Name: _________________
Class: _________________
Activity sheet 1 – Sheep
Assessing sheep
Purpose
To develop skills in assessing sheep in order to select the best animal for specific purposes
Risk assessment
When working with live sheep, animals must be approached carefully. Use halter-trained
sheep or confine them in a suitable pen. Follow safe handling procedure. (Visit the NelsonNet
weblink NSW Animals in Schools to see how to handle sheep safety.)
Materials
•
•
•
•
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4 sheep or lambs of similar breeds/age/sex
Sheep assessment manual (see the NelsonNet weblink)
Junior judging card (see table below)
Pen
Clipboard
Method
1
Identify each sheep as one of A, B, C and D.
2
Using the dentition chart, sheep assessment manual and a copy of the assessment table
below, appraise the sheep regarding:
a
their overall conformation
b
two to three structural traits and wool traits (for wool and dual-purpose breeds)
c
their teeth – overall number and wear to estimate the age.
© Cengage Learning Australia Pty Ltd 2019
www.nelsonnet.com.au
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3
Place the sheep in order from first to fourth, justifying your decisions.
A
B
C
D
Breed
Age
Sex
Overall
conformation
Structural traits
Placement and
reasoning
Discussion
1
Compare your placings to those of your classmates. Were the results consistent?
2
How might the purpose of a breed affect what we view as valuable traits? Would we
judge a merino wether in the same was as a Dorper ram, for example?
© Cengage Learning Australia Pty Ltd 2019
www.nelsonnet.com.au
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3
Investigate more accurate, consistent and reliable methods of judging sheep (such as
gene markers or EBVs).
4
Assess the dentition chart as a method of ageing sheep. Consider time, individual
differences and handling.
© Cengage Learning Australia Pty Ltd 2019
www.nelsonnet.com.au
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