Sheep Information

Sheep are ruminants raised for meat, milk and wool. These animals were domesticated about 11,000 years ago. Sheep are even-toed ungulates. They have thick, woolly fur, while some sheep have hornes. Domestic sheep fur can range from pure white to dark chocolate brown. An adult sheep can weigh between 165 and 440 pounds. Sheep milk is highly nutritious and richer than cow milk. It contains around 75%-100% more protein than cow milk. Today sheep are found in almost all countries of the world. There are more than 800 breeds of domestic sheep worldwide. It is estimated that there are around one billion sheep in the world. Dolly the sheep was the first animal to be cloned. It was cloned in 1996 and died in 2003.