Sandra Barnett, age 13, of Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada, for her question:
WHAT IS MERINO WOOL
Sheep originally came from the high mountains and plateaus of Central Asia. The largest wild sheepk called the argali, can now be found in the Altai Mountains of Siberia and Mongolia. The male stands a hefty four feet tall at the shoulders and his spiral horns are 20 inches around. The Marco Polo and the blue sheep are two other wild sheep from Asia.
Domestic sheep were bred from two different kinds of wild sheep: the urial from Southern Asia and the mouflon, the only wild sheep still living in Southern Europe.Today's domestic sheep has slowly and carefully changed from his wild ancestors. In olden days he was used only for hide or as a beast of burden. But as time advanced, his fleece became his most important asset. Coarse hair that covered the wild sheep changed with careful breeding through the years to a soft coat of fine wool.
Most of our present fine wooled sheep came from the Spanish Merino. Raised in Spain as far back as history records the Spanish Merino was always highly prized. For a long time the government made it illegal to take one of the sheep out of the country but many were smuggled into England, France and Germany. And then it was in these countries that the Merino was developed into the modern type of his breed that we have today.
Today there are more sheep with Merino blood than any other breed. Included is the American Merino who has a white face and legs and is covered with thick wool from his nose to his toes.
The popular Rambouilet is also a popular descendant from the Spanish Merino. Named after a town in France, the sheep was actually developed in Germany first and then later in the United States. The breed began more than 150 years ago and is very hardy.
Leading sheep raising country in the world is Australia, where more than 143 million sheep are raised each year. Second on the list is Russia with more than 142 million. China and New Zealand next in line with 71 million and 57 million each year.
The sheep is important not only for the wool he provides but also as the source of valuable food.
Australia, as the world's leading sheep producing country, raises about one sixth of the world's sheep. In that country there are about 15 sheep for every person. The odds get even higher in New Zealand where there are about 20 sheep for every person.In the United States, Texas is the leading sheep¬raising state with about 3.2 million produced each year. Other important sheep raising states are Wyoming, Colorado, California, South Dakota, Montana, Utah, New Mexico, Idaho and Ohio.