Our Sheep

At Aberdeen Acres we are proud breeders of Shetland and Valais Blacknose sheep! We primarily breed our flock as pets and for their wool which we use to make various crafts and products on-farm. 

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We strive to breed the highest quality animals with exceptional temperaments.

Our Shetland ram is a NASSA (North American Shetland Sheep Association) registered ram, and has wool of the highest quality.

Our Valais Blacknose Rams range from 75 to 88% Valais, and possess exceptional characteristics and temperament. Our main breeding Valais ram Leif is perfectly marked and a truly exceptional stand-out in our flock.

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Our breeding ewes are also of exceptional quality.

All of our shetland ewes are purebred, and in addition to this we have one registered Shetland ewe at this time. These sheep have excellent wool and we breed for soft, fine, crimpy, fleeces.

Our Valais ewes range from 50 to 65% Valais and these ewes have excellent temperament. 

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In 2025 we competed at the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair in Toronto, submitting some of our best fleeces into the Fleece Wool competition. Our ewes did exceptionally well, achieving the following accolades:

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Flora (Shetland x) - 4th place, White - Medium Longwool class

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Storm (Shetland) - 1st place, Naturally Coloured - Specialty Wool class

Blaze (Shetland) - 2nd place, Naturally Coloured - Specialty Wool class

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​Shetland sheep originate from the Shetland Isles in Scotland. Their native habitat is craggy, rocky, moors with harsh seaside weather and for the most part poor vegetation. They have adapted thick wool coats to protect them from their harsh native storms, and some have even retained their ability to shed the wool in spring (called “rooing”) although this trait has somewhat been lost to selective breeding for higher wool production over the years. 

 

Shetlands are considered a “primitive” breed that has largely remained unchanged over their existence. Shetlands were one of the first established breeds of sheep to exist and have retained characteristics like hardiness, parasite resistance, and metabolisms that allow them to survive on rougher, less nutritious forage. 

Shetlands grow to be only around 60-80 lbs at maturity though some animals can be smaller or larger. They are small, compact, and agile animals that can jump, run, and climb (read: make sure you have good fencing!). 

Shetland wool influenced an entire subsection of knitting, called fair-isle. Traditional fair-isle designs are a type of stranded colourwork that uses specific colours and small, repeating motifs throughout the piece. Traditionally, fair-isle pieces were produced only in the Shetland Isles of Scotland (to be truly authentic) with wool from Shetland sheep, and adhered to strict standards. In modern culture the term fair-isle has broadened to include pieces following a less specific standard of work, allowing new designs, motifs, and constructions to be included — although many argue these designs can not be labeled fair-isle, and should instead be categorized as simply “stranded colourwork”. 

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At Aberdeen Acres we are exceptionally proud to announce the start of our Valais Blacknose program. ​​

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Our program follows the North American Valais Blacknose Sheep Registry (AVBSR) where ewes are bred to produce registrable offspring in North America.

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The Valais Blacknose is a Swiss heritage breed of sheep, originating in the Valais alps region of Switzerland. They are commonly raised for meat due to their large size, and also for their wool. There are currently only about 13,700 registered animals in the Swiss herdbooks, but they are gaining popularity worldwide after being dubbed "the world's cutest sheep"! Valais are exceptionally well-tempered, friendly, calm, and make fantastic family pets.

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We also run several needle felting and weaving workshops a year using wool from our sheep. Learn how to needle felt while simultaneously learning about our heritage breed sheep.

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Please visit our other "sheep" pages to learn more about our flock.