We all know things like a female sheep are called ewes and the male is a ram.  Or that sheep have split tongues and no upper teeth.  But did you know…

1. Sheep have best friends.
2. Before being domesticated, sheep shed their own fleece.
3. Sheep were domesticated during the Stone Age about 6,000 years ago.
4. All sheep come from what is today Afghanistan, Iraq and Iran.
5. Bighorn sheep traveled the land bridge between Russia and Alaska about 600,000 years ago.
6. Sheep’s wool has been the most important fiber for nearly 10,000 years.
7. Sheep can adapt to their environment.
8. There are about 900 breed of sheep in the world.
9. Just like human hair, wool grows from a follicle.
10. Crimp, the ripple in wool, is unique to wool fibers.
11. The Dead Sea Scrolls were written on parchment made from sheep skin.
12. Sheep skin can carry water, oil, and wine.
13. George Washington raised sheep on his Mount Vernon estate.
14. One year’s growth of fleece is about eight pounds of wool.
15. The life expectancy of a sheep is 6-11 years.
16. Rams symbolize virility and power.
17. Sheep have two digits on their feet.
18. In some countries, sheep are used for fighting as part of celebrations.
19. One pound of wool can make ten miles of yarn.
20. It takes eleven sheep intestines to string one tennis racquet.
21. Texas has the largest population of sheep in the U.S.; China is the top country.
22. Sheep can be milked just like cows.  The milk is used to make gourmet cheeses.
23. A one-year-old sheep is called a hogget; a two-year-old sheep is called a two-tooth.
24. Sheep have good memories and can recognize fifty other sheep plus human faces.
25. Sheep have excellent peripheral vision; they can see around 300° without turning their head.
26. Christopher Columbus came from a family of wool traders.  Spain’s wool trade financed his voyage to the New World.
27. King George III of England banned the export of sheep to American in the 17^th century which was part of the reason for the American Revolution.
28. On the Chinese Zodiac, sheep represent righteousness, sincerity, gentleness and compassion.
29. Sheep show emotions by the position of their ears and by the different sounds they make.
30. Sheep will eat particular plants when ill as a form of self medication.
31. Sheep have appeared on bank notes.
32. Ancient Egyptians revered sheep and had them mummified after death.