All About Sheep

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A female sheep is called a ewe.

A male sheep is called a ram.

By the way, some ewes grow horns, just like rams.

Sheep horns grow in a spiral shape. Some breeds of sheep can even grow four horns. Yes. Four horns!

Sheep can even become pets. In fact, they're quite silly and curious animals. They may sometimes scurry away from you.

Some sheep will trust you more if you hang out with them often and give them healthy bite-sized treats.

Sheep can have babies, called lambs, every year.

Sometimes lambs need help from a human to survive. 

Lambs suckle, or drink milk from their mothers, soon after they are born.

In case this happens, lambs are fed a special formula from a bottle.

Domestic sheep rely on us to care for them because they are not wild like their cousins in the wilderness.

This sheep was moved to a pasture, which has plenty of fresh green grass for it to eat.

Domestic sheep can live in barns. Farmers can also keep sheep in corrals, which are fenced spaces. Smaller enclosures are called pens. Farmers provide straw for sheep to sleep on at night.

Moving sheep from place to place is called herding.

Sheep love to graze, or eat grass outside in the open fields.

Sheep later spit up sticky wads of grass called cud. While resting, sheep chew the cud and swallow it again to fully digest everything.

A sheep has four chambers in its stomach that help break down grass after it is swallowed.

Sounds gross! However, this is totally normal for sheep.

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That's all we have to share about my sheep for today, folks.

That's right, I was your narrator all along. I'm ready to take a break from herding sheep. It's time to play with my trusty tennis ball. WOOF!

So you want to know all about sheep? You've come to the right place.

The answer is that sheep have lived all over the world for thousands of years. There are wild sheep that roam the mountains all around the world. However, we are going to talk about domestic sheep that live on farms.

Sheep provide wool that is made into cozy knits to wear at any time of the year.

Wool can be spun into yarn that is knitted or woven into rugs, sweaters, scarves, and mittens.

Wool is shaved off of the sheep and cleaned before being spun and dyed into different colors.

This keeps you nice and warm in the autumn and winter.

Why would we need to keep sheep in the first place?

Sheepdogs are trained dogs that help shepherds herd sheep.

Sheepdogs learn commands and whistles to be able to herd sheep. So what do sheep do when it's break time from sheepdogs and shepherds?

Sheepdogs also guard sheep against those pesky predators.

Shepherds are people who herd the sheep, care for them, and guard them from predators.

Shepherds, farmers, and animal vets also give sheep medicine so they can stay healthy. 

Predators of sheep include dogs, coyotes, wolves, and mountain lions.

Sheep provide meat for lunch or dinner. Sheep meat is called lamb or mutton.

Dairy sheep provide milk, which is sold at your local market. Sheep milk can also be used to make other dairy foods, like feta cheese and yogurt.

Sheep provide lanolin, or wool grease. Lanolin is collected using a special washing machine that separates the wool from the lanolin.

Lanolin is used in makeup, lotion, and even shoe polish.

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