Southdown sheep wool and cereals due to rising volumes of imports from the British Empire was accompanied by the Wet Years - a six-year period of cold, wet weather with little sun. In the Second World War, the South Downs were commandeered for military training, only fringe farms being left to produce milk for the towns. Sheep farming declined further after the war, although it is now being encouraged again through the designation of the downland as an environmentally sensitive area, and the restoration of arable land to sheepwalk. The Southdown has been placed on a watch list by the Rare Breeds
Breed registry are seen in certain color breeds of horses, such as the Appaloosa, American Paint Horse, and American Cream Draft Horse, where foals with the proper pedigree for registration but do not meet the color standard for the breed, yet may still carry the necessary genetics in a minimally-expressed form, may be registered and bred to fully registered animals, with ensuing offspring eligible for registration if they meet the breed standard. Another form of open registry is a registry based on performance or conformation, called in some societies "Registry on Merit." In such registries, an eligible animal that meets certain criteria