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Shepherds travelling in Chambal, India Shepherd with grazing sheep in Făgăraș Mountains, Romania. A shepherd is a person who tends, herds, feeds, or guards flocks of sheep. Shepherding is one of the world's oldest occupations; it exists in many parts of the globe, and it is an important part of pastoralist animal husbandry.
Sheep have a breeding season (tupping) in the autumn, though some can breed year-round. [1] As a result of the influence of humans on sheep breeding, ewes often produce multiple lambs. This increase in lamb births, both in number and birth weight, may cause problems with delivery and lamb survival, requiring the intervention of shepherds. [2]
Sheep farming in Namibia (2017). According to the FAOSTAT database of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, the top five countries by number of head of sheep (average from 1993 to 2013) were: mainland China (146.5 million head), Australia (101.1 million), India (62.1 million), Iran (51.7 million), and the former Sudan (46.2 million). [2]
Sheep shearers, Flanders, from the Grimani Breviary c. 1510 "Valach" from Brumov in Moravian Wallachia, 1787.Shepherding was a traditional occupation of Romanians, and as they colonised the northern Carpathian range and eventually assimilated, their exonym "Valach" became synonymous with "shepherd".
For meat and hide producers, hair sheep are cheaper to keep, as they do not need shearing. [42] Hair sheep are also more resistant to parasites and hot weather. [29] With the modern rise of corporate agribusiness and the decline of localized family farms, many breeds of sheep are in danger of extinction.
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Shepherd's crook A shepherd's crook. A shepherd's crook is a long and sturdy stick with a hook at one end, often with the point flared outwards, used by a shepherd to manage and sometimes catch sheep. In addition, the crook may aid in defending against attack by predators. When traversing rough terrain, a crook is an aid to balance.
Domestication of sheep and goats began there in the 8-7th millennium BC. [4] Back then shepherding was a difficult job: the first shepherds did not have horses and managed livestock on foot, as mules, horses and donkeys were not yet fully domesticated and obedient enough. Dogs that previously were helping humans to hunt, became assistants in ...