Sheep and wanted

Almost everyone knows that a sheep and a ram are two opposite sexes of the same animal species. But not everyone has the knowledge of how to distinguish these individuals among themselves, even in a small flock. Meanwhile, the differences between a ram and a sheep are quite pronounced and easily traced.

What do sheep and rams look like

Animal description

Surely everyone knows what a sheep looks like. This animal belongs to the order of artiodactyls and, like the goat, is a member of the bovid family. Sheep presumably originated from mouflons (wild sheep) that live in the mountains. And these animals owe their current appearance to a man who domesticated sheep and for many centuries was engaged in their selection.

As for the specific features of the appearance of the animal, they vary greatly depending on the breed and living conditions. The most characteristic nuances of the exterior of these animals include the following:

• long, thick, curly hair in small ringlets (only in some breeds does it grow straight, without curls);
• thick horns, twisted in a spiral (as in the case of wool, there are completely polled varieties);
• strong legs with developed muscles;
• strong hooves, characterized by a forked front.

Outwardly, sheep are quite similar to domestic goats. But in addition to the shape of the horns and thick wool, the former also differ in larger dimensions. The weight of living creatures, depending on the breed and gender, varies between 70-200 kg.

By nature, sheep are herd animals. They feel most comfortable in a large flock. At the same time, the individual maintenance of animals causes them serious stress, which affects growth and development.

In terms of keeping, sheep are extremely unpretentious. They owe this to their wild ancestors, who developed in the conditions of mountain pastures, which are extremely scarce in vegetation. For this nuance, many breeders value sheep, as they use the fodder reserves on pastures to the fullest.

Quite calmly, living creatures endure difficult weather conditions. Representatives of the species feel great in the heat and suffer from a lack of water, and thanks to their long hair they do not suffer from the cold. The only thing that is negatively perceived by such pets is dampness. In conditions of constant dampness, they quickly develop all kinds of diseases and parasites.

Reference. In total, today there are over 800 breeds of sheep. All of them are divided into meat, dairy, wool and combined areas of productivity.

Are sheep and ram the same thing?

The question of the similarity of the concepts “sheep” and “ram” involves certain difficulties. They lie in the fact that each of these words in the Russian language implies two interpretations at once. In accordance with the first, a “ram” is a whole genus (classification unit) that includes several different animal species. “Sheep” suggests only one species from the genus of sheep, which was domesticated by man.

Baran: appearance

The second meaning of the terms is narrower. It implies a different gender within the same species of domestic animals. A ram is a male in a flock. A sheep is a female who is responsible for childbearing and feeding the young.

Thus, these two concepts cannot be taken as one and the same. In both cases, they suggest different interpretations.

How to distinguish a female from a male?

If a ram and a sheep are not the same animal, then it should be clearly distinguished how they differ from each other. If we take these terms in the narrow sense, then representatives of different sexes differ from each other in several characteristic features, the main ones of which are:

• The weight. Sheep, regardless of breed, weigh 1,5 times more than a sheep. On average, an adult ram reaches a weight of 100-120 kg, and the weight of a female does not exceed 70-75 kg.
• The presence of horns. In most cases, only male sheep have horns. Females differ in hornless. But this sign is not always true. There are completely hornless breeds. And in some varieties, horns are present even in females.
• The structure of the genital organs of animals.
• The presence of an udder. Sheep milk is highly valued in cooking among some peoples. But only sheep can give such products, because they have an udder. Feeding offspring is not included in the function of rams, therefore they do not have mammary glands.

Certain differences lie in the behavior of animals. So, males are characterized by rivalry for females in the flock, frequent manifestations of aggression in the direction of other males. Females, on the other hand, are calm and unquestioningly follow other members of the herd.

What is the name of a baby sheep?

In addition to certain difficulties in understanding the difference between a ram and a sheep, many also do not know the correct name for the cub resulting from their mating. Quite often, the answer to this question is such comical terms as “ram”, “sheep”, “sheep” and other similar ones. But none of these concepts is official.

The common word for a baby sheep is “lamb”. That is what the young of these animals are called before it enters puberty. In sources related to religion, the name “lamb” is also often found similar in sound. But it is not considered generally accepted and refers, as a rule, to the young sheep, which were determined for sacrifices in ancient times.

As for the term “lamb”, it is not possible to reliably trace its origin. But the prevailing majority of researchers agree that the concept is based on the Latin word “agnus”, which means “sheep” in translation. A suffix indicating a small individual was added to such a basis in Russian.

Two lambs

What is the name of lamb meat?

And finally, it should also be clarified what the sheep meat is called, because this question also implies its own nuances. The generally accepted name for meat products obtained from the slaughter of sheep is “lamb”. This is the word for the meat of this category on the market.

But a more specific approach to the issue involves dividing all sheep meat into two separate categories:

1. Lamb. This concept refers to meat products obtained from one-year-old lambs.
2. Mutton. Directly mutton is called the meat of animals whose age exceeds one year.

Reference. Among lovers of such meat products, lamb is valued much higher. It is believed that the pulp of one-year-old lambs contains much more useful properties. In addition, the taste of this meat is more saturated, and the pulp itself has a delicate texture. Naturally, the difference is reflected in the cost of each type of meat products.

Thus, the concepts of a sheep and a ram are correlated depending on the context behind each of the concepts. In a broad sense, these are different units of classification of animal species of the bovid family. A narrower meaning implies under these terms the name of a female and male individual within the same type of domestic animal. In the second case, there is a clear number of signs by which, taking into account the characteristics of the breed, one can easily distinguish a ram from a sheep.