Navajo-Churro sheep descend from one of the historic Iberian Churra breeds, first brought to the American Southwest in the late 16th century during the period of Spanish colonization. Churra sheep showed exceptional hardiness and adaptability.
In the Southwest they adapted to the high desert, with cold winters, sparse rainfall, and little food. The Spanish also brought Churra sheep to what is now the Southeastern United States, where they adapted to high heat and humidity, becoming progenitors of two new breeds there, the Florida Cracker and the Gulf Coast Native.
This group of Navajo-Churro sheep shows some of the rich variety of natural color provided by the breed
The development and history of the Navajo-Churro breed deserves a full-length book, as it intertwines with the stories of Hispanic Southwestern communities and of the Navajo people. A thoughtful short history is offered by the Navajo-Churro Sheep Association. The name of the breed recognizes the role of both peoples in the creation and survival of these sheep.
That survival has sometimes hung by a thread, and the breed is listed as threatened by the Livestock Conservancy.
Navajo-Churro fleeces are double-coated, with a coarser, longer outercoat and a finer, shorter undercoat. A spinner will usually separate the two coats. The outercoat can be used to make stronger, coarser yarns, with finer yarns coming from the undercoat fibers. There is a great deal of variation among sheep, though, and some fleeces may be considerably finer and softer than others. When spinning Navajo-Churro for a specific project, such as making colcha embroidery yarn, examining each fleece will show what it is best-suited to produce.
One cherished form of variety among Navajo-Churro is color. Natural shades include a range from white through pale grey to dark grey and black, as well as shades of tan and brown that can include hints of red. By dying over multiple natural colors, such as white and paler greys, the artist can get a richly heathered palate allowing for subtle gradation and shading.
