What do Merino sheep give? Wool, and not only!

Sheep are animals that give a large number of products, including meat, fat, leather, fat. There are fine-fleeced, semi-fine-grain and coarse-wool breeds of animals. Among them, a separate group is allocated Merino, whose wool has special qualities.

It is believed that the merino-type type of cattle of this direction appeared in the 2-3th century BC in the Near East, from where it spread to the West. In the beginning of the 20th century the breed began to spread actively in Australia, before that merinoids, whose wool allowed to produce the finest materials, were successfully bred in Europe. In the USSR, on the basis of local and imported samples, rocks were created that were most suitable for exploitation in various regions of the country.

In total, Soviet specialists extracted about a dozen different breeds, among which the best known are the Salsk, Stavropol, Ascania, Soviet merino, Caucasian, Altai, etc. All animals are united by a genetically predisposed predisposition to additional stock of skin on the neck (in the form of several dangling folds).

The wool of the merino sheep has the smallest cross section (tint) of the hair, which, according to the classification, should not be more than 25 micrometers. In each of the above breeds, this indicator is different. For example, Soviet merino gives tonicity mostly 20-23 microns (less often 18-20 microns), and the salsa breed is usually 20-25 microns. In addition, when assessing the quality of woolen raw materials, they look at what strength, crimp, elasticity, stretchability, what gloss, color and what moisture it possesses. The color of the grease is also estimated.

Merino wool, reviews about which we indirectly make up for ourselves, buying, for example, high-quality knitwear, differs also enviable own length. For example, from the sheep of the Salsk breed, the main fleece is about 8 cm long while shearing, and about 9 cm from the rams. It should be noted that with male males a longer coat is almost always obtained, as well as a greater yield of meat (live weight before slaughter can reach 100 and more kilograms).

How often meridians are cut? The wool of the rocks of this direction is collected once, in April-May, when the air has warmed up enough for the animals to go "without a fur coat." Erroneous is the view that all raw materials have the above-mentioned unique qualities. The best coat is obtained only from a part of the back, neck, sides and hips of each animal. It is manually sorted from the raw material obtained from the chest, legs, head, and subjected to further processing. The average yield of pure wool from merino breeds is about 42-50 percent.

Where in Russia is today mainly grown Merino? The wool of these animals is obtained in the Middle and Lower Volga region, in the steppe territories of the Caucasus, in Southern Siberia. In the countries of the former USSR merino sheep breeding is developed in Ukraine, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, and some regions of Transcaucasia. Leaders in the total number of sheep of different directions today are China, Australia and India.