Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Scientists consider sheep to be members of the family Bovidae, which includes
mammals that have hollow horns and four stomachs (ruminants). All sheep
are in the genus
Ovis,
and domestic sheep are classifi ed as
Ovis aries
.
The human need for animals isn't new: food, fi ber, traction (the ability
to do work, such as pulling, pushing, and carrying), and companionship led
humans to domesticate animals more than 15,000 years ago. Dogs were the
fi rst animals to be domesticated, but humans bonded with sheep and goats
early on as they settled into agriculturally based communities. Both sheep
and goats were domesticated about 10,000 years ago, according to the latest
theories.
Biologists believe that modern sheep are descended primarily from the
wild Moufl on sheep of western Asia, although other wild sheep (for instance,
the Urial of central Asia) may have been mixed in since domestication took
place. Some breeds, such as the Soay of Europe, still retain many of the char-
acteristics of their wild ancestors, but most modern breeds have changed sub-
stantially. Traits of wild sheep include naturally short, fat tails; coarse, hairy
outer coats; short, woolly undercoats; and great curling horns on the rams.
Wild sheep are endangered or threatened throughout the world.
poll
paunch
loin
point of hip
rump
dock
thigh
shoulder
twist
brisket
rear fl ank
rear leg
belly
foreleg
pastern
forefl ank
foot
Anatomy of a sheep
