Another Sheep to guess da age!

[Alaska_Lanche]

Alright guys, I've seen this sheep in person but am always amazed on how many folks seem to disagree with what F&G bio aged it at. So what say you:

 

[iofthetaiga]

.....8.....

 

[Bighorse]

Alot going on with that horn...I'm at a honest guess of 7 with that one. That single side view isn't all I'd want with that one for sure.

 

[mossyhorn]

I say 7 as well. I think one thing that mixes people up is that sheep rings are the same as tree rings. They space out evenly at greater increments from the center of the tree or base of the horn. They are close at the base and the next ring will be further away than the one before it. On rare occasion will that not be the case, do to some possible injury or poor health in the ram. Otherwise it makes no sense for the next ring to be spaced closer than the previous ring.

This was explained to me by the bio at F & G and it makes perfect sense to me.

 

[Russp17]

Looks like 8 to me...

 

[Brian M]

7 or 8 - I can see why folks would have disagreements on that one. It looks to be full curl, but this is a great example of why counting rings can be risky at best if it's not clearly 9 years old or older.

 

[Bear]

I say 7 as well. I think one thing that mixes people up is that sheep rings are the same as tree rings. They space out evenly at greater increments from the center of the tree or base of the horn. They are close at the base and the next ring will be further away than the one before it. On rare occasion will that not be the case, do to some possible injury or poor health in the ram. Otherwise it makes no sense for the next ring to be spaced closer than the previous ring.

This was explained to me by the bio at F & G and it makes perfect sense to me.

this point does NOT get stressed on here enough at all... you can eliminate many a false annuli by simply looking at the spacing....

 

[sheep man]

I'll go with 7 yrs

 

[LuJon]

That picture is not taken down the axis of curl as you can see it looks oval. There really is no way to tell if it would make f/c without having it oriented in such a way that it made a perfect circle.

As to the age I call it at 8 based on the pic. I am struggling with it's first 3 age rings (years 1-3) in this pic and not having them solidly identified makes it hard for me to estimate the spacing to get an idea which rings are true annuli vs false.

Based on this pic alone I would be cautiously optimistic walking through the front door of fish and feathers but guaranteed not to be able to take a breath as he/she inspected it!

 

[bigdog]

I would say eight too... Nice ram

 

[Erik in AK]

8 possibly 9

The very tip has an irregularity that could be the remnants of a small lamb tip.

Here's my take

 

[hoose35]

I count, well, guess 8

 

[IglooBoy88]

i counted 8

 

[tboehm]

8 possibly 9

The very tip has an irregularity that could be the remnants of a small lamb tip.

Here's my take

Erik, I've never done this but would ask why wouldn't you count the one between your 6 and 7?

 

[LuJon]

8 possibly 9

The very tip has an irregularity that could be the remnants of a small lamb tip.

Here's my take

I suspect that your 1year point should be moved down an inch or two on the horn. I agree with your 2 and 3 placement. The 4 and 5 rings you have marked I think are both false and that there is only one ring in that area and it is between the two you have marked (closer to the "4"). I would say what you have marked as 6 is actually the 5 and agree with all of your remaining ring locations bringing the sheep to 8.

If I am wrong and your 4, 5, 6 are in fact annuli then I would guess the sheep to be 12-13 years old based on ring spacing. Be interesting to see a pic of the animals face, I am curious how "old" he looks.

 

[wykee5]

I would say that your "3" is false, and either 5 or 6 gets eliminated. I was also taught to look at the horn in sections, which should get progressively smaller as you go toward the base.

8 possibly 9

The very tip has an irregularity that could be the remnants of a small lamb tip.

Here's my take

 

[Ak50 eagle]

I would say 7

 

[Fullcurl]

I guess drawing lines on horns is my mission this evening. This ram is 7. You don't really have to put the lines in the exact spots if you understand incremental horn segment growth. The first ring is near the lamb tip. The growth from ring 2 to 3 will be the longest segment and they will get incrementally smaller after that. And the "ring hidden by the hairline" arguement doesn't come into play on young rams. Instead of sending a tooth in for aging, just take a band saw and cut the horn in half. The age rings will show nicely, like dixie cups stacked together. (Who wants to volunteer to do that?)

 

[alaskabarbwire]

I was once told that you need to count the spaces between the rings not the rings themselves. If thats true would'nt fullcurls pic make it 8?

 

[ak_cowboy]

I'll say 7. Maybe 8 at least this one is closer to being full curl than that other baby sheep.
What did the Bio's say?