CURROW HILL RANCH
Romeldales and California Variegated Mutant Sheep
Romeldales were developed by A. T. Spencer in 1915. Spencer saw some New Zealand Romney rams at the Pan American Exposition and thought that they would be good to cross with his flock of Rambouillet ewes. The fine wooled Rambouillet is a French merino sheep, and the Romney is an old long wool breed from Great Britain which has lived in the Romney Marsh for as long as anyone knows. Romeldale fleece is fine and can be any color, or spotted. California Variegated Mutant Sheep, known as CVMs, are part of the Romeldale breed. CVMs are usually shades of gray on their body with black legs, nose, and ears and with a badger facial pattern.
The history of the CVM sheep started In the 1960s when a flock of Romeldales, owned by J.K. Sexton and Glenn Eidman, produced a multicolored ewe lamb. Against Sexton's wishes, Eidman secretly saved this ewe and two years later a similar ram lamb was born.
The secret was not kept for very long when Eidman bred these two together and produced a flock of exceptional sheep that he called California Variegated Mutants, or CVMs. For 15 years, no replacement ewes or rams were sold, in order to develop the qualities that these sheep are now known for.
In 1982, the flock was dispersed -- to California residents, only --and the breed was almost lost.
Now, it seems as if most of the CVM sheep are located in Oregon and Washington, although there is a large flock in Alabama.
CVMs are listed as a rare breed and there are a number of people who are dedicated to its continuance. CVMs are registered with the American Romeldale/CVM Association.
We started our flock, a few years ago, with 3 CVM ewes and 1 CVM ram from Washington state. We have kept our ewe lambs and have added 2 Romeldale rams. One of these rams is colored in shades of charcoal gray and the other is spotted with gray, black, and white.