Dormer sheep: muscle museums that boost meat production

High fertility and robust growth make the Dormer sheep breed ideal for meat production. Lanie Coetzer, owner of the Labarie Dormer stud, explained to Lindi Botha how genetic selection ensures optimal success.

- Lanie Coetzer

When Pieta Badenhorst was gifted 10 Dorper sheep by a friend, he decided to pass them on to his daughter, Lanie Coetzer, not wanting to take on livestock farming in addition to his crops and other businesses.

Coetzer, who never had any intention to farm, fell in love with the sheep and decided to start a stud, since land was limited, and quality would need to be prioritised over quantity.

While the Dorpers performed well, an encounter with the Dormer Sheep Breeders' Society of South Africa at Nampo swayed Badenhorst towards this breed.

He set out to convince Coetzer to switch over to Dormers, and in 2023 the conversion was made. "It wasn't an easy decision and I was very reluctant at first," Coetzer relates.

The Dormers have an incredible growth rate and excellent maternal characteristics. They also achieve a high rate of multiple births – producing, in many instances, either twins or triplets, while the mothers have a high weaning rate," she says.

One of the key benefits of Dormers is that they have a larger than average frame. This means they work well in commercial crossbreeding programmes, adding meat and weight to carcasses. Coetzer notes that despite their large frame, they have a gentle temperament and are easy to work with.

Coetzer today owns the Labarie Dormer stud with her husband Otto, farming on 5ha near Brakpan, Gauteng. Farming is a part-time endeavour for Coetzer, a qualified attorney.

She heads the legal, financing and administration departments for Otto's engineering firm by day, and performs at opera and classical concerts on weekends. In between, she tends to the sheep, often having to switch between evening gowns and farming overalls.

Stud farming did not come easy and Coetzer notes that it takes a lot of research and training to develop a successful stud, and a good eye for quality animals.

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