Sheep's milk 

(or ewes' milk) is the milk of domestic sheep. It is commonly used to make

cultured dairy products such as cheese. Some of the most popular sheep cheeses
include feta (Greece), ricotta (Italy), and Roquefort (France).

Contents

 1Sheep breeds
 2Milk production period
 3Products made from sheep milk
 4Nutrition by comparison
 5See also
 6References
 7External links

Sheep breeds[edit]
Specialized dairy breeds of sheep yield more milk than other breeds. Common dairy breeds include:

 East Friesian (Germany)
 Sarda (Italy)
 Lacaune (France)
 British Milk Sheep (UK)
 Chios (Greece)
 Awassi (Syria)
 Assaf (Israel)
 Zwartbles (Friesland, Netherlands)
In the U.S., the most common dairy breeds are the East Friesian and the Lacaune.[1] Meat or wool
breeds do not produce as much milk as dairy breeds, but may produce enough for small amounts of
cheese and other products.

Milk production period[edit]

Female sheep (ewes) do not produce milk constantly. Rather, they produce milk during the 80–100
days after lambing.[2] Sheep naturally breed in the fall, which means that a majority of lambs are born
in the winter or early spring. Milk production decreases and eventually stops when lambs are
weaned or when the days become shorter.[1] This means that milk cannot be produced year round.
[3]
 Through the use of controlled internal drug release (CIDR), ewes can be bred out of season. CIDR
drugs contain progesterone, which is slowly released into the bloodstream, bringing the animal
into estrus.[4] In this way, ewes can be bred at different times throughout the year, providing farms
with a year-round supply of milk.
Meat and wool breeds of sheep lactate for 90–150 days, while dairy breeds can lactate for 120–240
days. Dairy sheep are able to produce higher yields of milk per ewe per year. Dairy sheep can
produce 400–1,100 lb (180–500 kg) of milk per year while other sheep produce 100–200 lb (45–
91 kg) of milk per year. Crossbred ewes produce 300–650 lb (140–290 kg) of milk per year.[1]

Products made from sheep milk[edit]

Sheep milk cheeses include the feta of Greece, Roquefort of France, Manchego of Spain; Serra da
Estrela from Portugal; pecorino Romano (the Italian word for sheep is pecora), pecorino Sardo,
and ricotta of Italy; Pag cheese of Croatia; Ġbejna of Malta; and Gomolya of Hungary;
and Bryndza (Slovenská bryndza from Slovakia, brânza de burduf from Romania and Bryndza
Podhalańska from Poland).
In Greece, yogurt is often made from sheep's milk.