2023 inductees
Martin & Chris Auville
MOUNT SIDNEY, VA How did you become involved in the Suffolk Breed? How has your flock evolved since then? We both came from livestock showing families - Martin grew up showing cattle and hogs and Chris showed horses. When our oldest daughter was old enough for 4-H in 1990 it was a given that she would show. We selected 3 wethers out of Martin’s mother’s commercial flock for her to show at our county fair. Both girls (age 9 and 5) worked all summer to get ready. When we got there we were informed that our youngest was too young to participate. After she had a big melt down, an Ag teacher (who raised Suffolks) said “You know, there is an open purebred show and there is no bottom age” The next year she had a purebred Suffolk yearling ewe to show. Hence the journey began. How has your flock evolved since then?
81
Why have you committed to the success of the Suffolk Breed and/or its related organizations? When we got into Suffolks - they were the “cool” breed. In our area, the growing segment of the sheep industry is with hair sheep and club lambs. With the distraction of the club lamb “bling” or shag, we think it is just a matter of time before the shininess wears off. Suffolks are a meat breed and the lamb market wants clean meat that is brought to market at a young age with a lot of muscling. Suffolks are the most profitable of the breeds to accomplish this. It’s all cyclical - our time is coming back! What advice would you give a new breeder or junior member? Juniors are our passion. They are the future and super fun to be around. They are honest and will keep you young. Best advice, find a mentor. If a breeder says “you can call me any time with questions” - MEAN IT! These little humans are sponges - feed them. It will reward you so many times than you can count. Oh, and don’t be afraid to let them shop in your keeper pen. Also, always tell the truth. Your integrity is your bond. We all have sheep that might not live up to our expectations. Show them - it makes the good ones look even better. Share one favorite Suffolk memory. Oh wow there are so many. One of the best was a lesson learned after showing at Louisville. It was the following April and one of our Suffolk yearling ewes had twins - except they were speckled. Turns out the National Champion Horned Dorset Ram that was penned next to her in Louisville thought our ewe lamb looked good! We called the breeder and after we both laughed, we both decided there should be no stud fee.
We started with acquiring ewes from many different sources but the rams we brought in from only the top breeders over the years - these included Buckeye Acres, McLaughlin/Griffin, Tom Slack and MacCauley Suffolks. We were told by another “Hall of Famer” - John Sponaugle - “There are many people making sheep out there but very few breeders. You want to strive to be a breeder”. That stuck with us. We essentially (until last year) closed our flock to keeping only our own ewes and building ewe families. We also stripped off the wool and concentrated on breeding sheep we liked and it turns out other people like them too. Our sheep have transitioned to a functional size concentrating on meat and muscle, structural correctness and breed character. That’s what the market in our area demands. Why did you choose Suffolks over other breeds (or other species)? Honestly, we fell into Suffolks Once we got into the breeding of sheep, it became clear to us that this is the perfect breed. Not only are Suffolks the most beautiful of all sheep (not biased at all) there is far more versatility than other breeds. What is the most meaningful thing the breed has done for you? Suffolks have enabled us to do fun activities as our kids were growing up, have given us so many friends across the county, allowed us to help so many kids not only in our immediate area but statewide and east coast. When our kids aged out, we just got new kids (and now we have grandkids). We have had so many great memories involving our Suffolks.
A NOTE FROM THE SELECTION COMMITTEE: Martin and Chris Auville are long-time Suffolk breeders from Mt. Sidney, Virginia and were selected for their dedication to support youth and youth programs in Virginia.
CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE
Powered by FlippingBook