366 DOMESTIC ANIMALS, DAIRYING, ETC. 



always result where right methods are applied. Careful feeders by 

 giving strict attention to all essentials are able to make average gains 

 of 8 or 10 pounds per head monthly on range lambs and 10 to 15 

 pounds on well-bred mutton lambs. 



Requisites of a Good Shepherd. A flock of sheep can not be 

 handled or fattened successfully without a close observance of their 

 habits and peculiarities. There are a great many little things that 

 enter into the attention and management by a successful shepherd 

 that may seem trivial, yet they have much to do with the comfort, 

 thrift, and profit of the flock. The axiom that "The eye of the mas- 

 ter fattens" is nowhere more applicable than in the sheepfold. The 

 competent feeder acquires a trained eye, that detects at a glance any 

 evidence of disorder that will be manifest if a single animal is off of 

 feed or out of condition. To the unobserving or inexperienced feeder 

 sheep all look alike, but when rightly studied no class of stock pre- 

 sents more marked individual peculiarities or so clearly manifests 

 evidence of thrift and well-doing or the reverse. Attention to these 

 little details, accompanied by regular habits and a quiet manner, 

 constitutes the keynote of successful sheep feeding. Nothing con- 

 tributes more to good results than contentment and quiet surround- 

 ings. The feeder who disturbs the quiet and comfort of the flock 

 every time he goes about it should quit the sheep business at once. 

 Rough manners and harsh treatment absolutely disqualify any man 

 for success in this work. The natural timidity and nervous tem- 

 perament of the sheep necessitate gentle treatment. Their dainty 

 habits about eating and drinking must also be indulged as fully as 

 practicable. No animal naturally selects a wider variety of feed, 

 particularly of rough forage and vegetation ; but two essentials are 

 always exacted, viz., cleanliness and palatability. Never give a sheep 

 any stale or undesirable feed, nor expect it to eat any feed left over 

 from a previous meal. The ration should be always wholesome and 

 tempting to the appetite. The barn or stabling quarters should 

 never be without a fresh, pure atmosphere and an ample supply of 

 dry bedding. Sheep rarely suffer from cold if kept dry and pro- 

 tected from direct drafts. The open air is better than a poorly kept 

 shed or barn. (Agr. Dept. F. B. 96.) 



SHEEP ON THE RANGE. 



A great difference exists between eastern Nevada sheep ranges 

 and those of the Sierras. In the former, only about one-quarter the 

 number of sheep are grazed on the same area of range. This is due 

 to some extent to the greater scarcity of water and to the fewer num- 

 ber of sheep men occupying the territory. They have also access to 

 the great free range country in northern Nevada in the region of 

 Gold creek and the Bruneau river, so that a number of bands can be 

 kept there during the summer months and then brought down to 

 the home range to be topped off and shipped. As most eastern Ne- 

 vada sheepmen have from one to ten bands of sheep on this free 

 range, and about sixty or seventy thousand sheep from Idaho also 

 summer in northern Nevada, it stands to reason that there must be a 

 continuous struggle for the 'best camping and feeding grounds, 



