"The little flock with big numbers."
Purebred Polypay Sheep
Welcome
West Cyclone Farm sits at the west edge of Harlan, IA. A farm it is not; but a great family acreage better describes it. It started with 4-H although all of are kids are grown up and on their own now. We have utilized the National Sheep Improvement Program since we started in 1992 and continue to select sheep on structural soundness and EPDs. Polypay is a versatile breed being used as both dual purpose and maternal sheep. Since 75% of our rams are purchased as maternal rams by large commercial flocks, we focus on strong maternal traits and out of season breeding.
We have sold ram and ewe lambs to 20 states and Canada.  West Cyclone (WC) bred rams are currently sires in several purebred flocks.  No one can select a ram before we have finished our 120-day weights.  Most of our rams are sold before they are 8 months of age.  We do take reservations on ewe lambs.  Please call for more information.
Breed History

The Polypay was born out of frustration and a dream in the the late 1960's. The frustration was in needing more productive sheep to make a profit. The dream was to develop sheep which would produce two lamb crops and one wool crop per year.

The gene pool was developed from four existing breeds: Finn sheep with their high prolificacy, early puberty and short gestation; Rambouillet with their adaptability, hardiness, productivity and quality fleeces; Targhee with their large body size, long breeding season and quality fleeces and Dorset with their superior mothering ability, carcass quality, early puberty and long breeding season.

The first crosses were made in 1968 and the first 4-breed composites were made in 1970. The name Polypay was coined in 1975 from POLY, meaning multiple, and PAY, meaning return on labor and investment. The American Polypay Sheep Association was organized in 1980. Polypay sheep have shown themselves to be adaptable to diverse operations from range flocks to farm flocks. There are now Polypay breeders throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico. Recently Polypay breeding stock have been exported to South America. Polypay sheep and their breeders continue to work hard to live up to their motto: "Tomorrow's Sheep Today".  
This website was last updated: June 7, 2010