Pastoralism and Rangeland Management on the Tibetan Plateau in ...

2.2.3 Wool <strong>and</strong> hair
Goat hair is mainly used in rope-making <strong>and</strong> rug-making for domestic use.
Woollen h<strong>and</strong>icrafts are traditionally produced for marketing in Gilgit-
Baltistan <strong>and</strong> Chitral since long. Wearing local woollen caps is a tradition
followed by almost every local inhabitant irrespective of status. These products
are not only locally used, but are also famous in the surrounding regions <strong>and</strong>
are regarded as distinguishing feature at national level.
The raw wool grading is generally based on the part of the body of the sheep
from which the fleece is obtained. The best quality wool is obtained from a
lamb which is used for sweater, socks, gloves, muffler etc. for marketing <strong>and</strong>
makes about 10 % of the total wool production. The fleece obtained from the
back <strong>and</strong> neck of the adult sheep is mostly graded medium for patti/pattu making
for marketing <strong>and</strong> that makes about 80 % of the total wool production.
The remaining 10 % of the total fleece is obtained from other parts, limbs,
belly etc, graded as poor quality, <strong>and</strong> is used for carpets, foot-wears, blankets
etc at the domestic level. Wool can naturally be white <strong>and</strong> grey; however, it
is also traditionally coloured brown through the use of walnut barks. As the
commercial production of local woollen h<strong>and</strong>icrafts was practiced since long,
hence many organizations intervened to improve the quality <strong>and</strong> marketing.
During the course of time certain valleys were advantageous over the other
mainly because of the fineness of available wool <strong>and</strong> the special technique the
artisan for its transform into woolen cloth. One of such valleys famous for its
woollen products nationally <strong>and</strong> internationally is Garam Chashma (Lutkoh)
in Lower Chitral.
2.2.4 The local sheep breed <strong>and</strong> quality of wool
The local sheep is a non-descript breed known as kari sheep that can gestate
thrice a year. The wool fibre produced on the body of kari sheep is one of
the finest at the national level <strong>and</strong> matches the Australian Merino in qualityparameters.
Kari is one of the smallest sheep breed <strong>and</strong> the adult male may
weigh up to 18 kg <strong>and</strong> adult female up to 15 kg. In spite of the emphasis on wool
production additional quality the parameters of weight gain <strong>and</strong> quality of the
fibre are traditionally regarded as secondary to selection traits of the species.
The breeding programme <strong>and</strong> the efficient regeneration of the animal herds is
the primary consideration for selection. The breed has a high scientific value for
its endemism <strong>and</strong> high breeding potential <strong>and</strong> further studies are being pursued
for describing <strong>and</strong> patenting the kari breed under the Intellectual Property
Ordinance. However, the sheep bears quite a few problems for its effects of
in-breeding, mal-nutrition, mineral deficiency, infestations, ill-housing etc. All
mentioned factors affect the regeneration vigour <strong>and</strong> wool quality.
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