Altay is a breed of domesticated
sheep
Sheep or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are domesticated, ruminant mammals typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus ''Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to domesticated s ...
originating in the dry, cold mountain basins of
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
. This breed belongs to the
fat-rumped carpet
wool
Wool is the textile fibre obtained from sheep and other mammals, especially goats, rabbits, and camelids. The term may also refer to inorganic materials, such as mineral wool and glass wool, that have properties similar to animal wool.
As ...
type of sheep and the Kazakh group.
[
] Although the Altay grows wool, it is raised primarily for the
meat
Meat is animal flesh that is eaten as food. Humans have hunted, farmed, and scavenged animals for meat since prehistoric times. The establishment of settlements in the Neolithic Revolution allowed the domestication of animals such as chic ...
.
[
]
Characteristics
The tail (or rump) weighs about . At maturity, the rams average and the ewes . The Altay's lambing percentage is approximately 103%. The Kazakh group of sheep average to of wool per shearing.
The average height at the withers of mature rams is and for ewes. Both sexes are horned. Average birth weight for rams is and ewes .
References
External links
Altay Sheep101.info
{{sheep-stub
Sheep breeds
Sheep breeds originating in China