Sheep

The Biggest Animals Kingdom and in The World | Sheep | Domestic sheep are relatively small ruminants, usually with a crimped hair called wool and often with horns forming a lateral spiral. A few primitive breeds of sheep retain some of the characteristics of their wild cousins, such as short tails. Depending on breed, domestic sheep may have no horns at all (i.e. polled), or horns in both sexes, or in males only. Most horned breeds have a single pair, but a few breeds may have several. Wild sheep are largely variations of brown hues, and variation within species is extremely limited. Depending on breed, sheep show a range of heights and weights When all deciduous teeth have erupted, the sheep has 20 teeth. Mature sheep have 32 teeth. Sheep have horizontal slit-shaped pupils, possessing excellent peripheral vision; with visual fields of approximately 270° to 320°, sheep can see behind themselves without turning their heads. Sheep have poor depth perception; shadows and dips in the ground may cause sheep to baulk.

The domestic sheep is a multi-purpose animal, and the more than 200 breeds now in existence were created to serve these diverse purposes. Breeds are often categorized by the type of their wool. Downs breeds have wool between the extremes, and are typically fast-growing meat and ram breeds with dark faces. Long wool breeds are the largest of sheep, with long wool and a slow rate of growth. Long wool sheep are most valued for crossbreeding to improve the attributes of other sheep types. For example: the American Columbia breed was developed by crossing Lincoln rams (a long wool breed) with fine-wooled Rambouillet ewes.Coarse or carpet wool sheep are those with a medium to long length wool of characteristic coarseness. Others have always been primarily meat-class sheep.

A minor class of sheep are the dairy breeds. Dual-purpose breeds that may primarily be meat or wool sheep are often used secondarily as milking animals, but there are a few breeds that are predominantly used for milking. These sheep do produce a higher quantity of milk and have slightly longer lactation curves. In the quality of their milk, fat and protein content percentages of dairy sheep vary from non-dairy breeds but lactose content does not.A last group of sheep breeds is that of fur or hair sheep, which do not grow wool at all. Hair sheep are similar to the early domesticated sheep kept before woolly breeds were developed, and are raised for meat and pelts. Some modern breeds of hair sheep, such as the Dorper, result from crosses between wool and hair breeds. Hair sheep are also more resistant to parasites and hot weather.

The Rare Breeds Survival Trust of the UK lists 22 native breeds as having only 3,000 registered animals (each), and the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy lists 14 as having fewer than 10,000 Preferences for breeds with uniform characteristics and fast growth have pushed heritage (or heirloom) breeds to the margins of the sheep industry. Sheep are prey animals with a strong gregarious instinct, and much of sheep behavior can be understood in these terms. All sheep have a tendency to congregate close to other members of a flock, although this behavior varies with breed Sheep are also extremely food-oriented, and association of humans with regular feeding often results in sheep soliciting people for food. Those who are moving sheep may exploit this behavior by leading sheep with buckets of feed, rather than forcing their movements with herding. In regions where sheep have no natural predators, none of the native breeds of sheep exhibit a strong flocking behavior. Flock dynamics in sheep are, as a rule, only exhibited in a group of four or more sheep. Fewer sheep may not react as normally expected when alone or with few other sheep.

In displaying flocking, sheep have a strong lead-follow tendency, and a leader often as not is simply the first sheep to move. However, sheep do establish a pecking order through physical displays of dominance. Sheep can become stressed when separated from their flock members Sheep can recognize individual human and ovine faces, and remember them for years. Relationships in flocks tend to be closest among related sheep: in mixed-breed flocks same-breed subgroups tend to form, and a ewe and her direct descendants often move as a unit within large flocks. Sheep are frequently thought of as unintelligent animals. If worked with patiently, sheep may learn their names, and many sheep are trained to be led by halter for showing and other purposes. Sheep have also responded well to clicker training. Very rarely, sheep are used as pack animals. Sheep follow a similar reproductive strategy to other herd animals. Most sheep are seasonal breeders, although some are able to breed year-round.

In feral sheep, rams may fight during the rut to determine which individuals may mate with ewes. Although some breeds regularly throw larger litters of lambs, most produce single or twin lambs. By selectively breeding ewes that produce multiple offspring with higher birth weights for generations, sheep producers have inadvertently caused some domestic sheep to have difficulty lambing; balancing ease of lambing with high productivity is one of the dilemmas of sheep breeding. Sheep meat prepared for food is known as either mutton or lamb. Throughout modern history, "mutton" has been limited to the meat of mature sheep usually at least two years of age "lamb" is used for that of immature sheep less than a year.This often reflects a history of sheep production. Sheep testicles called animelles or lamb fries are considered a delicacy in many parts of the world. Perhaps the most unusual dish of sheep meat is the Scottish haggis, composed of various sheep innards cooked along with oatmeal and chopped onions inside its stomach. Sheep have only two teats, and produce a far smaller volume of milk than cows. Yogurts, especially some forms of strained yogurt, may also be made from sheep milk.