58 STRUCTURE OF THE SHEEP 



lamb has some of its teeth when it is born, and by the time it is a few 

 weeks old it has all of the temporary set. The permanent teeth 

 begin to replace the temporary teeth when the lamb is about one 

 year old. More will be said about the teeth in the next chapter in 

 connection with the indications of age in sheep. 



Stomach. The stomach has four compartments: the rumen, 

 the recticulum, the omasum, and the abomasum. The first three, 

 of which the rumen is by far the largest, serve as places for storing 

 and softening or macerating the food, while the fourth, the aboma- 

 sum, is the compartment in which most of the digestive processes 

 characteristic of the stomach occur. According to measurements 

 made by the writer, the capacity of the stomach of a fat sheep 

 weighing from 175 to 180 pounds is about 21 quarts. Sisson, 

 however, gives it as 16 quarts, and Henry and Morrison as 31.3 

 quarts. Based on Henry and Morrison's figures, the capacity of 

 each of the various compartments is as follows: Rumen, 24.7 

 quarts; reticulum, 2.1 quarts; omasum, 1 quart; abomasum, 3.5 

 quarts; the total being 31.3 quarts (Fig. 27). 



Intestines. As given by Henry and Morrison, the small in- 

 testine of the mature sheep is about 85.9 feet long and has a capacity 

 of 9.5 quarts; the large intestine is approximately 21.4 feet long 

 and has a capacity of 5.9 quarts. Digestive processes take place in 

 both the small and large intestines (Fig. 28). 



QUESTIONS 



1. What distinguishes the sheep as a ruminant? 



2. How does it differ from the ox; from all other classes of animals be- 



longing to the family Bovidce? 



3. Enumerate common variations in the skeletal arrangement of sheep. 



4. How may variations in skeletal structure affect the form of the sheep? 



5. How are wool and hair different in structure? 



6. To what extent do sheep vary in hairy covering? 



7. How many temporary teeth have sheep? Permanent teeth? 



8. What large glands pour their secretions into the digestive tract of 



sheep ? 



9. What is yolk in wool; where does it come from? 



10. Of what advantage is the rumen or paunch to wild sheep? To domestic 



sheep ? 



11. Gently pressing a wool fiber, draw it back and forth between the thumb 



and forefinger. Can you distinguish which way the cuticle cells 

 are pointed? 



