Gurej

The Gurej breed is found in the Gurez block of Bandipore district in North Kashmir. They are the largest of the sheep breeds in the state.

The Gurej is generally white in colour, although some animals are brown or black or have brown or black spots. A small proportion of the animals have small, pointed horns. Some animals have multiple horns up to 4 to 6 in number. The tail is thin and short. The fleece is generally coarse and hairy. Ears are long, thin and pointed. Gurej is one of the finest carpet wool sheep breeds of the state. There is considerable cross-breeding with the Merino for improving apparel-wool production and quality. The annual greasy-fleece weight varies from 0.8 to 1 kg per animal. Breeding takes place mainly in August-September and to a limited extent in February-March. Around 45% of the sheep are shorn three times a year and the remaining twice.  

According to the 18th Livestock Census there are only 17,410 Gurej sheep in the country which has put this breed on the ‘endangered species’ list of the National Bureau of Animal Genetic Resources. 

Text source: NBAGR

Photo Source: CSWRI, Avikanagar