JUDGING MUTTON SHEEP 275 



animal. It is necessary to handle every part of the sheep to 

 determine its form. Therefore, sheep judging is done more 

 with the hand than with the eye. To add to the difficulty 

 of judging sheep by outside appearances nearly all showmen 

 trim their sheep before placing them on exhibition. It is 

 thus possible to cover up any weak points in the animal, and 

 to make judging by any other method than that of handling 

 absolutely impossible. 



In handling sheep do not disturb or break the fleece. Hold 

 the hand flat with the fingers together in a sloping manner. 

 Press the hand over the fleece and feel the form in this man- 

 ner. Do not stick the fingers into the fleece, it makes breaks 

 and allows both dirt and water to enter. When studying 

 the length of wool, place the two hands, palms downward, 

 over the spot to be examined and separate the wool by slowly 

 moving the hands apart while firmly pressing the wool. This 

 spreads the fleece naturally and does not injure it in any way. 



The accompanying photographs, Figs. 22 and 23, show the 

 location of the points described on the score card that should 

 be observed in judging a mutton sheep. 



General Appearance 38 Per Cent. Most mutton sheep are 

 sold on the market while they are lambs, under one year of age. 

 Lambs weighing in the neighborhood of eighty pounds usually 

 sell at the highest price on the market. In general appear- 

 ance the mutton sheep should present a fullness and smooth- 

 ness of outline which indicates thick and evenly distributed 

 flesh. The animal should show good quality, as indicated 

 by a clean bone, silky fleece, and fine pink skin. 



Head and Neck 7 Per Cent. The head should show char- 

 acter and should be short and broad. The eyes should be 



