History of the Teeswater and a new Society

The introduction of sheep into the UK by the Romans provided the foundation for the development over the centuries of the types of British long-wool sheep we know today. Named for the area in which they developed, these breeds include Cotswold, Lincoln, Leicester and presumably the Teeswater. The Teeswater breed is native to the Teesdale area of County Durham and it remained a relatively localized breed until the 1920s as it fell out of favor with the rise in popularity of the wensleydale in the mid 1800’s reaching critical numbers by 1920.  

The breed was at one time in some danger of becoming extinct. Fortunately, a few farmers in the Tees Valley kept the breed alive and distinct for the purpose of breeding Rams for crossing with hill ewes. The performance of the Teeswater as a crossbred sire provided the necessary impetus to encourage breeders to preserve the Teeswaters unique characteristics and eventually led to it overshadowing the Wensleydale again in popularity.

Anecdotal reports exist of Teeswater importation to the United States in the late 1800s, however a stable population was not developed, and it is unclear what happened to the animals. In 1994, during a period when it was no longer possible to import adult animals, frozen semen was imported to the US, with the first cross bred “upgrade” animals being produced in 1995. The American Teeswater Sheep Association (ATSA) was established to provide a breed registry and continued as the sole registry for the breed

In 2013 when the Teeswater Sheep Society of North America (TSS-NA) was established with similar rules as those adopted by the ATSA for registry, but with the notable difference regarding policies for coat color, specifically acknowledging the possibility of colored coat characteristics in the breed, which is not acknowledged in the British standard.+

2020, the Teeswater Sheep Society was established by several members from the other organizations as a result of concerns that current association doctrine for managing upgrading in the US population was leading to a catastrophic reduction in genetic diversity, limiting breeders ability to select against detrimental characteristics and undermining the long term viability of the breed. This is not to say that the strategies and requirements established for those associations are in any way better or worse, they simply did not align with the beliefs and breeding goals of the TSS charter membership. It is the belief of the TSS that the role of an association should be supportive of the long term viability of the American Teeswater and that excessive restrictions have the unintended consequence of limiting diversity rather than preserving type, and to remain vigilant of the incredible potential detriment that breed associations can cause through arbitrary and capricious rule making that does not recognize the importance of phenotypic evaluation, record keeping In over multiple generations and the careful documentation of observed traits and performance in breeding programs. It is the goal of the TSS to support these goals and in establishing tools to measure actual outcomes versus focusing on arbitrary measurements of mathematical purity as a measure of ultimate value.

Ultimately, the American Teeswater is susceptible to all the problems of excessive line breeding. It is important to remember that the initial importation of ram semen came from a ram named Lakeland Majestic, and additional importations were made of the rams Royal Prince, Patley Prince Charming, Endsmoor Majic, Rimington Playboy, Rimington Crusader and Grey Green Star. These seven rams, several of whom are directly related, form the complete genetic introduction of pure Teeswater genetics into the United States as of the end of 2020.

While recent success has resulted in additional genetic imports from the UK, Ireland and New Zealand, these animals also share family ties with those original imports, and the genetic pool is not highly diverse. The value of the foundation ewe should not be discounted in supporting the American Teeswaters adaptability to the various regions and challenges of the US, and through careful work and selection it is not unreasonable to select for type while maintaining critical performance criteria