Black Welsh Mountain Sheep (BWMS) are a small dual purpose breed that provides excellent mild mutton and a completely black, dense and durable fleece. BWMS are small and easy to handle and are ideal for farms where their hardiness, good mothering and feed efficiency are significant assets. Rams have attractive horns that curls arround their ears and ewes are polled. They make a perfect small farm sheep.

The US association follows the UK breed standard. The most unusual part of which is the management of BWMS’s tails. BWMS must retain the tail long and undocked. In the Welsh Mountain Sheep this provides cover and protection for the udder. BWMS are flystrike resistant, and so while in some breeds a long tail is a health hazard, in BWMS it is not.

Lambing percentages are typically 175%. Ewes are good mothers, deep milkers and lambs are vigorous, quick to suckle and fast growing. The average weight of a mature ewe is arround 100 pounds, while the average ram weighs between 132-143 pounds.

The breed produces premium quality meat with a minimum of wasteful fat. It is richly colored, full flavored, but remains mild even when butchered as mutton. Finished purebred lambs average 30-40 pounds carcass weight.