Kimm Suffolks - Home of Balanced Genetics

BRED TO FUNCTION

Females with condition score capabilities and those lacking convenience traits are eliminated, leaving ewes that adapt positively to their management system.
It is their belief that certain bloodlines definitely are less prone to health problems, they strive to select for natural resistance and eliminate those that do not adapt.

REPRODUCTIVELY AGGRESSIVE

Kimm Suffolks have sold an average of 50 ram lambs per year since the late eighties, selling over 100 rams per year since 2001 and have only replaced a handful of rams for reproductive reasons.
They expose ewe lambs for two cycles with 95% conception results and have extended credit or replaced four females for reproductive reasons out of over 1,000 head sold.

MATERNALLY SOUND

All ewes are scored for mothering ability, disposition, udder shape and teat size the day lambs are born.
Repeat buyers of females verify in comments made that maternal traits are outstanding in Kimm bloodlines.
The above is why there has been successful female sales for the past six years.

LONGEVITY

Many customers, especially the commercial buyers, like Kimm rams because in most environments they live for many breeding seasons.
The average flock age is kept fairly young to accelerate genetic progress, the installation of the Johnes research project in 2001, all the older ewes have been sacrificed into that project.

PERFORMANCE

This flock has been on the NSIP record system since 1983 and for several years has led the Suffolk breed for number of "Distinguished Dams".
Repeated top gaining rams in the Iowa Ram Test is the litmus test for performance of Kimm Genetics. In the 1999 test they had two rams in the top ten Suffolks with four additional rams in the top twelve that were sired by Kimm rams. In 2000 they had 3 rams in the top seven, with an additional four out of the top eight sired by rams they sold.

STRUCTURALLY SOUND WITH ADEQUATE BONE & MUSCLE

Extreme selection pressure is placed on feet and leg soundness, strong top lines, level rump structure and balance as viewed from the side profile.
Scanning the entire lamb crop starting in 1998 has offered valuable information to buyers plus it has been useful for selecting their flock replacements. All REA and BF are adjusted to 135 lbs.

HEALTH

Effective Fall of 2002, the Kimm flock has been closed to all outside females.
Bio-security is another top priority for the Kimm flock, starting with health protocol requirement to be in place the night of the on farm production sale.
The vaccination program for their ewes includes Campylobacter, Chlamydia, Caseous Lymphadentis, Clostridium perfringens types C & D - Tetanus. All lambs receive soremouth plus two shots of C/D
All ewes are ultra sounded at mid gestation to manage according to fetal count.

SPIDER FREE

The entire flock has been tested free of the spider syndrome.
Only N/N rams are used in their current breeding program and they double test all new sires used just for safety purposes.
The entire flock was double checked for DNA in 2005 to guarantee buyers with a current Codon 171 Test.

SCRAPIE RESISTANCE

They have been screening for the "R" factor at Codon 171 since 1995 and now all QR's are checked to be AA at Codon 136 as well.
Currently over 70% of the ewe base is R/R.
Only sheep carrying a minimum of one R at Codon 171 will be offered for sale.
Their flock was enrolled into the voluntary scrapie certification program, effective June 15, 2003.

PREDICTABILITY & UNIFORMITY

Fields bloodlines were first used starting in 1987, followed by Slack Genetics and this flock has been line breeding since. The results have been predictable genetics.
The most frequent comment made by first time visitors to the Kimm flock is how impressed they are with the consistency.
Some have asked if the Kimm flock is practicing cloning.

BREED CHARACTER & PEDIGREE

Their progress has sometime been stifled because they demand clean fleeced , black headed, bell shaped ears, in short they like their Suffolks to look like Suffolks.
Pedigrees are important to this program, they strive to keep them as accurate as possible, however, there are pedigrees that raise doubt!!! This flock wants to breed competitive, production livestock and will use rams that are rare genetic finds, if they look like a Suffolk and offer pieces to the overall puzzle which are next to impossible to gather up. They will be up front when offering offspring for sale which they know to be inaccurate.