Sheep: Characteristics, Diet & Domestic vs. Wild

Sheep

Introduction to Sheep

Sheep, a mammal that is closely related to the goat. Sheep, like cattle, are ruminants; that is, they chew a cud. Their stomachs have four chambers for digesting the grass and other plant material they eat. Their hooves are split into two parts, making them cloven-hoofed.

There are both domestic sheep and wild sheep, and there is a great difference in their appearance. Domestic sheep have long tails (which are usually removed at an early age) and, usually, a woolly coat; wild sheep have shorter tails and a coat made up of stiff hairs. Male sheep are called rams; females, ewes. Domestic sheep under one year old are usually called lambs.

Domestic Sheep

Sheep have a natural inclination to assemble in flocks and to follow a leader—characteristics that enable a lone shepherd to handle hundreds of them. Sheep have been domesticated since very early in human history.

Importance

Sheep are raised in almost all parts of the world, especially in temperate regions. They provide humans with food, clothing, and many other products. The flesh of young sheep is called lamb; the flesh of older sheep, mutton. Sheep's wool is sheared from their bodies and can be woven into various types of fabrics and carpets. The skins of sheep are used to make numerous leather goods, such as shoes, coats, gloves, and hats. Furs obtained from sheep may be unsheared or sheared.

Description

Mature ewes generally weigh from 120 to 250 pounds (55 to 115 kg). Mature rams range from 175 pounds (80 kg) to 350 pounds (160 kg) or more. Weight depends on the breed and the individual. The fleece is usually white but sometimes gray, tan, or black. Some sheep have fleece covering the head and legs, others do not. In some breeds the hind legs are covered with fleece while the forelegs are bare of wool and covered with hair. In those that have bare faces or legs, or both, legs and faces may be white, black, gray or brown. Some breeds have horns (usually a single pair); others do not. In some breeds only the males are horned; in others, both sexes are.

Breeds

There are more than 200 breeds of domestic sheep, but only about a dozen are of significant economic importance. The various breeds can be classified in many different ways. A common way of classifying breeds is by the products for which they are primarily raised, as follows:

Wool-producing

These breeds are raised primarily for their fine wool. To this category belongs the most famous of all breeds—the Merino, which produces the finest wool. This breed was developed in Spain and has been the basic stock for the development of other types of Merinos, including the American Merino and the Delaine Merino.

Fur-producing

The only breed that is raised primarily for its fur is the Karakul.

Meat-producing

Most of these breeds are of English origin. They are raised primarily for their meat, although their wool is used also. Included in this group is the Hampshire breed. Hampshires have black or brown faces. The lambs grow exceptionally fast and produce meat of fine quality. Other breeds in this group are the Suffolk, Oxford, Southdown, and Dorset.

Dual-purpose

These breeds are raised both for their wool, which is of a good quality, and for their meat. The Rambouillet is a dual-purpose breed developed from the Spanish Merino. The Rambouillet has also been extensively used for crossbreeding. The rams usually have large spiral horns; some ewes have stubby horns, but most are hornless. The Corriedale, developed in New Zealand, is considered a good dual-purpose breed. This white-faced breed has fairly long wool covering the body. Horns are lacking in both sexes. Other dual-purpose breeds are the Columbia and Romney.

Triple-purpose

These breeds are raised primarily in Europe and the Near East. They are raised for their milk as well as for their meat and wool.

Some highly specialized breeds are raised primarily for their milk. Examples are the Awassi and the East Friesian. Some breeds in northern Africa and in Asia produce a coarse wool especially suited to carpet making. Many of these breeds store fat in their tails and are called “fat-tailed” breeds.

Sheep Raising

In the United States, sheep are raised in practically every state, primarily for meat. Some sheep raisers specialize in purebred stock for breeding purposes.

Sheep are usually bred during the late summer or early fall. Some, however, are bred twice a year. Only one ram is needed for a flock of about 35 to 50 ewes. The lambs are born after a gestation period of about five months. Single births are usual, but twins or triplets are not uncommon. For cleanliness, lambs' tails, which would otherwise grow quite long, are usually docked (cut off) within the first two weeks. For better meat production and easier management, male lambs raised for meat are castrated; they are then called wethers.

Lambs raised for meat are marketed when they are four to seven months old. Those weighing about 100 to 120 pounds (45 to 54 kg) are sold to packinghouses. Smaller ones are sold to “feeders” who take them to feedlots where they are ted grain for rapid weight increase. While meat is the primary product, the wool, skin, bones, intestines, and other parts of the slaughtered lambs are used for various products.

Lambs allowed to reach maturity are raised for breeding and for their wool. Some are also raised for mutton. Sheep are usually shorn of their wool in the spring but sometimes in both spring and fall.

The size of flocks varies greatly. Farm flocks are usually small, ranging from 10 to several hundred animals. Range flocks, consisting of some 2,000 to 10,000 or more sheep, are raised on the open range where they feed on pasture. In these flocks the ewes usually give birth on the open range but in some cases may be provided with sheds. Farm flocks, on the other hand, are allowed to graze on pastures at certain times of the year, but at other times are provided with sheep barns and with feed such as alfalfa, clover, or silage. The ewes generally give birth in the sheep barns.

Although sheep require little care except at lambing time, they are susceptible to various diseases. These include foot rot, foot-and-mouth disease, internal parasites, bloat, and infestation with ticks, lice, mites, grubs, and maggots.

History

There were domesticated sheep in southwestern Asia about 11,000 years ago. The origin of domestic sheep is not definitely known, but most zoologists believe that they are descendants of relatives of the wild sheep known as urial, argali, and mouflon. Domestic sheep spread from Asia to Europe between 3000 and 1000 B.C.; they were brought to Europe by the ancient Greeks. Sheep were important animals in Biblical times and figure in Jewish and Christian symbolism.

The first sheep were brought to the New World by Columbus on his second voyage in 1493. In what became the United States, the first sheep were introduced, into the Southwest, in the early 16th century by Spanish troops. The American colonies had sheep early in their history.

Wild Sheep

Wild sheep are found in North America, Asia, northern Africa, and certain parts of Europe. They are of no commercial importance although in Africa and Asia they are sometimes killed for their meat and hides. There are eight species. Wild sheep range in body length from about 4 feet (1.2 m) to more than 6 feet (1.8 m), not including a 3- to 10-inch (7.5- to 25-cm) tail. Weight is from about 110 to 440 pounds (50-200 kg), depending on the species, individual, and sex. Wild sheep, like domestic sheep, live in flocks. Often it is difficult to tell wild sheep from wild goats; the two are closely related.

The aoudad, or Barbary sheep, lives in rough, barren, rocky areas of northern Africa. It has a reddish-tan color and a unique feature—a mane of long, soft hairs on the throat, chest, and upper parts of the forelegs. The horns, found on both male and female, are heavy and ridged and curve outward, backward, and then inward.

The bharal, also called burrhel, or blue sheep, is found in central Asia at elevations of about 12,000 to 16,000 feet (3,700-4,900 m). This species is distinguished by the shape of its horns, which are rounded and smooth, and curve backward and outward. They are borne by both sexes. The animal is blue-gray on the upper body and on the outside of the legs. The underparts and inside of the legs are white.

The other six species of wild sheep are all of the same genus and are sometimes referred to collectively as true sheep. This genus includes the bighorn sheep, Dall sheep, argali, urial (also called red sheep and Asiatic mouflon), Laristan sheep, and mouflon. In these species, color varies from whitish to gray or brown. Some have lighter markings. The males have massive spiral horns; the females have short horns that are only slightly curved. These sheep are found in fairly dry upland and mountainous areas. (It is from members of this genus that most zoologists believe the domestic sheep developed.)

Two species are found in North America—the bighorn sheep and the Dall sheep. The Dall sheep is found in Alaska and northwestern Canada. It is usually white all over, although gray individuals are found occasionally.

The domestic sheep and true sheep belong to the genus Ovis. The domestic sheep is O. aries; the Dall sheep, O. dallii. The bharal is Pseudois nayaur, the aoudad, Ammotragus lervia. All are of the family Bovidae.