lyoy.] SHEEP BREEDING. 253 



any mature sheep. If you can have roots in addition, perhaps 

 so much the better. I do not want to say that you must have 

 roots. I do not beHeve it is necessary, because we get suc- 

 culent food which they need in corn ensilage, and that will do 

 very well, but if in addition to that you can have roots it is 

 all the better. 



Then in regard to the care of sheep aside from the feeding. 

 Always keep them moving. Have their quarters always clean 

 and always dry. Wet backs and muddy feet mean loss in the 

 sheep-fold. They must be clean under foot and dry and they 

 must be protected from storms. Now how closely shall we 

 protect them? I just let the sheep be the judge of that, to a 

 certain extent, themselves. If they want to go out into the 

 snow I let them. I do not believe enough snow can fall on 

 their backs to injure them, but I do not want them out in a 

 cold bleak storm in the fall, because that, many times, means 

 disaster, and that is a place where a great many people make 

 a serious mistake. During a cold, rainy, wet spell the cows 

 will come up, and we put them into the stable. The horses will 

 come up under the barn, and to get rid of them we put them 

 in, but a great many think because sheep have a heavy 

 warm fleece of wool that they can go, that they do not need 

 any protection. That is a serious mistake, and yet that is just 

 what you do when you leave sheep out in the rain. They have 

 got to dry out that wet, clammy, cold fleece with the warmth 

 and heat and vitality that is in their bodies, and which they 

 need for their own use. They have to stand around waiting 

 for that to dry out, and until it is dried out they are not 

 comfortable. Stock which is uncomfortable cannot do well. 

 That is the kind of stock that you want to get up first. Let' 

 the cows and horses go until you can take care of them. That 

 means that the sheep breeder should always have a rack with 

 some of the best hay in the barn in it so that when they begin 

 to feel hungry they always know there is a light in the window 

 for them. Keep them comfortable and keep them growing 

 every day of their lives. 



Now we are ready to go back to those lambs. We should 

 have a dry sheep shed, free from drafts, and to prevent a draft 

 through it, do not allow windows on the opposite side to be 

 open. The best shed has only one opening out of it where the 

 wind can blow out. Let the shed have a wide door, so that 



