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About the Farm

Critterhaven is located in Pueblo, Colorado. My parents purchased the farm when I was 2 years old, and I purchased it from them in 1998 after an absence of 26 years. Pueblo has excruciatingly hot summers (100 °F and higher) and bitter cold winters (–15 °F and lower). It is a very arid region, with less than 12 in. of precipitation annually.

Critterhaven is a hobby farm (which is another way of saying that I rarely make a profit at any of my farm activities). I try to practice sustainable agriculture and self-sufficiency, growing and preserving all of my own food (animals, vegetables, wine, beer—the staples of life!).

My farm is barely 8 acres, only 2 of which are irrigated for sheep pasture. Through careful pasture rotation, I'm able to maintain a flock of 15-20 Barbados Blackbelly sheep. I also raise Australorp chickens and Indian Runner ducks, both breeds recognized by the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy as breeds in danger of extinction. Barbados Blackbelly sheep are also on ALBC's list, but are reported to be a recovering population. In the U.S., there are fewer than 400 of these sheep and we are a long ways from being "recovered."

About Critterhaven Sheep

• Critterhaven works with breeders, researchers, and buyers in an ongoing effort to promote and protect this vanishing breed.
• Critterhaven provides quality purebred breeding stock and helps new breeders get established with starter flocks.
• Critterhaven raises sheep without chemical intervention (no vaccines or dewormers) and contributes genetics that strive to maintain the qualities of the breed as it is in Barbados.
• Critterhaven regularly donates ram semen to the National Animal Germplasm Program to ensure that Critterhaven genetics are preserved in the event of disaster.

How I'm Involved

Barbados Blackbelly sheep became my passion in 1998 when I fell in love with their beauty and then realized how very few true Barbados Blackbelly sheep remain in the U.S. I have made it my mission to

• provide information and resources to shepherds to help them differentiate between Barbados Blackbelly sheep and the various cross-bred "look-alikes" that are often mistakenly called Barbados Blackbelly.
• protect and preserve the breed's existing genetic base in the U.S.

To this end, I've accomplished the following tasks:

• Helped direct the Barbados Blackbelly Sheep Association Int'l (BBSAI) to its creation of the registered American Blackbelly as a way to bring distinction to the breed most commonly mistaken for Barbados Blackbelly.
• Wrote a cookbook for BBSAI that provides an ongoing income to the breed registry.
• Established a Consortium of breeders to manage our genetics collaboratively.
• Developed and manage several Web sites to help blackbelly sheep enthusiasts:
  • the BBSAI Web site
  • my farm Web site
  • a site for the Barbados Blackbelly Breeders Consortium
  • the homepage for the Blackbelly Listserv
• Began writing an introductory book about how to raise and care for blackbelly sheep.

About Critterhaven Critters

You can see photos of most of the critters at Critterhaven sprinkled on pages of this Web site. Of special note are the animals directly responsible for helping protect and manage Critterhaven sheep:

Shepherd	Bella
Gage

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