Sheep and goats are important species of livestock for India. They contribute greatly to the agrarian economy, especially in areas where crop and dairy farming are not economical and play an important role in the livelihood of a large proportion of small and marginal farmers and landless labourers. Domestic sheep, ovus aries, aquadripiedle, ruminant mammals typically kept as livestock. Like all ruminants, sheep are members of the order, artiro dactyla, the even-tod angulets. Sheep are raised for their meat, milk and wool. The sheep is usually stockier than its relative, the goat. The horns when present are more divergent. It has scent glands in its face and hind feet and the males lack the beards of goats. Sheep usually have short tails. Domestic sheep are relatively small ruminants, usually with crimped hair called wool and often with horns forming a lateral spiral. Domestic sheep differ from their wild relatives and ancestors in several respects having become uniquely neonotinic as a result of selective breeding by humans. A few primitive breeds of sheep retain some of the characteristics of their wild cousins, such as short tails. Depending on breed, domestic sheep may have no horns at all, that is pulled or horns in both sexes or in males' wendly. Most horned breeds have a single pair, but few breeds may have several. Another trait unique to domestic sheep is their white variation in color. Wild sheep are largely variations of brown hues and variation within species is extremely limited. The colors of domestic sheep range from pure white to dark chocolate brown or even spotted or pibled. Depending on the breed, sheep show a range of heights and weights. Their rate of growth and mature weight is a heritable trait that is often selected for in breeding. Male sheep are called rams. The females use immature animals are all referred to as lambs. Mature sheep weigh from about 35 to as much as 180 kilos, that is 80 to 400 pounds. Sheep have good hearing and are sensitive to noise when being handled. They have horizontal slit-shaped pupils with excellent peripheral vision. Many breeds have only short hair on the face and some have facial wool. It is the confine to the pole or the area of the mandiblear angle. Their upper lip is divided by a distinct grove called a philithram. Sheep also have an excellent sense of smell and, like all species of their genus, have sent glands just in front of the hives and inter-digitally on the feet. Sheep are herbivorous animals. Most breeds prefer to graze on grass and other short ruffage, avoiding the taller woody parts of plants. Follow a diuronal pattern of activity, feeding from dawn to dusk, stopping sporadically to rest and chew their cud. Ideal pastures for sheep is not lawn-like grass, but an array of grasses, legumes and fobs. Sheep are flocked animals and strongly regrarious. They are natural grazes. They tend to stay in a flock and become agitated if separated from the rest of the flock. In all wild species of sheep, the outer coat takes the form of hair and beneath this lies a short undercoat of fine wool that has been developed into the fleece of domesticated sheep. Sheep generally have fluffy wool that needs to be shared at least once in a year. They do not have beard or horns as in a goat and their tails point downward and are often shortened for health or sanitary reasons. The marino sheep are an exception. It has long horns that tend to curl in loops on the side of its head. Furthermore, sheep have tear glands below their eyes and scent glands below the toes while fighting aggressive male sheep tend to attack head-on. A group of use is generally made by a single ram who has established dominance through physical contests with other rams. Most use generally reached sexual maturity at 6 to 8 months old and rams generally at 4 to 6 months. Use of estrus cycles about every 17 days during which they emit a scent and indicate readiness through physical display towards rams. Sheep have a gestation period of about 5 months and normal labor takes 1 to 3 hours. Although some breeds regularly throw larger litters of lambs, most produce single or twin lambs. Sheep are an important part of the global agricultural economy. India is second worldwide in having the largest modern flocks and serve both local and exportation needs for wool and mutton. The sheep are characterized based on the major product. There are those that produce aparallel wool, those that produce carpet wool, those that produce carpet wool but are also good for mutton and lastly those that are for mutton production alone. There are a total of 42 recognized sheep breeds in India. They are divided across 4 distinct agroecological regions. The northern temperate region has 8 breeds, all of which are wool producers. The northwestern arid and semi-arid region has 14 breeds, all but one produce wool and 8 breeds can be used for mutton after the wool has been harvested. One breed is reared only for mutton production. The southern peninsula on the other hand has 14 breeds, 12 of which are reared exclusively for meat production. The final agroecological region is the eastern region where there are 6 breeds to be found. They are mostly reared to produce mutton and carpet wool. .