SHEEP 



355 



often debates between scrubs, grades or pure breds. No right 

 thinking man expects or intends to keep on raising scrubs, and 

 if he starts with grade ewes he must give some consideration 

 to the predominant blood which they are carrying. If the 

 future floclmiaster has absolutely no laiowledge of the care 

 and management of sheep it is always advisable to start con- 

 servatively ; the necessary experience will then not be so dearly 

 bought. 



For the average farm good grade ewes of mutton type headed 

 by a pure bred ram, of any of the popular mutton-breeds will 

 do very nicely for a beginning. Later a few pure bred ewes, of 



Fig. 181. — Noting widlli 



iind smoothness of shoulder. 



the same breed as the ram, may be added. Age is an important 

 factor in selecting breeders. Two years old is very acceptable 

 for foundation material ; by that time they are proven breeders, 

 with the greater part of their usefulness still ahead of them. 

 Both ewes and rams will begin to go down hill some after they 

 have passed their fifth or sixth year; this is much more pro- 

 nounced in the case of the ewes. Sheep get their first pair of 

 permanent incisor teeth at one year ; they get an additional pair 

 of permanent incisors every succeeding year, until they have a 

 total of four pairs of permanent incisors. There will always be 



