6oo 



SHEEP 



three-eighths-blood, and averages about three inches long. Some- 

 times the wool on the lower, back part of the thigh is long and 

 tends to be hairy, a very objectionable feature. The head and ears 

 often have small black spots which are not disqualifications but 

 are regarded as objectionable. Reddish or sandy hair also occa- 

 sionally occurs on face and legs, which is strongly objected to. 

 All rams possessing well-defined horns an inch or more long are 

 ineligible for registration. Horns occur occasionally on the rams, 

 but are becoming more and more rare. The hoofs should be black. 



The temperament of 

 the Cheviot is a strik- 

 ing characteristic. He 

 carries himself with an 

 uplift of head and alert- 

 ness of ear and general 

 style very distinctive of 

 the breed and one of 

 its greatest charms. In 

 more recent years the 

 tendency among the 

 best breeders of Scot- 

 land and America has 

 been to produce a 

 broader-backed, wider 

 sheep all through, full 

 in his hind quarter, short of leg, and with a fleece of marked quality 

 and density. Judges in the best shows recognize this improvement. 

 The size of the Cheviot is medium, comparable with the Shrop- 

 shire for weight. Mature rams weigh about 200 pounds, with 225 

 a standard, and ewes from 150 to 160 pounds. But few rams 

 exceed 225 pounds, though ewes frequently surpass 160 pounds. 

 The standard of the American Cheviot Sheep Society, adopted in 

 1908, states that a ram at twenty-four months should weigh not less 

 than 225 pounds and the ewe of the same age not less than 150. 

 It has been stated that this is a " rather small " breed, with weights 

 for rams at 175 to 200 pounds and ewes at 140 to 160 pounds, 

 but the Cheviot certainly cannot be classed as small, even on the 

 basis of these figures. 



. jaiivafcai. 



Fig. 282. A Cheviot ram, champion at the show of 

 the Highland and Agricultural Society, Hawick, 

 Scotland, 1914. From photograph by the author 



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