Types and Market Classes of Live Stock 283 



are ignored, the top is noticeably long and narrow, and this may be 

 carried to an undesirable extreme. In the Delaine Merino and Ram- 

 bouillet, the back is proportionately shorter and wider. In any case 

 the top should be straight from shoulders to hips, showing a fair degree 

 of width of back and a rather wide, strongly muscled loin. 



The ribs should be fairly well arched and should show good length 

 in order to provide proper feeding, breeding, and chest capacity. The 

 middle is not very compact, but is moderately long. 



The hips are somewhat prominent on account of their width and 

 the lack of deep fleshing throughout, but ragged hips are undesirable. 

 Much smoothness cannot be expected in a Merino, yet a rather neat, 

 tidy conformation is demanded. 



The rump is often peaked and drooping, but the best form em- 

 bodies a rump that is long, level, and medium wide. 



The thighs and twist vary with respect to the class of fine-wool 

 sheep under consideration. Generally speaking, the thigh should be 

 medium thick, and the muscling between the legs should be sufficient 

 to afford at least a moderate development of the twist. 



The hind legs should be straight, medium long, reasonably fine, 

 strong in pastern, and placed somewhat apart. A large percentage of 

 Merino sheep have crooked hind legs, the hocks being close together 

 and the feet too wide apart, or the hocks much bent so as to place the 

 hind feet too far under the body, instead of carrying straight downward 

 from hock to ground. The feet should be well formed and strong. 



The skin should have a bright pink color, indicating health. Fine- 

 wool sheep usually show an excellent color of skin superior to the 

 mutton type. As already mentioned, the skin is more or less folded 

 or wrinkled. The Merino has not only a thinner skin than the mutton 

 breeds, but is more richly furnished with oil glands and secretes a great 

 deal more yolk. Fineness of skin and fineness of wool are correlated 

 characters. 



The quality of fine-wool sheep is evidenced by fineness of fleece, 

 fineness of bone, fineness of hair on face and ears, and by a medium- 

 sized, clean-cut head with fine ears. 



The style of the fine- wool type is usually rather marked. Merinos 

 have good carriage of head and ear and are quick and active in their 

 movements, walking rapidly and covering ground with more ease and 

 speed than the mutton-type sheep. Their greater activity partly ex- 

 plains their popularity on western ranges where Merino blood forms 

 the basis of most flocks. 



The fleece of the Merino has a very high degree of fineness, varjnng, 

 however, in different flocks and in different individuals. The skin has 

 many more fibers to the square inch than any of the mutton breeds; 



