The Cameroon or Cameroon Dwarf is a Cameroonian
breed
A breed is a specific group of domestic animals having homogeneous appearance (phenotype), homogeneous behavior, and/or other characteristics that distinguish it from other organisms of the same species. In literature, there exist several slig ...
of
domestic 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 sh ...
. It belongs to the
West African Dwarf group of breeds. Some have been exported to
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
.
Characteristics
The Cameroon Dwarf is a hardy sheep. It is normally brown with a black belly and black markings to the head and legs. Has a hair coat, and in winter grows a fine under-coat; it sheds this in springtime. Ewes have high
prolificacy and mature early; they are capable of producing three crops of lambs every two years.
References
Further reading
*Fitzhugh und Bradford (eds.): ''Hairsheep of West Africa and the Americas. A genetic resource for the tropics.'' 1983
*R.M. Njwe und Y. Manjeli: ''Milk yield of Cameroon dwarf blackbelly sheep - Production laitière de moutons Djallonké au Cameroun.'' In: Small ruminant research and development in Africa - Réseau africain de recherche sur les petits ruminants. ILCA Research Report - 2, 1982, X5520/B
Sheep breeds
Sheep breeds originating in Cameroon
{{sheep-stub