358 Ungulata. 



their molar teeth they so strongly resemble the gazelles 

 that some authorities think that they may be descended 

 from some extinct family of antelopes. 



The strongest instinct in both -wild and domesticated 

 . sheep seems to be an inclination to seek the highest 

 altitudes ; even in a level eouniry the lambs will congre- 

 gate and contest for the possession of the highest knolls, 

 and the aged sheep seem as anxious to secure the most 

 elevated spot in the pasture field where the flock folds 

 for the night, as the lambkin that can hardly support itself 

 on its unsteady legs. 



In summer sheep feed in flocks and graze very closely; 

 in the winter they are penned, and fed on hay, turnips 

 and other vegetables. They are extremely liable to a 

 very infectious foot and mouth disease, and for this 

 reason most countries establish a rigid quarantine against 

 the introduction of foreign sheep. The lambs are gener- 

 ally born in January and February, and are frisky and 

 frolicsome creatures. 



The adult males are called rams, the females ewes, and 

 the young are known as lambs. Both males and females 

 are furnished with horns; those of the former being 

 large and massive at the base, triangular in section, and 

 curling upwards and backwards, and turning outward 

 from the side of the head. The horns of the females 

 are small and narrow. The largest sheep are smaller 

 than most oxen, and while their necks are comparatively 

 short they carry their heads higher above the level of 

 the back. A distinctive feature is a small gland between 

 the hoofs on each foot. 



Domesticated sheep are all classed as one species (Ovis- 

 aries), and are found in vast numbers in every part of 

 the world. Sheep washing and shearing has been 

 practiced from time immemorial. While only a few 

 breeds are fur producers, the raising of sheep for wool 

 is an important industry in many lands, particularly in 

 England and her colonies. The Lincoln and Leicester 

 sheep have the heaviest fleeces, but the wool of the various 

 Scotch, Welch and Devonshire breeds is particularly fine, 

 and that of the super Southdowns is claimed to be the 

 best produced anywhere 



