Prairie Rose Suffolks

08/22/2025

You never forget your first love … “Tai”

Flashback Friday! She roamed the ranch nearly 40 years ago. She embodied the essence of what a Suffolk ewe is. Prolific, productive and impactful. She lived until she was 12 years old, raising and weaning fast growing lambs into that 12th year. She raised triplets unassisted at age 10. She had size and scale, bone, structural correctness, volume, capacity, breed character, and a docile disposition not to mention an elegance about her. She milked like a Holstein, put her all into her lambs and bounced backed in good flesh on grass after weaning. We had a farm to table business then and her lambs always graded a prime leg with LE’s in the mid to high 3’s. They were excellent at converting feed into pounds of lean, quality meat. Her lifetime lambing and weaning rate was 230%. We still have females in the flock that trace back to her. Her genetics worked for us, not the other way around. She was relevant then and still would be today. We’re pleased to still have working females in the flock decades later that go back to this grand old dam! Long live great Suffolk ewes!

07/13/2025

Shearing the ewe lambs will have to wait for awhile this summer as my better half is healing up from a medical issue, but I still couldn't help admiring this mid-February born ewe lamb while doing chores this morning. She will be in the keeper pen this fall. She's a big volumed, eye appealing young lady with a bright future in front of her. Sired by "Western Underground" of old Luxford and Prairie Rose breeding and our favorite Martiny Livestock ewe, this girl has decades of production and performance behind her. She's the twin sister to an impressive ram lamb that's at the top of the heap here. She, for sure, will look good when the wool comes off but in the meantime, she'll still catch your eye.

07/06/2025

We're pleased to be bringing a quality registered yearling stud prospect to the Idaho State Ram Sale! He's a big topped, big hipped, structurally correct ram that is as solid as it gets. He's athletic in his build and moves out quite free and easy on a good set of feet and legs. He was also one of our top gaining ram lambs at 60 and 120 day weights. He hails from some reliably long lived and outstanding older genetics including the old Luxford stud, Great Divide, a massive ram that lived until he was 10 1/2 years old and one of the best studs we've ever used. You know ... one of the ones that you wish you had back. Other notables in his pedigree include Lost River Gun Fighter (going back to Wilt breeding) and HoWi, and the old Pleasant Valley breeding that was a cornerstone for many breeders several years ago. This ram was also bred to a select group of ewes as a lamb with very good results. He is twin born and raised & is RR/NN by parentage. If you're looking for a sound, complete type of a ram, check him out at the "Suffolk Sale of the West", LOT 51, at the Twin Falls County Fairgrounds in Filer Idaho, July 11th-12th (he sells , Saturday, July 12th). Remote bidding will be available.

For more information regarding the sale, check out the Idaho Wool Growers website at idahowoolgrowers.org

07/05/2025

Countdown to sale day, Saturday, July 12th. We’re bringing a solid set of bucks to the Idaho State Ram Sale, including a registered stud prospect. More info on him will be posted here soon. Check out the Idaho Wool Growers Association website for more information regarding the sale consignments, lamb BBQ, online bidding and transportation. 🐑🐑🐑

The Idaho State Ram Sale is known as the Suffolk Sale of the West for a reason. These Suffolks highlight the exclusive genetics you can't find anywhere else.

Don't miss the action! Order your catalog for the 104th sale today: LINK IN BIO or visit https://forms.office.com/r/ymKj1pW5sm

07/04/2025

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, AMERICA!

HERE’S TO THE RED, WHITE AND EWE!! 🇺🇸

06/18/2025

Beautiful Suffolk Ewes. Here are a few of the ewes coming in from the lower meadow in search of shade. From yearlings to age 8, they are a consistent, dimensional, uniform group of females and members of "the Bold and the Body-ful Club" here on the ranch. High volume and capacious ewes, these ladies earn their keep and stay fleshy on seasonal meadow forbs and grasses all summer, into the fall.
No grain, no harvested feeds, just grazing "a la naturale". Traveling up and down the hill and to the far end of the meadow several times a day, they log in between 1-2 miles a day, just doing what they're meant to do and looking good while they're doing it. Commercially slick shorn 3 days prior to this video.

04/13/2025

Update: ~ Sold~

Here’s another one of our sale yearlings.

We tried something a little different a year and a half ago and the result was this pretty cool buck who caught our eye from Day 1. A March born twin, this yearling is a smooth, straight made, correct ram that is
thick front to back, with good rib shape and body depth. A “no holes” type of buck with good bone, and a flat hip wrapped up in a moderate package. We suspect that he will make lambs much like himself. Dan calls him “Mr. Fix-It” as he’s sure to add some positive attributes to many a flock. If you like ‘em a bit more on the moderate side, this guy will work. Sired by the Arnevik buck that we shared with our friend Scott McKay and dammed by a Mother Lode daughter that we call, Broad Maude, going back to one of our tried and true female lines.

Up for discussion.

Feel free to contact us for more information.

04/12/2025

Update: ~Sold~

Been knocking the wool off here on the yearling ram sale prospects.

Up for discussion:

“Range Rover”. He’s a substantial, high volumed fellow with mass, meat, scale, depth of body, and big rib. He stands right up on correct feet and travels well. As a lamb he and his twin brother were top gainers in the lamb crop last year. Sired by “Western Underground” and dammed by a high producing ewe who has had 18 live lambs (no d***s) in 7 years and has raised and weaned every lamb on her own. His paternal sisters are putting some outstanding lambs on the ground for us. He is RR/NN and is a twin. We expect him to put quality, growthy rams on the ground in addition to putting some great producing females into a flock. Transportation can usually be arranged.
Feel free to contact me for more information.

03/08/2025

A breeder friend of ours stopped by the ranch for coffee yesterday, when he noticed this “bold and body-ful” ewe lamb right away and after a visual and hand’s on inspection, he said, “She’ll do” and we concur, she definitely will … do … now and into the future.
Born February 10th, she’s been a stand out from Day 1 and growing like wildfire. We are seeing some outstanding lambs this year and look forward to watching them develop.
Hickok x Western Underground

01/31/2025

LAMBING BARN RULES:

1. What is said or done during lambing CANNOT be held against me at a later date.

2. See Rule #1.

01/24/2025

Wheeee, here we go! The first ewes due to lamb have loaded into the barn (2-5 year olds, a 3 year old and a 1st time lambing ewe) and the barn cam is up and running after a small glitch that garnered a small panic attack on my part. According to NOAA, the temps are supposed to dip down to -24 degrees below zero which is always a challenge in an unheated barn but with a little extra care new lambs and moms will be fine. Happy Lambing, fellow breeders and shepherds.

01/12/2025

Our 4 year old senior stud, "Western Underground", is looking quite fit this winter. This massive ram is a son of the "Mother Lode" ram, going back to the Luxford "Bozeman" stud buck and the Prairie Rose 1510 ewe on his paternal side. On his maternal side he is a grandson of the old Luxford 1377 stud (IYKYK). His dam, Prairie Rose 1671 goes back to one of our most powerful ewe lines. He sires quick firing, quality lambs at birth that grow like crazy!
We're excited to see his lambs start hitting the ground soon.