Transhumance
Transhumance is a type of nomadism or pastoralism, a seasonal movement of people with their livestock between fixed summer and winter pastures. In montane regions, it implies movement between higher pastures in summer and lower valleys in winter, herders have a permanent home, typically in valleys. Generally only the travel, with a certain number of people necessary to tend them. In contrast, horizontal transhumance is more susceptible to being disrupted by climatic, economic or political change, traditional or fixed transhumance occurs or has occurred throughout the inhabited world, particularly Europe and western Asia. It is often of importance to pastoralist societies, as the dairy products of transhumance flocks. In many languages there are words for the summer pastures. The term transhumance is used in correlation with nomadic pastoralism – the regular migration of people. The word transhumance comes from French and derives from the Latin words trans across, transhumance developed on every inhabited continent.
Although there are cultural and technological variations, the underlying practices for taking advantage of remote seasonal pastures are similar. Transhumance is a form of pastoralism or nomadism, in the Balkans, the Sarakatsani, Aromanian and Yörük peoples traditionally spent summer months in the mountains and returned to lower plains in the winter. When the area was part of the Austro-Hungary and Ottoman empires, in summer, some groups went as far north as the Balkan Mountains, and they would spend the winter on warmer plains in the vicinity of the Aegean Sea. The Morlach were a population of Vlach shepherds who lived in the Dinaric Alps, but as national states appeared in the area of the former Ottoman Empire, new state borders were developed that divided the summer and winter habitats of many of the pastoral groups. These prevented easy movement across borders, particularly at times of war, in most parts of Wales, farm workers and sometimes the farmer would spend the summer months at a hillside summer house, or hafod, where the livestock would graze.
During the late autumn the farm family and workers would drive the flocks down to the valleys, both Hafod and Hendref survive in Wales as place names and house names. Today and sheep that summer on many farms are still transported to lowland winter pastures. In many hilly and mountainous areas of Scotland, agricultural workers spent summer months in bothies or shielings, major drovers roads in the eastern part of Scotland include the Cairnamounth, Elsick Mounth and Causey Mounth. This practice has died out, but was practised within living memory in the Hebridean Islands. Today much transhumance is carried out by truck, with upland flocks being transported under agistment to lower-lying pasture during winter, in southern England, where the climate is mild and the hills low, transhumance historically took the opposite form to more mountainous areas
Animal husbandry
Animal husbandry is the management and care of farm animals by human beings, in which genetic qualities and behavior, considered to be advantageous to humans, are further developed. The term can refer to the practice of breeding and raising livestock to promote desirable traits in animals for utility, pleasure. Animal husbandry has been practiced for thousands of years since the first domestication of animals, selective breeding for desired traits was first established as a scientific practice by Robert Bakewell during the British Agricultural Revolution in the 18th century. One of his most important breeding programs was with sheep, using native stock, he was able to quickly select for large, yet fine-boned sheep, with long, lustrous wool. The Lincoln Longwool was improved by Bakewell and in turn the Lincoln was used to develop the subsequent breed, named the New Leicester and it was hornless and had a square, meaty body with straight top lines. These sheep were exported widely and have contributed to modern breeds.
Under his influence, English farmers began to breed cattle for use primarily as beef for consumption -, long-horned heifers were crossed with the Westmoreland bull to eventually create the Dishley Longhorn. Over the following decades, farm animals increased dramatically in size, in 1700, the average weight of a bull sold for slaughter was 370 pounds. By 1786, that weight had more than doubled to 840 pounds, in more modern times herds are tended on horses, all-terrain vehicles, four-wheel drive vehicles, and helicopters, depending on the terrain and livestock concerned. Today, herd managers often oversee thousands of animals and many staff, farms and ranches may employ breeders, herd health specialists and milkers to help care for the animals. Techniques such as artificial insemination and embryo transfer are used today, not only as methods to guarantee that females breed regularly. This may be done by transplanting embryos from high-quality females into lower-quality surrogate mothers - freeing up the higher-quality mother to be reimpregnated and this practice vastly increases the number of offspring which may be produced by a small selection of the best quality parent animals.
On one hand, this improves the ability of the animals to feed to meat, milk, or fiber more efficiently. On the other, it decreases genetic diversity, increasing the severity of disease outbreaks among other risks. The semi-natural, unfertilized pastures formed by traditional methods in Europe, were managed and maintained by the grazing and mowing of livestock. Animal agriculture is responsible for 20%-33% of all fresh water consumption in the world today, livestock or livestock feed occupies 1/3 of the earth’s ice-free land. Animal agriculture is the cause of species extinction, ocean dead zones, water pollution. Animal agriculture contributes to species extinction in many ways, the widespread use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers used in the production of feed crops often interferes with the reproductive systems of animals and poison waterways
Taurus Mountains
The Taurus Mountains are a mountain complex in southern Turkey, dividing the Mediterranean coastal region of southern Turkey from the central Anatolian Plateau. The system extends along a curve from Lake Eğirdir in the west to the reaches of the Euphrates. It is a part of the Alpide belt in Eurasia, the mountains are a place of many ancient storm-god temples. The Hurrians, probably originators of the various storm-gods of the ancient Near East, were a people whom modern scholars place in the Taurus Mountains at their probable earliest origins, a Bronze Age archaeological site, where early evidence of tin mining was found, is at Kestel. The pass known in antiquity as the Cilician Gates crosses the north of Tarsus. The Amanus range in southern Turkey is where the Taurus Mountains are pushed up as three tectonic plates come together, the Amanus is a natural frontier, west is Cilicia, east is Syria. There are several passes, like the Amanian Gate, which are of great strategical importance, in 333 BCE at the Battle of Issus, Alexander the Great defeated Darius III Codomannus on the foothills along the coast between these two passes.
During World War I, the German and Turkish railway system through the Taurus Mountains proved to be a strategic objective of the Allies. This region was mentioned as a strategically controlled objective slated for surrender to the Allies in the Armistice. In the Aladaglar and Bolkar mountains, limestone has eroded to form karstic landscapes of waterfalls, underground rivers, the Manavgat River originates on the southern slopes of the Beydaglari range. The Varda Viaduct, situated on the railway lines Konya-Adana at Hacıkırı village in Adana Province, is a 98 m high railway bridge constructed in the 1910s by Germans, west Taurus and Taurus Mountains form an arc around the Gulf of Antalya. The East Taşeli Plateau and Goksu River divide it from the Central Taurus Mountains and it has many peaks rising above 3, 000–3,700 m. They are the source of the Euphrates River and Tigris River, map of Eurasia showing Taurus Mountain ranges
Sheep shearing
Sheep shearing is the process by which the woollen fleece of a sheep is cut off. The person who removes the wool is called a shearer. Typically each adult sheep is shorn once each year, the annual shearing most often occurs in a shearing shed, a facility especially designed to process often hundreds and sometimes more than 3,000 sheep per day. Sheep are shorn in all seasons, depending on the climate, management requirements, ewes are normally shorn prior to lambing, but consideration is typically made as to the welfare of the lambs by not shearing during cold climate winters. Shorn sheep tolerate frosts well, but young sheep especially will suffer in cold, in this event they are shedded for several nights until the weather clears. Some sheep may be shorn with stud combs which leave more wool on the animal, Sheep shearing is considered a sport with competitions held around the world. The wealth of ancient Knossos, Europes oldest city, derived from its wool industry. The largest group of Linear B tablets is the great archive principally of shearing records though of sheep breeding, the medieval English wool trade was one of the most important factors in the English economy.
The main sheep-shearing was an annual event in medieval England culminating in the sheep-shearing feast. It had always been conventional practice to wash sheep, Australias fine wools In Australia, up until the 1870s, squatters washed their sheep in nearby creeks prior to shearing. Later some expensive hot water installations were constructed on some of the stations for the washing. Australian growers were influenced by the Spanish practice of washing their very fine wool after shearing, Wool in Australia was carted by bullock team or horse teams and charged by weight. Washed wool was lighter and did not cost as much to transport, the practice of washing the wool rather than the sheep evolved from the fact that hotter water could be used to wash the wool, than that used to wash the sheep. When the practice of selling wool in the grease occurred in the 1890s, Australia and New Zealand had to discard the old methods of wool harvesting and evolve more efficient systems to cope with the huge numbers of sheep involved.
Shearing was revolutionized by the invention of an Australian sheepgrower, Frederick York Wolseley and his machines made in Birmingham England by his business The Wolseley Sheep Shearing Machine Company were introduced after 1888, reducing second cuts and shearing time. By 1915 most large sheep station sheds in Australia had installed machines, Shearing tables were invented in the 1950s and have not proved popular, although some are still used for crutching. In the US, the shortage of shearers is becoming a consideration for those wanting to expand wool production. With sheep numbers declining in that country the profession sees significantly less interest in becoming a qualified shearer, importing labour during the Australian off-season has become problematic because of delays in obtaining work visa and because shearers numbers are limited worldwide
Shearing shed
Shearing sheds are large sheds located on sheep stations to accommodate large scale sheep shearing activities. The shed provides space where the wool is classed and pressed into approved wool packs, location of the shed is important as the site needs to be well drained and in an area reasonably close to most of the flock. It is helpful and will save a lot of money if the shed is located near to the electricity supply, at least some yards will be needed to facilitate shedding and count-outs. Regional variants of shearing shed architecture throughout Australia and New Zealand have been identified through different uses of building materials, during recent years occupational safety and health and animal welfare issues in Australia have to be considered during shed building or renovating. There should be guard rails around raised shearing boards and loading landings should be fenced to prevent falls, separate facilities are to be provided for workers meals. It is usually regarded as necessary to be able to shed, wet or damp sheep may cause health problems for the shearers and damp wool cant be pressed.
In many instances sheep are held under the shed or in an adjacent area known as a sweating shed, in the shearing shed the woolly sheep will be penned on a slatted wooden or woven mesh floor above ground level. The sheep entry to the shed is via a ramp, with good footholds. After shearing the shearing shed may provide shelter for newly shorn sheep if the weather is likely to be cold and/or wet. In recent years shearing sheds have usually included improved penning systems to assist with the movement of sheep, a single sheep is sometimes penned in a small pen at the front of the forcing lane to coax the other sheep forward. The slats in a catching pen run in the direction that the sheep are to be dragged, modern sheds often include a catching pen floor that slopes towards the board to help shearers move their sheep towards their “stand”. Ideally shearers should not have to cross the board with their sheep or move them excessive lengths. Earlier shed plans often had the pen on the opposite side of the release chutes which necessitated shearers crossing the board.
Nowadays the shearing board may be of a curved and/or raised style to save the roustabout extra walking and bending, Sheep may be released through the wall or through a chute in the floor, depending on the plan used. A tongued and grooved wooden floor is best for the board and wool processing area as it is easier to keep clean, especially with scrapers. This area is planned to reduce walking distances for all shed hands, the shorn fleece is picked up by the roustabout and cast onto a wool table for skirting and classing, before being placed in the appropriate wool bin. Wool bins should be made of a material in order that the different lines do not mix. Slatted wool tables are of two styles, revolving tables, which are handy if there is only one wool-roller, adequate lighting and ventilation is provided for all shearers and shedhands who work in the shed
India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and it is bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the southwest, and the Bay of Bengal on the southeast. It shares land borders with Pakistan to the west, China and Bhutan to the northeast, in the Indian Ocean, India is in the vicinity of Sri Lanka and the Maldives. Indias Andaman and Nicobar Islands share a border with Thailand. The Indian subcontinent was home to the urban Indus Valley Civilisation of the 3rd millennium BCE, in the following millennium, the oldest scriptures associated with Hinduism began to be composed. Social stratification, based on caste, emerged in the first millennium BCE, early political consolidations took place under the Maurya and Gupta empires, the peninsular Middle Kingdoms influenced cultures as far as southeast Asia. In the medieval era, Zoroastrianism and Islam arrived, much of the north fell to the Delhi sultanate, the south was united under the Vijayanagara Empire.
The economy expanded in the 17th century in the Mughal empire, in the mid-18th century, the subcontinent came under British East India Company rule, and in the mid-19th under British crown rule. A nationalist movement emerged in the late 19th century, which later, under Mahatma Gandhi, was noted for nonviolent resistance, in 2015, the Indian economy was the worlds seventh largest by nominal GDP and third largest by purchasing power parity. Following market-based economic reforms in 1991, India became one of the major economies and is considered a newly industrialised country. However, it continues to face the challenges of poverty, malnutrition, a nuclear weapons state and regional power, it has the third largest standing army in the world and ranks sixth in military expenditure among nations. India is a constitutional republic governed under a parliamentary system. It is a pluralistic and multi-ethnic society and is home to a diversity of wildlife in a variety of protected habitats. The name India is derived from Indus, which originates from the Old Persian word Hindu, the latter term stems from the Sanskrit word Sindhu, which was the historical local appellation for the Indus River.
The ancient Greeks referred to the Indians as Indoi, which translates as The people of the Indus, the geographical term Bharat, which is recognised by the Constitution of India as an official name for the country, is used by many Indian languages in its variations. Scholars believe it to be named after the Vedic tribe of Bharatas in the second millennium B. C. E and it is traditionally associated with the rule of the legendary emperor Bharata. Gaṇarājya is the Sanskrit/Hindi term for republic dating back to the ancient times, hindustan is a Persian name for India dating back to the 3rd century B. C. E. It was introduced into India by the Mughals and widely used since and its meaning varied, referring to a region that encompassed northern India and Pakistan or India in its entirety
Selective breeding
Domesticated animals are known as breeds, normally bred by a professional breeder, while domesticated plants are known as varieties, cultigens, or cultivars. Two purebred animals of different breeds produce a crossbreed, and crossbred plants are called hybrids, flowers and fruit-trees may be bred by amateurs and commercial or non-commercial professionals, major crops are usually the provenance of the professionals. There are two approaches or types of selection, or selective breeding. The second is called controlled natural selection, which is natural selection in a controlled environment. In this, the breeder does not choose which individuals being tested survive or reproduce, there are selection experiments, which is a third approach and these are conducted in order to determine the strength of natural selection in the wild. However, this is often an observational approach as opposed to an experimental approach. In animal breeding, techniques such as inbreeding, linebreeding, in plant breeding, similar methods are used.
Charles Darwin discussed how selective breeding had been successful in producing change over time in his 1859 book and its first chapter discusses selective breeding and domestication of such animals as pigeons, cats and dogs. Darwin used artificial selection as a springboard to introduce and support the theory of natural selection, the deliberate exploitation of selective breeding to produce desired results has become very common in agriculture and experimental biology. Selective breeding can be unintentional, e. g. resulting from the process of human cultivation, for example, in some grains, an increase in seed size may have resulted from certain ploughing practices rather than from the intentional selection of larger seeds. Most likely, there has been an interdependence between natural and artificial factors that have resulted in plant domestication, Selective breeding was practiced by the Romans. Treatises as much as 2,000 years old give advice on selecting animals for different purposes, the notion of selective breeding was expressed by the Persian Muslim polymath Abu Rayhan Biruni in the 11th century.
He noted the idea in his book titled India, which included various examples, the agriculturist selects his corn, letting grow as much as he requires, and tearing out the remainder. The forester leaves those branches which he perceives to be excellent, the bees kill those of their kind who only eat, but do not work in their beehive. Selective breeding was established as a practice by Robert Bakewell during the British Agricultural Revolution in the 18th century. Arguably, his most important breeding program was with sheep, using native stock, he was able to quickly select for large, yet fine-boned sheep, with long, lustrous wool. The Lincoln Longwool was improved by Bakewell, and in turn the Lincoln was used to develop the subsequent breed, named the New Leicester and it was hornless and had a square, meaty body with straight top lines. Bloodlines of these original New Leicesters survive today as the English Leicester, Bakewell was the first to breed cattle to be used primarily for beef
United States
Forty-eight of the fifty states and the federal district are contiguous and located in North America between Canada and Mexico. The state of Alaska is in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada to the east, the state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The U. S. territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean, the geography and wildlife of the country are extremely diverse. At 3.8 million square miles and with over 324 million people, the United States is the worlds third- or fourth-largest country by area, third-largest by land area. It is one of the worlds most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, paleo-Indians migrated from Asia to the North American mainland at least 15,000 years ago. European colonization began in the 16th century, the United States emerged from 13 British colonies along the East Coast. Numerous disputes between Great Britain and the following the Seven Years War led to the American Revolution. On July 4,1776, during the course of the American Revolutionary War, the war ended in 1783 with recognition of the independence of the United States by Great Britain, representing the first successful war of independence against a European power.
The current constitution was adopted in 1788, after the Articles of Confederation, the first ten amendments, collectively named the Bill of Rights, were ratified in 1791 and designed to guarantee many fundamental civil liberties. During the second half of the 19th century, the American Civil War led to the end of slavery in the country. By the end of century, the United States extended into the Pacific Ocean. The Spanish–American War and World War I confirmed the status as a global military power. The end of the Cold War and the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 left the United States as the sole superpower. The U. S. is a member of the United Nations, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, Organization of American States. The United States is a developed country, with the worlds largest economy by nominal GDP. It ranks highly in several measures of performance, including average wage, human development, per capita GDP. While the U. S. economy is considered post-industrial, characterized by the dominance of services and knowledge economy, the United States is a prominent political and cultural force internationally, and a leader in scientific research and technological innovations.
In 1507, the German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller produced a map on which he named the lands of the Western Hemisphere America after the Italian explorer and cartographer Amerigo Vespucci
Merino
The Merino or jackson sheep is an economically influential breed of sheep prized for its wool. The breed originated in Spain, but the modern Merino was domesticated in New Zealand, Merinos are still regarded as having some of the finest and softest wool of any sheep. Poll Merinos have no horns, and horned Merino rams have long, two suggested origins for the Spanish word merino are, It may be an adaptation to the sheep of the name of a Leonese official inspector over a merindad, who may have inspected sheep pastures. This word is from the medieval Latin maiorinus, a steward or head official of a village, from maior and it may be from the name of an Imazighen tribe, the Marini, who intervened in the Iberian peninsula during the 12th and 13th centuries. The Merino is an excellent forager and very adaptable and it is bred predominantly for its wool, and its carcass size is generally smaller than that of sheep bred for meat. South African Meat Merino, American Rambouillet and German Merinofleischschaf have been bred to balance wool production, Merino need to be shorn at least once a year because their wool does not stop growing.
If the coat is allowed to grow, it can cause stress, mobility issues. Merino wool is finely crimped and soft, staples are commonly 65–100 mm long. A Saxon Merino produces 3–6 kg of wool a year. Merino wool is generally less than 24 micron in diameter, basic Merino types include, strong wool, medium wool, fine and ultra fine. Ultra fine wool is suitable for blending with other such as silk. New Zealand produces lightweight knits made from Merino wool and possum fur, the term merino is widely used in the textile industries, but it cannot be taken to mean the fabric in question is actually 100% merino wool from a Merino strain bred specifically for its wool. The wool of any Merino sheep, whether reared in Spain or elsewhere, is merino wool, not all merino sheep produce wool suitable for clothing, and especially for clothing worn next to the skin. This depends on the strain of the breed. Merino sheep bred for meat do not produce a fleece with a fine enough staple for this purpose, most of the flocks were owned by nobility or the church, the sheep grazed the Spanish southern plains in winter and the northern highlands in summer.
The Mesta was an organisation of privileged sheep owners who developed the breed and controlled the migrations along cañadas reales suitable for grazing, the three Merino strains that founded most of the worlds Merino flocks were the Royal Escurial flocks, the Negretti and the Paula. The Infantado and Aguires studs had an influence on the Vermont bloodlines, before the 18th century, the export of Merinos from Spain was a crime punishable by death. In the 18th century, small exportation of Merinos from Spain, in 1723, some were exported to Sweden, but the first major consignment of Escurials was sent by Charles III of Spain to his cousin, Prince Xavier the Elector of Saxony, in 1765
Jacob
Jacob, given the name Israel, is regarded as a Patriarch of the Israelites. According to the Book of Genesis, Jacob was the third Hebrew progenitor with whom God made a covenant and he is the son of Isaac and Rebecca, the grandson of Abraham and Bethuel, the nephew of Ishmael, and the younger twin brother of Esau. Jacob had twelve sons and at least one daughter, by his two wives and Rachel, and by their handmaidens Bilhah and Zilpah. Jacobs twelve sons, named in Genesis, were Reuben, Levi, Dan, Gad, Issachar, Zebulun and his only daughter mentioned in Genesis is Dinah. The twelve sons became the progenitors of the Tribes of Israel, as a result of a severe drought in Canaan and his sons moved to Egypt at the time when his son Joseph was viceroy. Jacob is mentioned in a number of sacred scriptures, including the Hebrew Bible, the Talmud, the New Testament, the Quran, Baháí scripture, and the Book of Mormon. According to the folk etymology found in Genesis 25,26, according to Jan Fokkelman, the name is a shortened version of Yaaqob-el, meaning God may protect.
The Hebrew Bible says at Genesis 32, 28-29 and 35,10, etymologically, it has been suggested that the name Israel comes from the Hebrew words לִשְׂרות and אֵל. Popular English translations typically reference the face off with God, ranging from wrestles with God to God contends, some commentators say the name comes from the verb śārar, thereby making the name mean God rules or God judges, or the prince of God or El fights/struggles. The biblical account of the life of Jacob is found in the Book of Genesis and his twin brother, were born to Isaac and Rebecca after 20 years of marriage, when Isaac was 60 years of age. Rebekah was uncomfortable during her pregnancy and went to inquire of God why she was suffering and she received the prophecy that twins were fighting in her womb and would continue to fight all their lives, even after they became two separate nations. According to Genesis 25,25, Isaac and Rebecca named the first son Hebrew, עשו, the second son they named יעקב, Jacob. The boys displayed very different natures as they matured.
and Esau was a hunter, a man of the field. Moreover, the attitudes of their parents toward them differed, And Isaac loved Esau because he did eat of his venison, Genesis 25, 29-34 tells the account of Esau selling his birthright to Jacob. This passage tells that Esau, returning famished from the fields, Jacob offered to give Esau a bowl of stew in exchange for his birthright, to which Esau agreed. As Isaac aged, he became blind and was uncertain when he would die and he requested that Esau go out to the fields with his weapons to kill some venison. Isaac requested that Esau make savory meat for him out of the venison, according to the way he enjoyed it the most, so that he could eat it and bless Esau. It is suggested that she realized prophetically that Isaacs blessings would go to Jacob, Rebecca blessed Jacob and she quickly ordered Jacob to bring her two kid goats from their flock so that he could take Esaus place in serving Isaac and receiving his blessing
Domestic sheep reproduction
As with other mammals, domestic sheep reproduction occurs sexually. Their reproductive strategy is similar to other domestic herd animals. A flock of sheep is generally mated by a single ram, most sheep have a breeding season in the autumn, though some are able to breed year-round. Largely as a result of the influence of humans in sheep breeding and this increase in the lamb births, both in number and birth weight, may cause problems in delivery and lamb survival, requiring the intervention of shepherds. Ewes generally reach maturity at six to eight months of age. Ewes enter into oestrus cycles about every 17 days, which last for approximately 30 hours, in addition to emitting a scent, they indicate readiness through physical displays towards rams. The phenomenon of the freemartin, a female bovine that is masculine and lacks functioning ovaries, is commonly associated with cattle. The instance of freemartins in sheep may be increasing in concert with the rise in twinning, without human intervention, rams may fight during the rut to determine which individuals may mate with ewes.
Rams, especially unfamiliar ones, will fight outside the period to establish dominance. During the rut, even normally friendly rams may become aggressive towards humans due to increases in their hormone levels, especially aggressive rams were sometimes blindfolded or hobbled. Without ultrasound or other tools, determining if a sheep is pregnant is difficult. Ewes only begin to show a pregnancy about six weeks before giving birth. However, by fitting a ram with a chest harness called a harness that holds a special crayon. Dye may be applied to the rams brisket. This measure is not used in flocks where wool is important, after mating, sheep have a gestation period of around five months. Within a few days of the birth, ewes begin to behave differently. They may lie down and stand erratically, paw the ground, a ewes udder will quickly fill out, and her vulva will swell. Vaginal, uterine or anal prolapse may occur, in which case either stitching or a physical retainer can be used to hold the orifice in if the problem persists
Shepherd
A shepherd /ˈʃɛpərd/ or sheepherder is a person who tends, feeds, or guards herds of sheep. Shepherd derives from Old English sceaphierde, shepherding is among the oldest occupations, beginning some 5,000 years ago in Asia Minor. Sheep were kept for their milk and especially their wool, over the next thousand years and shepherding spread throughout Eurasia. Some sheep were integrated in the farm along with other animals such as chickens. To maintain a large flock, the sheep must be able to move from pasture to pasture and this required the development of an occupation separate from that of the farmer. The duty of shepherds was to keep their flock intact, protect it from predators, in ancient times, shepherds commonly milked their sheep, and made cheese from this milk, few shepherds still do this today. In many societies, shepherds were an important part of the economy, unlike farmers, shepherds were often wage earners, being paid to watch the sheep of others. Shepherds lived apart from society, being largely nomadic and it was mainly a job of solitary males without children, and new shepherds thus needed to be recruited externally.
Shepherds were most often the sons of farming peasants who did not inherit any land. Shepherds would normally work in groups either looking after one large flock, or each bringing their own and they would live in small cabins, often shared with their sheep, and would buy food from local communities. Less often shepherds lived in covered wagons that traveled with their flocks, shepherding developed only in certain areas. In the lowlands and river valleys, it was far more efficient to grow grain and cereals than to allow sheep to graze, thus the raising of sheep was confined to rugged and mountainous areas. In pre-modern times shepherding was thus centered on such as the Middle East, the Pyrenees, the Carpathian Mountains. The shepherds crook is a strong multi-purpose stick or staff, often fashioned with a hooked end, in modern times, shepherding has changed dramatically. The abolition of common lands in Europe in the eighteenth and nineteenth century moved shepherding from independent nomads to employees of massive estates.
Some families in Africa and Asia have their wealth in sheep, in the USA, many sheep herds are flocked over public BLM lands. Wages are higher than was the case in the past, keeping a shepherd in constant attendance can be costly. Also, the eradication of sheep predators in parts of the world have lessened the need for shepherds, in places like Britain, hardy breeds of sheep are frequently left alone without a shepherd for long periods of time
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