CHAPTER XX 

 THE MERINO OR FINE-WOOL TYPE 



All sheep are wool bearing, but the Merino excels in weight and 

 fineness of fleece. The Merino is the foundation of American sheep 

 husbandry. It is the most important sheep in America today, though 

 less so than formerly. By far the greater number of grade flocks, 

 especially in one section centering in Ohio, and another comprising the 

 territory west of the Missouri river, are of fine- wool origin. Of the 

 B7,209,000 sheep in the United States, 21,348,000 are in the western 

 division, and these are largely of Merino breeding. Many western 

 sheep are brought into the corn belt for fattening. 



The Merino is native to Spain, and from the Spanish Merino have 

 come all present breeds of Merino sheep. This stock existed in Spain 

 prior to the Christian era, but in all its history in Spain there is prac- 

 tically no record of attempts at improvement. In the eighteenth cen- 

 tury, Spanish Merinos were taken to Saxony, France, United States, 

 South Africa, Australia, and other countries in which distinct types 

 and breeds have been developed by selection from the old Spanish 

 stock. Over 20,000 Merino sheep were imported into the United 

 States prior to 1811, and these formed the foundation of the breed 

 known as the American Merino. Beginning in 1840, importations 

 of the French Merino or Rambouillet were made to America, and 

 this breed is now bred extensively to supply rams for western 

 flocks. 



The American Merino is the outcome of efforts to develop a sheep 

 with a fleece of the greatest possible value. Some breeders carried 

 their eff'orts so far as to ignore the meat-producing qualities of the 

 animals they bred, centering practically all their attention on the fleece. 

 At best, the improvement of any kind of live stock is a difficult and slow 

 undertaking. When improvement is sought in one or a few respects, 

 the desired results are secured more readily and in greater perfection 

 than when an attempt is made to improve the animal in a rather large 

 number of ways. It is still more difficult to improve a breed of live 

 stock along two or more opposing or antagonistic lines, such as beef 

 and milk, mutton and wool, strength and speed, or size and quality. 

 It was for this reason that many breeders of Merino sheep in America 

 willingly sacrificed the meat-producing qualities of their flocks in order 

 that the production of wool might be made as large as possible. These 

 breeders developed what was formerly known as the Vermont Merino, 



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