30 Sheep facts

1. 30 Sheep facts By Austin Schley

2. Fact 1 • Ram male of breeding age  • Wether castrated male  • Ram lamb immature male  • Ewe lamb immature female  • Lamb newborn  • Flock group (3 or more)  • Tupping act of breeding  • Lambing act of parturition (giving birth) Birth weight 5 - 8 lb. Average number born 1.1 - 1.4 lambs/year Weaning age 2 - 3 months Pasture carrying capacity 5 - 6 ewes & lambs/acre

3. Fact 2 •  Birth weight 5 - 8 lb. Average number born 1.1 - 1.4 lambs/year Weaning age 2 - 3 months Pasture carrying capacity 5 - 6 ewes & lambs/acre

4. Fact 3 • Medium wool 1/4, 3/8, & ½ blood  • Long wool coarse, strong, luster, 12"/yr (English breeds)  • Carpet wool lowest quality Hair straight, non elastic & glossy  • Fine wool Merino (100%)

5. Fact 4 • People started raising sheep over ten thousand years ago.

6. Fact 5 • There are About 1 billion sheep on the planet

7. Fact 6 • There are About 900 different breeds of sheep

8. Fact 7 • One pound of wool can make ten miles of yarn.

9. Fact 8 • Lamb is the lowest in cholesterol of all red meats.

10. Fact 9 • Bits of sheep can also be found in tennis rackets (strings made of sheep guts), candles and soap (tallow rendered from sheep fat) and most cosmetics and skincare products (lanolin, an emollient found in sheep's wool).

11. Fact 10 • Approximately 8 percent of male sheep seek sex exclusively with other male sheep.

12. Fact 11 • There are over 40 breeds of sheep in the U.S. and approximately 900 different breeds around the world.

13. Fact 12 • The Navajo Churro is the oldest breed of sheep in the U.S.

14. Fact 13 • In sheep, the act of breeding is called “tubing.”

15. Fact 14 • Ewes cycle every 14-19 days during the breeding season.

16. Fact 15 • The duration of estrus is 24 to 36 hours. The time of ovulation is 24-30 from the beginning of estrus.

17. Fact 16 • In some countries, sheep are used for fighting as part of a celebratory festival such as Eid al adha, a Muslim Festival Sacrifice.

18. Fact 17 • Normally sheep have two teats and cows have four.

19. Fact 18 • Lambskin condoms are membrane condoms made from a thin layer of sheep cecum, a part of the intestine

20. Fact 19 • If you see a sheep on its back, lend a hand! A sheep can’t get up from that position. If left on its back too long, it will eventually die.

21. Fact 20 • A one-year old sheep is called a hogget

22. Fact 21 • A two-year old sheep is called a two-tooth

23. Fact 22 • Sheep have a field of vision of around 300 degrees, allowing them to see behind themselves without having to turn their head

24. Fact 23 • In 1996, a sheep named Dolly was the first mammal to be cloned from a somatic cell

25. Fact 24 • The digestive system of sheep features four chambers which help break down what they eat.

26. Fact 25 • Sheep theft is still legally a hangable offence in Scotland

27. Fact 26 • The largest wild sheep is the Argali of central Asia. It stands 1.2 m high and weighs over 140 kg (300 lb).

28. Fact 27 • Most ewes give birth to twins.

29. Fact 28 • A lamb drinks its mother's milk for about 4 months

30. Fact 29 • A sheep usually lives to be about eight years old

31. Fact 30 • For purpose of cleanliness, the tails are surgically shortened (docked) shortly after birth.

32. The End