Leicester Longwool Sheep

Facts about Leicester Longwool Sheep, "Scientific name for Leicester Longwool Sheep is Ovis aries". Leicester Longwool Sheep is one of the breeds that have a long and very interesting history. This breed of sheep is normally found in Great Britain, Australia, US and New Zealand. Leicester Longwool Sheep is medium to large breed and has a high quality carcass. Also named Dishley Leicester, English Leicester, Bakewell Leicester, Improved Leicester, New Leicester, Leicester.

The Leicester Longwool Sheep breed was developed from old Leicester sheep by Robert Bakewell back in 1700. In fact it is also known as Leicester Bakewell. He utilized modern animal breeding techniques to make a slow growing Leicester into an animal that can grow very first and does not have much waste after it is slaughtered.

The Leicester Longwool Sheep is very tall, long legged with a white face which has wedge shape and legs that doesn’t have wool. The neck is medium length and the shoulders are very strong. Leicester Longwool Sheepare both male and female are polled. Leicester Longwool Sheep have a 300 degrees field of vision and sheep do not have to turn their head to see behind them and they have excellent hearing.

It has a fleece which is heavy, soft, lustrous and curly. The fleece weighs 11 to 15 pounds (5 to 6.8 kg) and there are some that weigh 20 pounds (9 kg). The fibre diameter of this Leicester Longwool Sheep is 32 to 38 micrometers.

Leicester Longwool Sheep is very hardy and can cope with very cold conditions. However, it does not tolerate very wet conditions for long. The breed can be bucket trained and it will never jump fences.

Leicester longwool sheep can be used in cross breeding. The rams can be used in commercial ewes to sire very heavy weight lambs for selling. Leicester Longwool Sheep can also be used on hill breeds to produce a half bred ewe though it is not very much favored for this job.

Leicester Longwool Sheep wool is very popular especially for direct marketing for woolen products.
Leicester long sheep wool is active, well balanced whilst in movement and appears to be alert showing style and character. Leicester Longwool Sheep is sound footed and this explains why it copes well on marginal country.

Some Sheep Facts

In the world there are over 1 billion sheep and China has the most sheep in the world. In Central Asia sheep were domesticated 10,000 years ago. During biblical times sheep production began. A "flock or herd" is a group of sheep. "Lamb" is the name of a young sheep and it is called a sheep or "hogget" at one year old. "Ewe" is the name of the female Leicester Longwool Sheep. "Ram" is the name of the adult male Leicester Longwool Sheep. "Wether" is an adult castrated male sheep. The act of breeding for sheep is called "tubing". Leicester Longwool Sheep give birth to 1 to 3 baby lambs once or twice a year. "lambing" is the act of giving birth for sheep. A lamb weighs on average when born, about 5 to 8 pounds (2.2 to 3.6 kg). Sheep are born without or with horns (polled). The high pitched sound a baby lamb makes is called "bleating". The length of a pregnancy (gestation period) for a Leicester Longwool Sheep is about 145 to 156 days.

Sheep have long been used to control unwanted vegetation. Sheep are used throughout the Inter mountain and Great Plains region to control invasive and noxious weeds. Throughout the West, Spotted Knapweed (Centaureamaculosa). This weed is invasive and invades ranges and threatens our national parks. Sheep will eat knapweed and are being used to help control this weed. Leicester Longwool Sheep that are breeding are called "Tupping". Dolly the sheep was the first cloned mammal in 1996 from a somatic cell. Shelter is not necessary in the rain but they do seek shade from the sun. There are over 900 different sheep breeds in the world and 40 different breeds of sheep in the United States. A Leicester Longwool Sheep does not have teeth in their upper front jaw. Leicester Longwool Sheep have 32 teeth. Leicester Longwool Sheep have 24 molars and 8 incisors in their mouth. A sheep has only lower teeth that press against an upper palette.

A Leicester Longwool Sheep on its back is not a good thing, you need to help, sheep can’t get up from that position, being on its back can be a hazard to its health.
Milk from Sheep is mostly used to make gourmet cheese. A Leicester Longwool Sheep has an average body temperature of about 102.5ËšF (39.1Ëš Cel). Fat extracted from a sheep, is known as tallow, this is used to make candles and soap. Wool exporting began around 1700 by America. When President Woodrow Wilson was in the White House you would see sheep grazing on the lawn. Wool sheep are usually shorn (a past participle of shearing "to cut") once a year. A lambs is usually sold on average for meat between 90 to 120 pounds (41 to 54.4 kg). "Mutton" is the name of the meat from a full grown Leicester Longwool Sheep. There is a split in the sheep upper lip which allows them to select their favorite leaves off a plant.

A Leicester Longwool Sheep has a life expectancy between 6 1/2 to 11 years. The average rate of breathing for a Leicester Longwool Sheep is 16 breaths per minute. Milk from sheep has a higher level of zinc, calcium, protein, fat, riboflavin, thiamine and niacin than milk from cows or a goat. They us 11 sheep small intestines to make 1 tennis racket.
A Leicester Longwool Sheep is a herbivores, that eats leaves, grass, hay and furns. A sheep has four chambers to its digestive system that helps break down what they eat. Leicester Longwool Sheep are "Ruminant" is any hoofed even-toed, mammal that digests its food in two stages. First by eating the raw materials and regurgitating a semi-digested form known as "cud" (ruminating: chewing the cud.) then eating the cud.