34 PROBLEMS IN THE IMPROVEMENT OF SHEEP, , 



cost he was willing to pay and in such a way that he got it with 

 less trouble than he could have secured it, or an equally desirable 

 substitute, from other known sources. 



Man may not have demanded much from sheep and he may not 

 have removed them far from their natural habitat in the early 

 stages of domestication. Hence, adaptability may not have been a 

 serious problem at first. But as they were moved out of their 

 natural environment under the guidance of man into lands differ- 

 ent in altitude, soil, climate and vegetation, and as the demands on 

 them for such products as wool, milk, and meat become greater than 

 what they had yielded in the wild, then undoubtedly the serious 

 side of the question of adaptability arose; then attention had to 

 be given to such things as constitution, hardiness, and fecundity. 



In Italy, fine-wool sheep were developed, but at the sacrifice of a 

 high degree of adaptability, for the ewes were very poor mothers 

 and the lambs were delicate. The ewes often had difficulty in par- 

 turition; they were very deficient in the milking function, and 

 they frequently refused to own their lambs. To a certain extent 

 the Merinos of Spain possessed the same faults, for it was said that 

 frequently a percentage of their lambs were deliberately killed in 

 order to allow each remaining lamb to suckle two ewes. In both 

 Italy and Spain conditions seemingly were such as to permit the 

 sheep industry to prosper with this low degree of adaptability, but 

 the fact that it is recorded in history shows that it received some 

 attention. Spanish owners seemed to think that much travelling 

 added to the hardiness of their sheep, and undoubtedly dropping 

 along the wayside lambs unable to make the marches, helped to keep 

 up a stronger race for the conditions! to which their flocks were 

 subjected. 



At an early time in England severe winters, scarcity of feed in 

 winter, and foot rot weeded out the weak sheep, and frequently 

 conditions were so severe that many of the very strongest animals 

 died. Dealing with adversities, the English sheep farmer thor- 

 oughly learned the importance of constitution and hardiness, and 

 if he has neglected these characteristics at any time he has done so 

 with his eyes open. He has done a great deal, indeed, in finding or 

 evolving breeds adapted to different altitudes. Though England is 

 a small country, the breeds on mountains, hills, and lowlands are 

 markedly different and in such a way as to show that adaptability is 

 the main cause. 



