396 



Effective Farming 



middle-wool breeds; it is usually short, rather thin, and not 

 well distributed over the body. 



Oxford. Formed by crossing Hampshires and Cotswolds, 

 a long-wool sheep, the Oxford has become one of the important 

 breeds. The animals are the largest of the middle-wool breeds, 

 rams weighing from two hundred fifty to three hundred fifty 

 pounds and ewes from one hundred eighty to two hundred 

 seventy-five pounds. These sheep are especially well de- 

 veloped in back, loin, and hindquarters. In appearance of 

 head they somewhat resemble the Shropshire, although the 

 head is longer and is wooled only down to the eyes. The 

 remainder of the face is covered with light-brown hair. The 

 ears are longer than those of the Shropshire and are covered 

 with hair. The legs are covered with hair, also. The fleece is 

 long and coarse, aver- 

 aging about 10 per cent 

 heavier than that of the 

 Shropshire. It is usu- 

 ally somewhat open, 

 but is close enough for 

 the protection of the 

 animals. 



Dorset. A distin- 

 guishing feature of the 

 Dorset breed (Fig. 172) 

 is that both ewes and 

 rams have horns. The 

 form of the animal is 

 similar to that of the Shropshire, but is somewhat less sym- 

 metrical. The ears, legs, and face, except a foretop of wool, 

 are covered with fine white hair. The skin of the nose is 

 usually pink. In size the animals are medium, the rams 

 weighing about two hundred pounds and the ewes one hun- 

 dred sixty pounds. The fleece is medium in coarseness and 

 length; it often lacks density and is not evenly distributed, 



FIG. 172. Dorset ewes. 



