Sheep and Wool in our History:

Wild Sheep, "mouflon" have wandered through humanity's known past for over 10,000 years, but wild Sheep don't have any wool! Wild sheep, still found today in Europe, have long, stringy hair, and a soft downy undercoat. Only through domestication, breeding, and environmental affects did the friendly creature we know today as the Sheep with all it's wool and milk products come to be.

Sheep's Wool has been used for thousands of years as a clothing and bedding material. Wool fabric has been discovered in tombs and graves in Egypt, Babylon, Nineveh, the Britons and in Peru. Spinning Dyeing and Weaving wool was considered a high art in many of these ancient cultures..

In the middle ages, farmers realized that Sheep were the most productive livestock available. Large herds of sheep could be found throughout England by the Fifteenth Century. Sheep were introduced to Southwestern America by Spanish troops under the command of Cortez. The Spanish refined domestication by raising the famous Merino Sheep. Wool was a staple industry of Western Europe (primarily England) until the 18th Century, when the cotton industry overtook it in economic importance.

In America, domestic wool production was hampered by the introduction of Australian wool following World War II, which made domestic wool too expensive to profit from. Through government incentives and subsidies, American wool farmers struggled on against the australian importers, but in 1996, all government incentives were discontinued, and fewer farmers than ever can afford to raise wool profitably in America.

Sheep's Milk played an even more important role in our history than wool, especially when you consider that the first sheep had no wool! Sheep's milk is drinkable fresh, and suitable for cheese, butter and yogurt. Sheep's milk has been shown to be easier to digest than Cow's milk in the human stomach.

Lanolin, or wool-fat, or wool-grease has also been an important product supplied by sheep. Lanolin is what makes wool water resistant and flame retardant. By boiling washed wool, and cooling the liquid, a yellowish, milky film of oil would float on the surface, this is the natural oil of sheep's wool. This oil could be furthered refined by squeezing it through Linen, and is still used as a base for skin ointment, as well as various industrial applications.

Sheep were also hunted, then domesticated for their meat, but not all modern sheep farming is centered on meat production.

Sheep Herding was never an easy job, often relegated to children, even groups of them, with boundless energy. Sheep love to wander off, through villages, over mountains, ever searching for fresh grazing grass. A Sheep Herder, or shepherd, must walk for miles, often accompanied by a dog, guiding, and watching over the flock of animals, ensuring their safety and numbers. Jesus was a Shepherd, among other things, and though not all shepherds were overly religious, they all probably shared a deep love of animals (except when they kept wandering off alone).

Sheep Breeding was amd still remains a serious matter. Over thousands of years, breeding has resulted in the current state of sheep affairs. Sheep love to roam, so breeders bred them to stay together in groups and not run off. They bred them to be scared, and kind of stupid, so they wouldn't want wander off and try something different like going it alone.

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