Three Bags Full Trivia Quiz

Answer: Hogget

A hogget is a maiden ewe or young sheep, usually 12 to 18 months in age, whose permanent incisors have not all developed. The two central incisors replace the front milk teeth in the lower jaw (hence the expression '2-tooth', interchangeable with the term 'hogget').

Still common in farming usage, it is now rare as a domestic or retail term for the meat. Much of the 'lamb' sold in the supermarkets is actually 'hogget'.

Answer: Wandered off a cliff

Sheep are, in general, prone to straying due their curious natures. After they have learned to follow the flock, they are less likely to wander off and get lost. But if, as in this case, the leader is a little lost itself, they can be led into danger.

The event described is a true one, and took place in the town of Gevas, located in Van province of Turkey, in 2005. Four hundred and fifty sheep died, making a soft mattress for the remainder of the sillies, who were able to be rescued. The sheep belonged to numerous families in the town.

Answer: Dairy

Dairy sheep are those bred specifically for high milk yield (around 181 - 454 kilograms or 400 - 1,000 pounds annually), and less for wool or meat. Of the conventional sheep breeds, Dorsets and Polypays are the most popular to 'breed up' to create a flock of dairy sheep, and can produce as much as 500 kg (1100 lbs) per year. The most popular milking sheep in the USA are East Friesian, Lacaune, and Awassi. The British Milksheep is most popular in the UK, while across Europe, the Lacaune (France), Sarda (Italy), and East Friesian (Germany) are the preferred breeds.

Milk from sheep is made into a variety of regional cheeses, such as manchego, Ossau Iraty, roquefort, pecorino romano, feta, and torta del casar, and range from very soft to aged and crumbly in texture.

A note on the industry tradition of measuring milk in weight, rather than volume: to ensure accuracy and consistency, weight is used as that doesn't change regardless of whether the milk is frothy or flat, or because of temperature variation.

Answer: Dolly

Using the DNA taken from an adult sheep's mammary gland, and amidst almost universal disapprobation, the first mammal in the world to be cloned was Dolly the sheep, in 1997, at the Roslin Institute of the University of Edinburgh. She only lived to be 6 years old and her (taxidermied) body is on display at the Royal Museum of Scotland.

Answer: Wool

The popular nursery rhyme "Baa, Baa, Black Sheep" was originally written in response to a wool tax that King Edward I imposed on farmers. The tax was hefty, proclaiming that 1/3 of each pound of wool had to go to the King, 1/3 of each pound had to go to the Church, with the remainder going to the farmer. The proceeds of the wool tax went to plump up Edward I's war chest.

It started with a modest tax of not quite 7 shillings, but was later raised to over 40 shillings. He was also responsible for having all the wolves in England killed, so they couldn't attack the sheep.

Answer: Rectangular

Sheep have remarkable eyes that are well adapted for life as grazing animals at risk of becoming prey to wild dogs. Their horizontal, rectangular pupils give them an extremely wide field of vision (nearly 320 degrees), allowing them to see nearly all the way around their bodies without turning their heads.

This characteristic helps them spot predators quickly. This eye shape also improves their awareness along the ground while grazing, and a reflective layer in their eyes enhances their ability to see in low-light conditions at dawn and dusk.

Answer: True

A wether is generally less aggressive than an entire ram, and is commonly used for wool production or meat, but may also be introduced into a flock as a 'calm companion'. In Australia, the School Merino Wether Challenge, an initiative of the Australian Wool Board, enables agricultural and high school students to look after young wethers and learn from their interactions.

Thought to have originated in around the 12th century, many ancient languages had a word for a castrated sheep, including the Old Saxon word 'wethar' and Old Norse 'veor', all likely sourced from the Proto-Germanic 'wethruz', and all in general relating to a yearling animal.

Answer: Fine

Merino sheep originally came from Spain, where they were carefully bred for centuries because of their exceptionally fine and soft wool. For a long time, Spain closely guarded the breeding of this sheep, as merino wool was highly valuable; even taking the sheep out of the country was restricted.

When merino sheep were eventually introduced to other parts of the world, including Australia in 1797, they transformed the wool industry due to their adaptability and the high quality of their fleece. Today, merinos are especially well known for producing wool prized for clothing because it is warm, lightweight, and comfortable to wear.

Lambswool is said to be the pinnacle of sheep-derived textiles, harvested during a sheep's first shearing, which typically occurs before it reaches seven months of age. Unlike mature fleeces, the individual strands possess naturally tapered, rounded tips that have never been clipped, resulting in a remarkably smooth texture that lacks the 'prickle' often associated with older sheep.

At a microscopic level, the fibre architecture of wool is defined by a dense arrangement of cortical cells and a fine, consistent crimp; this creates a spring-like elasticity and superior thermal insulation. Premium fibres, which are protein-rich keratin structures, generally fall within a range of 15 to 20 microns, offering softness and lightness while maintaining durability.

Answer: False

In fact, sheep don't have front teeth in their upper jaw at all! Instead they have a hard dense pad. With the help of their tongue they grasp vegetation between their lower teeth and upper dental pad. Adult sheep have thirty-two teeth in total; eight incisors in the lower front jaw, and twenty-four molars across both jaws.

With the constant chewing and wear and tear on their teeth, older sheep (sheep can reach up to 12-15 years of age) sometimes lose most or all of their teeth, and rely on eating softer vegetation or mash provided by the farmer.

Answer: Multi-horned

The Jacob is a heritage (old world) breed of domestic sheep. It combines two characteristics unusual in sheep: it is piebald, having a dark-coloured fleece with areas of white wool, with specific marking arounds its muzzle, eyes, shoulders, feet, and knees that indicate its breed.

Polycerate means multi-horned and both rams and ewes have horns. Most commonly they have four horns, but some males will grow up to six, with interesting shapes that jut out in all directions. Others may only have two.