CHAPTER V 

 STRUCTURE OF THE SHEEP 



Position in the Zoological Scheme. The following outline, 

 according to Lydekker, 1 shows the position of the domesticated sheep 

 in the subkingdom of Vertebrata: 



Subkingdom Vertebrata Vertebrates, or Back-boned Animals. 

 Class Mammalia Mammals. 



Order Ungulata Hoofed Mammals, or Ungulates. 

 Suborder Artiodactyla Even-toed Ungulates. 

 Section Pecora Typical Ruminants. 



Family Bovidce Hollow-horned Ruminants. 

 Subfamily Caprince Sheep and Goats. 

 Genus Ovis Sheep. 



Species Ovis aries The Domesticated Sheep. 



The Sheep a Ruminant. The sheep chews its cud; that is, 

 it brings its food back from the stomach to the mouth for thorough 

 mastication. This characteristic distinguishes it as a true rumi- 

 nant. It belongs to the family of ruminants termed Bovidce, of 

 which the ox (Bos) is a typical representative. Besides cattle and 

 sheep the family Bovidce includes such classes of animals as goats, 

 muskoxen, chamois and antelopes, but sheep represent a distinct 

 genus for which the name Ovis has been adopted, and as a species 

 the domesticated sheep has been given the name Ovis aries. 



How the Sheep Differs from Other Animals in Its Family. 

 Although very much alike in general structure the sheep and ox 

 present some interesting differences, the most marked being in size 

 and nature of hairy covering. The sheep carries its head higher, and 

 its cranium is relatively broader and higher at the center and much 

 narrower toward the extremities. Instead of having a broad, naked, 

 undivided muzzle like the ox, its muzzle is narrow, covered with 

 short hairs, and divided by a vertical cleft. Owing to the fact that 

 its muzzle is so much narrower and its lips more mobile, the sheep 

 can graze much closer than the ox. 



1 R. Lydekker, " The Sheep and Its Cousins," p. 12, Pub. by E. P. Button 

 & Co., New York, 1913. 



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