Navajo-Churro sheep are one of America's oldest domesticated farm animals, descended from Iberian Churra sheep and brought here by the Spanish 400 years ago. The Navajo acquired sheep through trades and raids and soon the landrace sheep became an integral part of Navajo life, most recognizable today in the beautiful Navajo blankets but also serving valuable purpose with their meat, milk, and spiritual significance.

By the mid-1800s US expansion clashed directly with the Navajo people who resisted settler encroachment on their traditional homeland. In an effort to subjugate the Navajo, the US government under the lead of Kit Carson marched 9,000 Navajo 300 miles to an interment camp at Bosque Redondo where conditions killed many people and their livestock. Again, in the 1930s, the US government ordered many sheep and other livestock slaughtered as a response to intense drought pressure in the Southwest, tossing dead carcasses into arroyos and edging the Navajo-Churro to near extinction. By the 1970's only about 450-500 of this landrace sheep existed.

Navajo-Churro are blanket-wool sheep, meaning they have two lengths of wool and very strong fibers: a double coat of wool (80%) and hair (20%). Fleeces weigh from 4-8 lbs. and yield 67-72%; hair can range from 6-8 inches while the wool is 3-6 inches.

Unlike commercial breeds their fleece is low in lanolin, so it does not require valuable water for washing or time-consuming carding. It can be shorn, hand cleaned, then spun into tightly twisted yarn that readily absorbs indigo and natural dyes, though the natural variation in color is gorgeous all on its own. The wool can also be easily felted for a variety of uses. We try to shear twice here on the farm: both spring and fall.

Listed with both the American Livestock Breed Conservancy and the Slow Food Ark of Taste for its delicate flavor and American history, the Navajo-Churro is a small, long tailed sheep that makes an excellent addition to our farm. They are truly a multi-purpose breed, offering milk, meat, and wool.

Contact us for price and availability for both fleece and lamb.