THE BREEDS OF SHEEP 257 



patches of either wool or skin, which are seriously ob- 

 jected to. 



273. The Hampshire. — This old breed is characterized 

 by its size, 250 pounds for rams, and 185 to 195 pounds for 

 ewes, and rugged appearance, indicative of the rapid and 

 early growth in the lambs, for which the breed is most noted. 

 Hampshires (Fig. 126) are of superior mutton form but are 

 big boned, as shown in the head and legs, and they are, 

 therefore, prone to coarseness. The head is very typical, 

 being wooled only on the forehead and cheeks, while the 

 face and ears are covered with very dark brown or black 

 hair ; the head itself is large and marked by a distinctly 

 Roman nose ; the ears are also large, carried straight out 

 from the head and inclined to lop, if at all coarse. The 

 fleece is inferior to that of most of the other Down breeds, 

 being short, not dense and fine, nor well distributed, and 

 yielding lightly. 



Coarseness in head and ears, especially, and a light fleece 

 are just criticisms of some Hampshires. 



274. The Dorset-horn. — This is another one of the old, 

 pure English breeds (Fig. 127). The size is medium, rams 

 weighing 200 pounds and ewes 160 pounds. The form is 

 similar to that of the Shropshire but is less symmetrical. 

 The head is characterized by the presence of horns which 

 curve forward, closely, in spiral shape; the face and 

 ears are covered with fine white hair, although there 

 is a foretop of wool. The fleece is medium both as 

 to quantity and quality, being short, lacking somewhat 

 in density, unusually free from oil, and not evenly dis- 

 tributed, showing a tendency to be bare on the belly. 

 Average fleeces weigh six to seven pounds. Dorset 

 ewes make exceptional mothers, being deep milkers and 

 prolific. 



Digitized by Microsoft® 



