic group, and also an important means of production for poverty alleviation and wealth creation in Shiqu. There is great potential for development and high value in development and utilization, which will play a positive role in increasing the economic income of farmers and herdsmen, achieving prosperity and health for the people. In December 2016, Shiqu County successfully applied for the geographical indication of Tibetan sheep

Regional Scope

Shiqu County has 23 townships under its jurisdiction, including Sexu Town, Niga Town, Luoxu Town, Zhenda Township, Benda Township, Zhengke Township, Maga Township, Derongma Township, Changsha Gongma Township, Xiayi Township, Gemeng Township, Mengyi Town, Xinrong Township, Yiniu Township, Xiazha Town, Qiwu Township, Arizha Township, Changzhang Gongma Township, Changzhang Ganma Township, Changsha Ganma Township, Wenbo Town, Waxu Township, and state-owned pasture. What are the product characteristics of Shiqu Tibetan sheep with geographical coordinates of 97 ° 20 ′ 00 ″ E to 99 ° 15 ′ 28 ″ E and 32 ° 19 ′ 28 ″ N to 34 ° 20 ′ 40 ″ N

2.1 Body Shape and Appearance

The head is triangular, the nose bridge is raised high, the ears are wide open, and extend upwards. The long ears of a ram are flattened and twisted outward and upward. Most ewes have horns, but they are not as developed as rams, and their horns are curled and curved upwards. When walking, the head and neck are straight, the body is long, rectangular in shape, the waist and back are slightly depressed, the chest is wide and deep, in the shape of a barrel, the limbs are slender, strong and powerful, the hooves are solid, good at climbing mountains and digging snow, the tail is short and conical, only about 13 cm long, so it is called a short and thin tailed sheep. The whole body is covered with thick and long hair, which is in the shape of a braid. The braid is 15-30 cm long, and the fuzz is about 8 cm long. There are fewer people with pure white fur, more mixed colors on the head, neck, and limbs, and most of the body is white

2.2 Characteristics

Shiqu Tibetan sheep are a coarse wool sheep breed that lives in high-altitude regions. Has a strong physique, solid hooves, strong social skills, and is good at wandering, grazing, climbing mountains, and crossing forests. Its subcutaneous fat is well-developed, and its ability to store visceral fat is also strong. The skin is thick, and sweat and sebaceous glands are underdeveloped. The heat dissipation of the sheep's body is low, and there are 5-8 cm long villi on the surface of the body, which have strong insulation performance. These characteristics give the Shiqu Tibetan sheep a special ability to resist severe cold and survive the long winter, spring, and dry seasons. Due to its well-developed heart and lungs, and higher red blood cells compared to other sheep breeds, it can adapt to high-altitude hypoxic ecological environments

2.3 Production performance

2.3.1 Growth and development

Shiqu Tibetan sheep grow and develop rapidly from birth to 2.5 years old, with rapid growth in body size and weight. Growth is relatively slow at the age of 3-4; After the age of 5, growth basically stops. Compared to male and female sheep of the same age, the body size and weight of male sheep are larger than those of female sheep, while that of male sheep is similar to that of male sheep

2.3.2 Wool Production Performance

Shiqu Tibetan sheep are sheared in early July, once a year, and the amount of shearing is not high. According to statistics on 641 adult sheep, the shearing amount of male sheep is 1.03 kg, female sheep is 0.87 kg, and female sheep is 1.04 kg. Generally, the hair braid is 15-30 cm long, and the fuzz is about 8 cm long

2.3.3 Meat Production Performance

The meat of Shiqu Tibetan sheep is fresh, tender, and delicious. In the case of year-round grazing without supplementary feeding, the fat catching performance is good, with high meat production and fat storage performance. The slaughter rate is generally above 43%, and the wool can reach 51.19%, with a net meat rate of 29.4% to 34.9%

2.3.4 Reproductive Performance

The mating season of Shiqu Tibetan sheep is closely related to grass growth and fat condition. They usually go into heat from July to September, mainly mating in August, and generally give birth to lambs in winter. Male and female sheep generally reach sexual maturity around the age of one. The age of first mating is about 1.5 years for both males and females. Rams aged 2-5 have the strongest mating ability; Ewes aged 2-8 are of appropriate age and can breed 5-6 lambs in their lifetime, with one litter per year and a single lamb per year. The estrous cycle is generally 15-21 days, with a maximum duration of 2-3 days around 18 days. The gestation period is generally 150 days (140-160 days), and the delivery of lambs is fast. Generally, lambs are delivered 15-30 minutes after breaking the water, and there is no need for midwifery

3.1 Long history of breeding

According to the "Overview of Xikang", the Qiang ethnic group is the oldest ethnic group in the Kang area (from the pictographic characters in China, the Qiang ethnic group's head character is sheep, indicating that it mainly focuses on breeding). After long-term natural selection and domestication, the people of the Kang area have formed modern Tibetan sheep adapted to the high-altitude climate. The sheep breeding in Shiqu has a history of over a thousand years<61. Shiqu Tibetan sheep are also raised on plateaus above 3000 meters above sea level, and their horns and fur color are as described in the article

3.2 Introduction and Improvement Situation

3.2.1 Improvement Process

In order to improve the production performance of Tibetan sheep, meet the needs of the wool textile industry and people's daily life, Xinjiang fine wool sheep, Cigai sheep, Caucasian sheep, Kaolidai sheep, Merinu sheep and other breeds have been introduced since 1952 for hybrid improvement of Tibetan sheep

After 1965, due to the one-sided pursuit of improving quantity, neglecting feeding management, and not paying attention to economic benefits, the purchase of improved wool did not implement high quality and high price. The enthusiasm of the masses for improvement has been affected. As a result, a large number of improved sheep were slaughtered and died. Disorderly crossbreeding and backcrossing were severe, leading to a decline in production performance. By 1980, the number of improved sheep had sharply decreased to around 50000

3.2.2 Improved Sheep Production Performance

Low generation hybrid improved sheep have significant hybrid advantages, faster growth and development, and higher production performance. Even under the same extensive feeding and management conditions, their production performance is still higher than that of Tibetan sheep. In terms of hybrid combination methods, Xinzang, Cizang, and Cixinzang hybrid combination methods have been used. Through production practice, a more suitable combination of "Ci X Xin X Tibetan" has been selected, which has a good effect on improving the adaptability, wool yield, and economic benefits of hybrid offspring

3.3 Feeding and Management Situation

Tibetan sheep and improved sheep rely on natural grasslands for grazing throughout the year, with extensive management. Improved sheep have not been raised with good breeds. Grazing management generally involves mixed groups (rarely grouped by ewes or male castrated sheep). During the warm summer and autumn seasons, they roam in remote grasslands, while during the cold winter and spring seasons, they move into settlements for grazing and lambing. Generally, there are no sheds or enclosures, with a few having earthen walls, fences, and rudimentary sheds to keep warm. There is generally no green hay or feed supplementation. Basically, they are in a backward situation of "relying on the sky to raise sheep", coupled with overgrazing in pastoral areas and varying degrees of grassland degradation. Sheep lose weight and fat by about 22% to 33% in winter. The phenomenon of being full in summer, fat in autumn, thin in winter, and dead in spring is still serious

The breeding of this breed of Tibetan sheep is generally carried out spontaneously by herders. Due to the lack of clear breeding standards and directions, the progress of breeding is slow and the results are minimal

3.4 Livestock inventory situation in the past 10 years

At the end of 2005, there were 294868 livestock in stock, of which 132615 could breed ewes; At the end of 2010, there were 179413 sheep in stock, of which 84699 were capable of breeding ewes; At the end of 2015, there were 75872 sheep in stock, of which 37785 were capable of breeding ewes