JUDGING LIVE STOCK. 179 



let down between his short front legs along with a round 

 spring of rib and thick heart girth are indications of con- 

 stitution. A ram lacking in these requirements should not be 

 placed at the head of a flock. Following these points are a 

 strong, wide, level back and loin, a deep body set on short, 

 straight, strong, fine-boned legs with strong, upright pasterns. 

 Be sure to examine pasterns, as these are very important and 

 are oftentimes overlooked by the judge. Heavy, overdone 

 show sheep oftentimes possess broken down pasterns, and are 

 valueless as sires. The ram should evidence quality in fine- 

 ness of wool, color of skin and fineness of bone. His flesh 

 should be fine and evenly laid on all parts of the body. Too 

 often an overfitted show sheep is bare on back and shoulder 

 owing to "slipping," when bunches of fat will be found on 

 different parts of body, especially at the front flank and on 

 the ribs. Discountenance this kind of sheep as a sire. A 

 dense elastic fleece is most desirable. If he belongs to a 

 breed with wool covering on the head, the more havily cov- 

 red, the better is it liked. It is important that the belly be 

 well covered, as this indicates constitution and power to 

 withstand exposure qualities which he will transmit to his 

 progeny. The animal of the form thus described should sire 

 strong, healthy, early maturing lambs, valuable to both breed- 

 er and feeder. 



Judging the Breeding Ewe.. The ewe, too, must conform 

 to the breed type. Unlike the ram she must be feminine in 

 character. The head must be longer and slimmer and the 

 neck, too, must have an absence of the thickness character- 

 istic of the ram. She should have a deep, broad chest, and 

 deep, long body to provide room for developing a large, 

 strong foetus. Early maturity is brought about by good 

 feeding. The ewe must be a good milker and should show 

 somewhat the wedge shape of the dairy cow. Her flesh 

 should be put on evenly and, as in the ram, there should 

 be no evidences of "slipping" due to falling away of flesh from 

 the back. 



The throat of both male and female should be examined 

 to ascertain if affected with goitre, which is an enlargement 

 of the thyroid glands in the throat. 



Judging Lambs. In this class, the judge often has diffi- 

 culty because of differences in age of the contestants. Of 

 course due allowances must be made. As to what the lambs 



