Southdown sheep Survival Trust. The original Southdown breed probably reached the United States in 1803. Their popularity grew because the Southdowns were very easy to take care of and were resilient to many problems for which other sheep are known. They later declined in nearly the same pattern that had occurred in England. One other factor that affected the original bloodlines was that the Southdown could not satisfy the consumer demand for larger meat cuts. This was significant in the development and mass production of the larger, leggier Southdown of today. This divergence from the original breed standards was the beginning of
Southdown sheep kohl rabi and other forage crops, the folding system took off, increasing in parallel with expanding human population. The system reached its zenith from about 1845 to 1880. The 20th century brought the establishment of pedigree recording. By 1911, 359 registered Southdown flocks contained some 114,495 breeding ewes throughout Britain. Much remained the same until the First World War, when the Southdown flocks declined with some rapidity, as shepherds and farm workers went off to war. By 1922, the 359 pedigree flocks had shrunk to 245. From then until 1939, the registered Southdown flocks numbered around 200. Folded flocks were