| Name | Breed | Born | Came to Oxon Hill |
| Jedi (ram) | mixed | Apr. 1998 | Jul. 1998 |
| Bruiser | Black lamb | Feb. 1998 | born here |
| Ewes | mixed | 1996 and 1997 | born here |
| Wethers | mixed | 1996 and 1997 | born here |
| Ewe lambs | mixed | Feb. and Mar. 1999 | born here |
| Name | Breed | Born | Came to Oxon Hill |
| Jedi (ram) | mixed | Apr. 1998 | Jul. 1998 |
| Bruiser | Black lamb | Feb. 1998 | born here |
| Ewes | mixed | 1996 and 1997 | born here |
| Wethers | mixed | 1996 and 1997 | born here |
| Ewe lambs | mixed | Feb. and Mar. 1999 | born here |
When you arrive at the farm, the sheep and goat pen and pasture are to your left as you enter the farm. This pasture extends past the rest rooms toward the farm house. Sometimes the horses share part of this pasture. Sheep and goats are excellent for grazing on steep and rocky land because they maneuver better and utilize sparser vegetation more efficiently than larger stock (cows, horses, etc.). Goats and sheep also do a good job of cleaning out the heavy undergrowth in the adjoining woodland.
Sheep have been domesticated for more than 10,000 years. Closely related to goats but not as intelligent, sheep have been bred to herd and not act independently and are therefore generally timid and defenseless. There are more than 200 breeds of sheep, more than any other class of livestock.
Sheep are raised for their fleece (wool), hides, and meat. Lanolin, the grease or oil in the wool, is also used to make many skin-care products. The wool varies in texture depending on the sheep it comes from. About 8 pounds of wool is clipped from each sheep when it is sheared in May. There are several different breeds of sheep here at the farm. Those with black heads, noses, feet, and legs are Hampshire and/or Suffolks. Dorset is a smaller, all-white sheep.
A female sheep is called a ewe. A male sheep is called a ram. A baby sheep is called a lamb. Lamb is the name for sheep less than one year old.
Sheep grow fluffy wool all over their bodies. Wool keeps them warm and dry. Sheep must have a haircut once a year. This is called shearing.
Sheep have split hooves which can help them climb rocky hills.
Sheep are gentle animals and do not bite. They do not have any to front teeth. The roof of their mouth is hard so they can bite and eat grass.
Sheep have tails but their tails are cut off to about three inches when they are still babies. This is called docking and helps keep the sheep clean and healthy. Docking feels like getting a shot...it only hurts for a second.
Sheep make a bleating sound. A baby lamb can identify its mother by her bleat.
Sheep like to graze. Graze means the sheep eat growing grasses. Sheep graze where many crops cannot grow and eat plants that many other animals will not. Grazing sheep are good for wildlife like deer and elk. Grazing sheep help other plants grow that deer and elk like to eat.
Sheep are ruminants. Ruminant means sheep have three extra parts to their stomach. Their special stomach allows them to digest plants and grasses that humans and most other animals cannot.
Sheep give us food and fiber. The food is meat, called lamb or mutton, and milk which is used for cheese. The fiber is called wool. Wool fiber is used to make clothes, blankets, carpets, and carpet pads.
The "Little Extras" we get from sheep
Lanolin (grease used for make-up and hand cream)
Stearin (used in chewing gum and candy)
Carpets and carpet pads
Hair for artists' brushes
Bone for bone china
Hair for seat covers
Waxes (for candles)
Fats (used in soap)
Medicines
Fertilizer
Blankets
Leather
Glue
Felt
Sheepskin (for rugs and diplomas)
Catgut (the intestines of animals, dried and twisted, used for strings of violins and other instruments, and for surgical sutures)Terms:
Breed - a group of animals with similar external characteristics that are transmitted (passed on) from generation to generation.
Ewe - a female or mother sheep.
Fleece - the shorn wool from a sheep.
Flock - a group of sheep
Lamb - a male or female sheep less than one year old of age.
Lanolin - grease that is on the fleece of sheep. Lanolin is used in make-up and lotions and also to "waterproof" shoes.
Ram - a male or father sheep.
Ruminant - an animal which has a stomach with four sections. The four section stomach lets the sheep digest coarse grass, hay, and weeds that other animals and people cannot.
Shearing - cutting off the fleece of the sheep. This is done once or twice a year.
Wean - taking the lambs away from their mother so that they can no longer drink their mother's milk. This is done so the lambs will learn to eat grass and hay.
Wether - castrated male
Wool - the "hair" of sheep that is cut off and made into cloth for clothes. Wool is very wavy and is made up of many tiny scales.
For more information about Oxon Hill Farm, select from these links: