Gissar sheep

The most similar to the sheep of the Hissar breed in appearance of the sheep in Kyrgyzstan

A flock of Hissar sheep in a mountain pasture of Tajikistan

Gissar ^[1] - a fat tail breed of sheep of meat and greasy direction. The Hissar breed is the largest in the world, among all cultivated sheep breeds. The breed is common in Central Asia , mainly in Uzbekistan and Tajikistan . The birthplace of the breed is Tajikistan , where today it is one of the most popular with local livestock breeders. ^{[1] [2] [3]} . The name of the breed comes from the Gissar Valley, which is located on the southern edge of the Gissar Range . Hissar breed is the closest relative of the Karakul sheep breed , which are also common in Central Asia.

The Hissar breed of sheep was bred in the mountain pastures of the Hissar Valley in Tajikistan by popular selection ^{[1] [2]} It is believed that the Hissar breed is a separate breed of fat tail sheep. This isolation occurred due to the complete isolation of these sheep from other species and natural conditions in the area of ​​breeding of this breed. Hissar sheep are the largest representatives of all cultivated sheep. The Hissar breed of sheep is larger than the Lincoln . Sheep at the withers reach a height of 85 centimeters, and sheep - up to 80 centimeters. The depth of the sternum is on average about 35 centimeters ^[4] .

Gissar sheep have a strong and well-developed skeleton, a large large trunk and a fat tail of large sizes, unlike other sheep. A large tail turkey is a repository of nutrients in conditions of uneven distribution of feed by season. In queens, Kurdyuk reaches an average of 40 by 30 centimeters, and in sheep, on average, 40 by 49 centimeters. The sheep have a massive head, a hunchbacked muzzle and a short tight neck. The breed is not horned. Sheep can sometimes have small horns, but they are weakly expressed.

Young sheep are precocious. In the first three months of their lives, lambs gain weight up to half a kilogram daily. Usually, when slaughtered, young sheep weigh up to 50 kilograms, brightness up to 48 kilograms. Sexual dimorphism is not expressed.

Gissar sheep are hardy and easily withstand long transitions from summer to winter pastures, the length of which reaches up to 500 kilometers. To increase fat in turkey hides , shepherds specifically graze flocks on alpine and subalpine pastures. The largest sheep can weigh up to 190 kilograms, and sheep - up to 120 kilograms. At present, livestock farms breed mainly in three directions: fat tail, fat tail, and meat. Hissar sheep are unique, both in constitution and in size of fat tail. In the meat sector, this so-called "storage" is small, and does not stand out in the general proportions of the body. Directly fat-tailed animals have a huge appendage, which makes up almost a third of the body. Individual individuals during slaughter give up to 62 kilograms of fat tail.

The Hissar breed was used to create the Tajik semi-coarse fat tail breed and to improve other fat tail breeds. The best herds are in Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. ^[one]

It is the Hissar breed along with the Karakul sheep breed that are the main ones in sheep breeding in Uzbekistan and Tajikistan . Because of their unpretentiousness and endurance, Hissar sheep are kept even in the western part of Uzbekistan, where instead of mountains and pastures, deserts and steppes prevail. Hissar sheep are also common in countries such as: Turkmenistan , Afghanistan , Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan . In Russia, there are also a small number of sheep of this breed, mainly they were brought by the inhabitants of Central Asia for breeding and sale ^[5] .