The Drysdale is a New Zealand breed of sheep.

It was developed from 1931 by Francis Dry, and derives from sheep of the New Zealand Romney breed in which a mutation caused the coat to be particularly hairy, and thus suitable for carpet-making.

[4]: 31 Francis Dry in 1931 noticed a genetic freak, a Romney ram with a high percentage of very coarse wool.

Crossing two Romneys and Cheviots resulted in a sheep with a lot of coarse fleece which is about 6 kg (13 lb) with a 40 microns[6] fibre diameter[7] and a staple of 200 to 300 mm (7.9 to 11.8 in).

The coarse wool gene causes both male and female Drysdales to be horned.