sheep

Sheep are domesticated ruminant mammals belonging to the genus Ovis. They are raised for their meat, milk, and wool. Sheep are typically stockier than goats, with more divergent horns and short tails. They have a four-compartment stomach that aids in digesting grasses and herbage, and they graze closer to the root than cattle. Sheep were first domesticated around 5000 BCE in the Middle East, Europe, and Central Asia.1

Wild sheep species still exist, and the domestic sheep's wool has been highly developed from a fine undercoat. Male sheep are called rams, females are ewes, and young are lambs. Mature sheep weigh between 80 to 400 pounds. Globally, over a billion sheep are farmed, with major producers including Australia, New Zealand, China, and India. Bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis), a wild relative, are known for their large horns and are found in western North America.213