Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
TRAINING SHEEP FOR HANDLING
DURING A SHOW
Judges come up and handle sheep during a show. They feel along
the backbone and rump to determine how muscular or fat the
sheep is. Teaching Fluffy not to be upset when strange people han-
dle her just requires doing it — have
someone she doesn't know come out
and feel her body while she's standing
still.
Sheep that tighten their muscles
when the judge is handling them score
better because muscles feel fi rmer.
Getting Fluffy to tighten her muscles
isn't too hard once she's trained to
stand for handling. From a position
in front of Fluffy, place your hands on
either side of her neck and squeeze
gently but fi rmly. This forces her head
down and toward you, and she'll natu-
rally tighten up.
A
B
Judges typically run their hands down the
sheep's spine and hips to feel for condition.
The illustrations provide a cross-section view
of the spine and hips. A. This sheep is too
thin, with too much backbone protruding.
B. This sheep is a well-conditioned animal,
with just enough meat covering the backbone.
C. This sheep has too much fat covering the
backbone.
C
