. Productive sheep husbandry . Sheep. DISTRIBUTION 135 the ewes continue to breed until they reach a ripe old age. Although they are large sheep and quite capable of handling heavy forage crops, they are also able to do fairly well on the feed furnished to the average farm flock in the eastern and central parts of the United States. This ability, together with their superior shearing qualities, makes them desirable as a farmer's sheep (Fig. 89). On account of their heavy yield of milk and strongly developed maternal instinct, Oxford ewes are splendid mothers. Twins are frequent and the lambs a
. Productive sheep husbandry . Sheep. DISTRIBUTION 135 the ewes continue to breed until they reach a ripe old age. Although they are large sheep and quite capable of handling heavy forage crops, they are also able to do fairly well on the feed furnished to the average farm flock in the eastern and central parts of the United States. This ability, together with their superior shearing qualities, makes them desirable as a farmer's sheep (Fig. 89). On account of their heavy yield of milk and strongly developed maternal instinct, Oxford ewes are splendid mothers. Twins are frequent and the lambs are large, weighing about ten pounds at birth. Singles frequently weigh more. The lambs grow rapidly but they do not attain weight quite so rapidly as the Fig. 89.—Lambs bred by the University of Illinois; sired by Oxford-Down, ram in Fig. 152 and out of Western ewes in Fig. 148. These lambs, born in March, made rapid growth and were pronounced prime for the market before July 1st. Both in the United States and Germany, Oxford rams have proved satisfactory for crossing on Merino and Merino-grade ewes. Especially is this true when the female offspring are to be retained as breeding stock for, in addition to the mutton qualities imparted, a beautiful iieece of desirable weight is obtained. Distribution.—At present the breed is well distributed over Great Britain, the United States, and Canada, and flocks are to be found in nearly or quite all of the leading sheep countries. The American Oxford Down Sheep Eecord Association was organized in 1884 and the Oxford Down Sheep Breeders' Association of England in 1888, Both associations issue an annual Please note that these images are extracted from scanned page images that may have been digitally enhanced for readability - coloration and appearance of these illustrations may not perfectly resemble the original Coffey, Walter Castella, 1877-. Philadelphia : J. B. Lippincott
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1910, booksubjectsheep, bookyear1918
