Donald and Anne Henderson talk about their Maranatha Flock

The flock at Maranatha consists of 19 breeding ewes with remaining sheep rounding that number up to 35

Based near Daviot, south of Inverness, the Hendersons’ Maranatha flock is a small enterprise with the outfit only spanning 24 acres both owned and rented.

“It’s not much bigger than a normal croft but it’s a way to keep our hand in the business while in retirement,” explains Donald. “We used to run a small commercial flock of North Country Cheviots and a similar pedigree flock of Suffolks but we’ve significantly downsized. The Hampshires are the only focus now and we wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Their passion for the breed began in 2015 when Anne had been going through a serious illness and needed significant surgery.

She had seen Hampshires at the Highland show and fell in love with them. Donald said: “I wasn’t just as enthusiastic at that point, as I hadn’t really seen them up here in the Highlands so wasn’t so sure how they would fare. As Christmas was approaching and by way of cheering her up at that difficult time, I gave her some money to purchase three ewe lambs, and she was absolutely delighted.

The flock originated in 2015 from three foundation ewe lambs and one tup lamb from Roy and Sheena McFarlane of the Lecropt flock, Bridge of Allan

“We met with Roy and Sheena McFarlane of the Lecropt flock in Bridge of Allan, whose passion and enthusiasm for the breed was infectious. They kindly allowed us to view their flock, and Anne managed to pick three of the best lambs that Roy had for sale.

“It was when we were walking back from the field that a tup lamb caught my eye. Although I had no intention of buying any males, he was obviously something special, and after a brief chat with Roy, he agreed to sell to give us a start and he ended up being the best tup we ever had. His name was Lecropt Errol and he was the one that really got us on the pathway to breeding and showing Hampshires.”

The first few seasons of lambing with the Hampshire Downs proved to be successful for Donald and Anne, and this confirmed their passion for the breed. “I was so impressed with the ease of lambing and the quality of the lambs that it was not long before we sold all the Suffolks and the commercial Cheviots to focus fully on the Hampshires,” explained Donald.

Maranatha now fully prioritises breeding the flock for both the pedigree and commercial markets. They now have a flock comprising of 19 breeding ewes with followers and tups added in, rounding the number up to 35.

Donald used to buy in a lot of shearlings to improve the bloodlines but is now focused on breeding quality stock tups

In the recent past, Donald has bought in some new shearlings to add to the gene pool and is now focusing on further developing good breeding bloodlines. All the sheep in the Maranatha flock are MV-accredited, performance recorded using Signet Breeding Services, and all stock rams being DNA tested. The flock is also farm assured.

Donald explained: “Even though we performance record, I follow the ethos that a good sheep is a good sheep first and foremost before you have even taken a look at figures.

The best merchant is always your eye and second is the figures.”

Maranatha sheep are weighed at birth, eight weeks, and 16 weeks. They are also ultrasound scanned at 16 weeks with the scan looking at factors such as the gigot, the muscle depth, and the fat depth.

“I believe performance recording is an essential tool to compete in the pedigree market,” said Donald. “When selecting any sheep it is essential that it must first have good confirmation, then secondly if the EBVs are high then that is a bonus.”

For Donald, it’s the key characteristics of the Hampshire Downs that really sell the breed.

“I really love their character and kind nature along with their key traits which include their confirmation, vigour, ease of lambing, and rate at which their lambs develop.”

For Donald it's the traditional characteristics that act as the breed's main selling points

Tupping commences around the middle of July at Maranatha with lambing starting the first week of December.

“They are an easy lambing breed and in most cases the Hampshire lambs will be up on their feet and suckling within half an hour. The ease of growth in the lambs also means that anything born in December can be ready for the new season lamb market in May.”

Donald continued: “They also make great terminal sires and have fared very highly in the RamCompare Scheme over the past few years. We sell a lot of our rams to be used for commercial breeding crossed with Cheviots, Lleyns, Mules and others, meaning that lambs are ready for the commercial market at least three weeks earlier than other breeds.”

Most of the Maranatha Flock is sold privately off farm. The main sales for the breed are the Premier Sale at Shrewsbury in May and the Carlisle sale in September, and other localised sales throughout the country.

The Hampshires are a hardy breed and can withstand the slightly harsher conditions of the Highlands

The Maranatha rams are mostly outwintered in the Highlands which demonstrates the hardiness of the breed.

“There’s definitely a place for the Hampshires in the Highlands and Islands,” said Donald. “We farm at about 800ft. Generally, they are a hardy breed and they fare well in most weathers including snow.”

Donald and Anne enjoy showing their Hampshire Downs. They take their sheep to Sutherland, Nairn, Black Isle, Stirling, and Grantown Shows. In their first year of showing Lecropt Errol, the first ram bought from Roy and Sheena McFarlane, they achieved male champion and reserve overall champion in their class at the Black Isle Show in 2017. This year, it was the home-bred Maranatha Ace achieving the same accolade in the same class.

“We find that the shows are an excellent shop window for us, and we enjoy the participation with other breeders. We were privileged to have won the Best Scottish Flock in 2023 and came third in the Small Flock category of the National Flock Competition,” said Donald.

“The Hampshire Down society as a whole is really an excellent community that encourages both young and old alike to enjoy and develop the breed.

There is a comprehensive training package delivered annually which covers ram and ewe selection, preparation for shows including trimming, as well as other best practice.

“It’s also a great association for social events and it has helped us in developing the breed in the Highlands and Islands,” explained Donald.

“As we move forward, The Scottish Hampshire Down Association looks forward to initiating a Scottish National Show in the coming year.

“In the Highlands, we look forward to developing a number of new flocks to enable them to participate in the show arena in the forthcoming years, with a view to establishing specific Hampshire classes.

“The Scottish Hampshire Down Association is very much looking forward to hosting the 2024 National AGM at Atholl Palace Hotel, Pitlochry, in October with delegates from all over the UK and Europe coming to get a taste of the Highlands.”

All the Maranatha flock are performance recorded using Signet, MV-accredited and farm assured

Looking to the future, Anne and Donald would seek to continue working on producing quality genetics and promoting the breed in northern Scotland.

“We are very privileged for whatever success that we have enjoyed with the Hampshires, but are continuing to learn,” said Donald.

“I am, of course, indebted to Roy and Sheena at Lecropt for showing us so much kindness and mentoring when we first got into the breed.

“We also get a lot of help from Carol Munro of the Ashton Suffolk flock, Ashton Farm, Inverness. She has given us an excellent helping hand and her experience in showing has been invaluable.

“Now it’s really about developing the breed for both the pedigree and commercial markets.”

FARMfacts

Croft size: 24 acres both owned and rented, based south of Inverness.

Livestock: 35 Hampshire Downs, including 19 breeding ewes.

Who's involved: Donald and Anne Henderson, helped by Carol Munro.

Notable rams: Lecropt Errol, Lecropt Lomond, Isle of Bute Snapchat, and Maranatha Ace.

ONTHEspot

Favourite show? Grantown - it's not the biggest but it's such a friendly show and I have a fondness for it.

Best thing about Hampshire Downs? A lovely all-round sheep: nice natured, excellent confirmation, excellent vigour, and easy lambing.

Biggest change you have seen in farming? The challenges brought on by some of the consequences of Brexit, the rising costs of fertiliser, fuel and machinery.

What's something you can't live without? My faith, the Lord is my shepherd, also my wife, children and grandchildren.

Where do you see yourself in the future? Focusing on the development of our flock for both the pedigree and commercial markets, also driving forward the potential of the breed in the Highlands.