610 ANNUAL. REPORT OF THE Off. Doc. 



Well, of course, I bad to say "no." And then he said, "It is a 

 small imitation of the real thing." An then I didn't feel quite so 

 big over my speech. 



And now, if you will bear with me a little while, I will get up 

 and speak my little piece. After listening to the gentleman who has 

 has just proceedd mo — I don't understand what he said, having never 

 been to school, but he tells me that they do hero, and everywhere 

 else, even down to Missouri, where they do feeding — I'm a little 

 timid about getting up, but if you'll bear with me just a little while, 

 and then ask questions — for if there is any place in the world that 

 I shine, it is right there, in answering questions. 



FITTING SHEEP FOE SHOW AND FOR MARKET. 



By DICK STONE. 



A Show Flock is among the most interesting exhibits found at 

 our State and county fairs, and shows the world OA'er. And to the 

 shepherds and many others it is a fascination. As I have often 

 remarked the fitting of stock for exhibition often means a sacrifice 

 of the cream of the flock. Nevertheless were the practice of showing 

 discontinued it would be a source of loss to the live stock industry 

 for the reason that the breeders would lose one of their best guides 

 to type. Hence the show yard is a necessary evil. To properly 

 feed and fit sheep for exhibition requires considerable skill. Where 

 different methods of fitting are employed not only are the animals' 

 chances of victory poor, but their reproductive organs are liable 

 to suffer in consequence. In feeding for the best results I feed con- 

 centrated foods, such as oats, oilmeal, peas and corn. Also the 

 most succulent, appetizing, nutritious and cooling rations such as 

 cabbage, rape, kale, turnips, mangolds and carrots, and these with 

 the utmost regularity. After the preliminary or outdoor fitting, 

 the show yard candidates are housed during the heat of the day 

 and allowed out in the paddock during the night chiefly for exercise. 

 Some little time previous to starting for the show they are blocked 

 out and trimmed and made very pleasing to the eye; after trim- 

 ming they are blanketed with the purpose of keeping the fleece 

 clean and making it compact and smooth. I always use a little color 

 by mixing yellow ochre and burnt umber. Mix it with water and 

 rub it into the fleece. It makes the sheep look fresh and nice. 

 The question is often asked. How much do you feed your show 

 sheep? The question is answered by saying we give them all they 

 will eat, and sometimes a little more. In feeding our show lambs 

 while they are sucking their mothers we make a creei> for them 

 to run in a little lot by themselves and feed the best we have — 

 ground oats, ground corn with a little oil cake sprinkled with a 

 little sugar. You cannot get you lambs too fat, but you must 

 watch your older ones or you will have too much blubber. The 

 question is too often asked me, when do you select your show sheep? 

 Almost as soon as they are born, and if we never made any mistakes 

 in our selections what a nice time we would have. I handle my 

 show sheep as much as possible, as handling them makes them 

 tame and manageable; although sheep are supposed to be a very 



