Four flocks of sheep in Drenthe receive a joint subsidy of 17,500 euros from the Dinamo (Animals, Nature, Monuments) Fund. It concerns the herds in Ruinen, Gasselte, Exloo and Orvelte.
The herds of Ruinen, Exloo and Orvelte will each receive 5,000 euros. 2,500 euros will go to Gasselte. The four flocks of sheep graze 4,200 hectares of heath and nature reserves. In total, the herds number 1,300 sheep, both the Drents Heideschaap and the Schoonebeker Heideschaap.
The money is intended for the welfare of heath sheep. “For example for the costs of a vet,” explains Dinamo Fund director Henk Atze Dijkstra. “But also for medicines, vaccinations and research into diseases.” The money that Gasselte’s herd receives is also partly intended for wolf-resistant fencing.
According to Dijkstra, a subsidy of 17,500 euros for the Drenthe herds is not enough. “More money is needed,” he says. “But this is a start, so that the herds receive some compensation. Because of corona, the lamb days and sheep shearing parties often did not take place in the past two years. Normally they earned a little extra.”
The Dinamo Fund considers it important that the heath sheep are supported. “The Drents Heideschaap is the oldest breed of sheep in Western Europe.” According to Dijkstra, the sheep breed was in danger of being lost in the 1960s, when old shepherds disappeared. “That’s why all these foundations have been set up now, to keep the herds for the villages and the moors. We have to keep that group together.”
The heath sheep are also important for nature management and biodiversity, says Dijkstra. “As anti-nitrogen damage grazers, they are indispensable.” Heather sheep are trained to keep the heath well bare. “Because nitrogen settles in an area, the soil is actually ‘fertilized’. New grass is then added, at a rapid pace. So that has to be eaten quickly.”
The Dinamo Fund also allocates money for herds outside Drenthe. It concerns fifteen herds, spread over four provinces. In total, the herds receive 92,000 euros.