Double Diamond, a pedigree Texel lamb, has been sold for
£367,500 (an estimated $490,000) at auction to be considered the most expensive
sheep in the world.
Texel is a breed of domestic sheep originally from the
island of Texel in the Netherlands.
The sheep, considered to be genetically perfect, has several
unique features including a toned torso, perfect head, muted gold colouring and
heavily muscled.
Double Diamond was sold to three farmers at the Scottish
National Texel Sale in Lanark on Thursday.
Jeff Aiken, one of the buyers, described the sheep as a
“special animal” but expressed reservations about the price.
“I knew he was going to be a lot of money but I wasn’t
expecting him to make that much. He’s just an outstanding animal,” he told Sky
News.
“He’s a massive lamb with great confirmation and character,
some of which is what breeding is all about.
“But with the pedigree you start looking at the smaller
details of the lamb – you look at his head, the hair colour, the colour around
his eyes, legs, he was just perfect in every way.”
The initial price for the sheep was £10,000 but it had
escalated amid intense competition between different parties.
According to the Texel Sheep Society, Double Diamond surpassed the £230,000, which
was the previous record for a sheep sold at auction in 2009.
Aiken revealed that the six-month-old animal will travel
between flocks over the next few months to mate with the different ewes,
expressing hope that they will recover the money spent in the long run.
“Hopefully he’ll live for a long time and as long as he’s
fit and healthy, we’ll keep using him and breeding with him,” he added.
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