Progeny Testing Program for Canadian Breeders of Soay Sheep

Registering Soay Sheep In Canada

WHAT: SOA is offering for a limited time FREE Registrations for Soay sheep located in Canada, regardless of whether the sheep have been registered in the past, or have no pedigree or traceable history.

WHEN: There will be a cut-off date for inclusion of undocumented Soay sheep, which has not yet been determined. Getting your flock into this program now will save you money, as well as include the genetics in your flock into the gene pool available to other breeders.

WHERE & WHO: Any breeder in Canada who has Soay sheep.

WHY: SOA was formed to preserve the Soay sheep found in the USA and Canada. Conservation has been accomplished in the majority of flocks in the USA.

Genetics from Soay flocks in Canada are in danger of being lost.

The only way to preserve Soay sheep for future generations is to register them. This is why SOA is offering, for a limited time, the ability to register your Soay sheep for FREE.

A committee of knowledgeable breeders, and using a numbering system that keeps the owner and their sheep anonymous during evaluation, allowing a completely unbiased format to determine the eligibility of the sheep presented.

HOW TO PROCEED:

Print out the forms below.

If you live in Canada, ignore the Registration fees for any sheep born before January 1, 2006. You will need to pay for the membership fee.

Fill out a PTP Application form for each Soay sheep you own, and include photos of all 4 sides of each sheep.

Mail to the SOA Registrar. Address is included on the forms.

You may send a check or Money Order in US funds.

Please read the simple requirements below. If you have further questions, please contact SOA, Inc. and include your name, location, phone number, and the best time to call you.

Progeny Testing Program

Please note that this program has received some refinements in 2005 and 2006, including amendments to our bylaws which allow flocks of previously unregistered Soay sheep to participate. However, this program will not continue in perpetuity. It is advisable to enroll all eligible Soay sheep into the Progeny Testing Program as soon as possible.

The Progeny Testing Program was designed to allow our members the opportunity to include undocumented Soay sheep into our database and registry. This will allow inclusion of many Soay sheep that have not previously been registered.

A very simple, yet specific strategy must be followed, as described in our bylaws. It is imperative that our members select animals that they feel confident will pass the Program, and most importantly, that the sheep in question meet the SOA Breed Description.

New and improved forms for the Progeny Testing Program have been created (click on links below), and a checklist will be made available soon. The first cases have been evaluated and processed by the PTP Committee.

If you have questions about this program that are not already answered on this page, please contact us through one of our forums; the SOAmembers forum or the SoaySheepInNorthAmerica forum, or you can contact the PTP Committee Chairperson via email.

Bylaws for the Progeny Testing Program:

9.10

PROGENY TESTING: SOA allows for members to determine the integrity of an animal whose background is not known, or whose parents are not registered with SOA, for possible inclusion into the SOA registry and gene pool. The Progeny Testing Program Committee shall consist of 5 members and one alternate, appointed by the Board of Directors, and shall consist solely of SOA members that are knowledgeable about Soay sheep and committed to currently keeping, breeding and registering American Soay sheep.

Animals initially submitted for Progeny Testing shall be at least one year of age. The owner shall include photos of the front, rear, right and left sides of each sheep to be documented. The photos shall be in color, clear, and close, showing detail of the face, horns if any, color, tail and feet. Distant photos in a field are not acceptable.

The Registrar shall issue a registration with a "P" suffix, to indicate that this sheep is not accepted for registry, but is pending the Progeny Test. This shall be documented in the next Flock Book.

Ewe Progeny Testing requires that a testing ewe be bred to one Soay ram per year for 2 consecutive years. Two rams, unrelated to each other, must be used and the rams must be registered with SOA or enrolled in the SOA Progeny Testing Program. The resulting progeny of each of these breedings shall be documented with both photographic and written records. When the youngest of the resulting progeny are one year of age, the ewe and her progeny from these two breedings will then be subject to approval for registration from the Progeny Testing Committee.

A ram to be tested shall be bred to a minimum of 2 ewes. The ewes must be unrelated to each other and must be registered with SOA or enrolled in the SOA Progeny Testing Program. When the youngest progeny of all of these matings reaches one year of age, the ram and his progeny will be subject to approval from the Progeny Testing Committee.

The Progeny Testing Committee shall participate by voting for or against sheep pending approval with SOA. Three quarters of the Progeny Testing Committee is required for approval into the registry. Color photographs of the sheep and its progeny shall be made available to the Progeny Testing Committee, via electronic media or any method the Board of Directors deems appropriate. The Progeny Testing Committee shall have 10 days to submit their votes for approval or disapproval of the sheep in question into the SOA registry.

Sheep that pass the Progeny Testing program, and their progeny, shall be registered with SOA without a "P" suffix, and documentation of this graduation shall be noted in the next Flock Book.

Sheep that fail the Progeny Test shall be removed from the registry, as shall their progeny. This shall be documented in the next Flock Book.

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