526 Journal of the Department of Agriculture. 



shear every six mouths, as the fleece is incliued to mat if left for a 

 whole year, and as the sheep undoubtedly do better if shorn twice in 

 twelve months. Just after shearing, karakul sheep cannot stand wet 

 cold, being like Angora goats in this respect, and sliould be treated in 

 the same way. Every breeder should allow his adult sheep to go for 

 a whole year without shearing once when they are still young, as this 

 will enable him to find out much information as to the length of 

 staple, which would help him with his mating and prevent many 

 "corkscrew" lambs from being born. It will also show him clearly 

 which are his really clean-haired sheep, as they will mate far less 

 than those which have woolliness in their fleece. 



The Value of the Fleece. — Before the war the fleece of the adult 

 sheep realized about 4|d. to 6d. per lb., and was used for various 

 purposes, such as stuffing saddles, etc. The war caused a consider.-^ble 

 rise in the value of the fleece, and up to 12Ad. was obtained for the 

 Grootfontein clip. The flist hair of the lambs, and the second to an 

 extent, appear to be the most valuable, as they are softer, less kempy, 

 and more uniform in texture than the subsequent growths. The staple 

 of the adult sheep, if allowed to grow for twelve months obtains a 

 leng'th of from 7 to 14 inches, while the weight of the fleece is about 

 5 lb. The heaviest clipped on Grootfontein weighed 9 lb. 



The Ampufaiion of the Eice Lambs' Tails. — As the tails of the 

 adult sheep are often of such a size as to interfere with the act of 

 mating, some difficulty was experienced in getting some ewes in lamb 

 when these investigations were first begun. Hand serving had to be 

 done and much time expended. It was, therefore, decided to cut 

 back the tails of all the ewe lambs, and after several methods had 

 been tried the following, evolved in the South-West Protectorate 

 flock, was finally adopted. The lamb is held in the usual way when 

 tailing or castrating by an assistant and the tail is tlioroughlj- washed 

 with a disinfectant by tlie operator. The tail is then laid in the palm 

 of the hand of the operator to allow the bony axis to assume its normal 

 position, and is then firmly grasped at its base, right against the 

 body of the lamb, by the assistant who is holding the lamb. The 

 operator, holding the tail in his left hand, ligatures the arteries which 

 run very close to the caudal vertebral column, as follows : A half- 

 circle surgical needle, threaded with strong twine or plaited silk, 

 which has been dipped in disinfectant, is passed from the one side of 

 the bone, round the back of it, and out again on the other side of 

 the bone. (The needle is inserted about one-third of an inch from the 

 bone, and should reappear about the same distance from it on the 

 other side; it need not appear outside the skin at the under side of 

 the tail at all. The silk having thus been passed round the bone and 

 arteries, is tied as tightly as the operator can tie it. This ligature 

 prevents any bleeding from the only artei-ies which matter. The 

 operator now feels for the second or third join between the vertebrae 

 of the tail, counting from its base, and, having found such a join, 

 he proceeds to cut through it and then cuts away the flesh and fatty 

 'matter on both sides. (A scalpel or castrating knife can be used for 

 this operation, and all the operator has to be careful about is that 

 he does not strike the bone itself, as the lambs seem to suffer from the 

 bone shock, which is very often fatal.) Having cut off the tail three 

 stitches are put in to draw the flaps of the skin together, one in the 

 centre opposite the severed bonj- axis; and one about half-way betv^•een 



