In the tropics, sheep and goats have characteristic features that make them survive in the environment. These features make these animals develop a kind of tolerance to the peculiarities (difficulties) of the environment.

They have developed certain features that make them live and survive in humid or arid environments. For example, these animals have long legs to walk long distances in search of food and water. In this article, we shall discuss the local breeds available in Nigeria and a few exotic ones.

Types of Sheep and Goats

In the West African sub-region and especially in Nigeria, two types of sheep have been identified while three types are known for goats. For the sheep, we have the West Africa Dwarf sheep and the West African long-legged sheep. The three types of goats are the Sahel, Maradi, and Dwarf.

Breeds of Sheep

1. West African Dwarf Sheep

This breed of sheep is found in the coastal forest areas of the country from the South-West to the South-East. They are small in size and usually with an average weight of about 30 kg when fully mature. They have a height of 40 – 60 cm.

The sheep have varying colours ranging from all black to all brown or a mix colour of white and black. The female sheep (ewe) is polled i.e. without horns while the male (buck) carries horns which could be lateral or spiral. They scavenge for food around the village or town and often leave to roam the street.

2. West African Long-legged sheep

This group of sheep is found in the savannah and Sahel-Sudan areas of the Nothern part of Nigeria and other West African countries. They are characterized by long legs because they have to travel long distances for grazing as they are mostly owned by the nomadic Fulanis that are known for the transhumance movement. The height of the sheep is 65 to 90

cm and weighs between 30 and 50 kg at maturity. They have droopy ears. The male carries a horn while the female is hornless. They have long thin tails. There are many breeds of sheep found in this group of which we shall discuss some.

3. Uda or Fulani

The breed is found in the Sahelo-Sudan region of Nigeria. It is large, long-legged with a convex face. It has a characteristic pied coat – a color pattern of entirely black or brown from the forehead to the lumbar- abdominal girth and white posteriorly.

The ears are large, long, and pendulous. The rams carry large, wide, and spiral horns while the ewes are polled. Matured weight ranges from 30 to 45 kg for ewes and 35 to 60 for rams.

3. Yankasa

This breed has a typical white coat color with black patches around the eyes, ears, muzzle, and sometimes the feet. The rams carry curved horns and a heavy hairy white mane. Mature weights vary from 25 to 35 kg for ewes and 30 to 40 kg for rams. It is perhaps the most common breed of sheep in Nigeria as it is found in all areas north of latitude 14oN.

4. Balami

This breed is found mostly in the North-eastern part of Nigeria, especially in Borno state. It is a big, predominantly white-coat-colored sheep with a convex facial profile. The ears are large and droopy.

The tail is thin and long. The males carry prominent horns while the females are polled. It is perhaps the largest breed of sheep in Nigeria. Mature rams weigh between 45 to 65 kg while ewes weigh 35 to 40 kg.

Breeds of Goats

1. Sahel Goats

These goats have short fine coats which could be white, black, red, or spotted. They have medium to large body size at maturity. The ears are short and possess horizontal or drooping horns in both males and females.

The goats are well adapted to long-distance trekking for grazing. They are found throughout the Sahel or desert areas of Nigeria. It is a medium or large- or large-sized goat with long legs that has adapted very well to nomadic life or wide-range grazing of sparse vegetation.

The ears are short and both sexes carry horns. Mature weight in buck is between 25 to 30 kg and 20 to 25 kg in ewes. Like all other breeds of goat, they are used for meat and popularly called Ogufe in most of the eateries in Nigeria, especially in the South-west.

2. Maradi or Red Sokoto

This breed of goat is found mostly in the Sokoto area of Nigeria and part of the Niger Republic. It is the most well-defined breed of goat perhaps in Africa. It has a red skin coat that is of good quality for leather production.

Other varieties of the breed are the Kano brown or Boronu white. Both sexes carry horns with short ears that are horizontally positioned. At maturity, Maradi goats weigh between 20 and 30 kg.

3. West African Dwarf Goats

The West African dwarf goats are found in the forest zone of Nigeria. The goats are small in size with compact bodies and short legs. The short legs enable them to move under the thick vegetation of the forest region.

The color of the coat varies from black to grey to white or multi-colored. Their height is 40 to 50 cm at withers and weighs between 18 and 20 kg at maturity. They can produce twins. The breed is very hardy and resistant to trypanosomiasis.

In summary, there are two types of sheep with four breeds namely, such as; Uda, Yankasa, Balami, and the West African dwarf. The Uda, Yankasa, and Balami belong to the West African longlegged because they trek long distances for food and water.

There are three breeds of goat namely, Sahel, Red Sokoto or Maradi, and the West African dwarf Sahel is long-legged and the Red Sokoto is well noted for the quality of its skin used for leather production