Sheep and Cows

You cannot drive anywhere in New Zealand without passing fields of sheep and cows along the way. It is a well known fact by locals that the population of cows here is about double that of humans, and the most astounding figure is the ratio of sheep to humans is approximately 20:1! Living in the city, I do not see these animals every day, but as soon as I venture off, sheep and cows almost seem to line the sides of the roads. They truly are EVERYWHERE! I've even spotted them hanging out on the edges of grassy cliffs enjoying their fresh green grass.

On one of the trips Loyola held for us, we travelled to central North Island to the towns of Rotorua and Taupo. Along with the activities of zorbing, luging, and viewing the geothermal activity in the are, we also got the opportunity to attend the Agrodome Sheep Show. I felt like I was a little kid at a petting zoo going around and touching the sheeps' waxy, thick wool and laughing at their silly facial expressions. There were 19 different breeds of sheep that they presented and described to us. I found it entertaining to watch as each sheep was introduced and scampered (sometime tripping) up to their pedestal, starring off into the audience and looking proud. We also got to observe the shearing of a sheap. I felt sorry for the poor little guy as he was held down while all his wool was stripped from him. But the speed in which this was done was mind blowing! Within probably one minute all the wool was neatly removed and piled up in a large heap. This show was very interactive as well and included the audience in the tasks of milking a cow and feeding baby lambs with bottles of milk. Being an eager volunteer, I was lucky enough to milk my first cow! As i expected it was not too easy and very strange yanking on this cow that stood unamused. In the final part of the show, the large Huntaway dogs came on stage and showed off their intelligence and superb training. They even were instructed to climb up the pedestals where the sheep were all displayed by walking on top of the sheep. I was not expecting this, but was highly amused at the sheeps' careless reactions and the skills that these dogs possessed. Since I feel as though I've seen enough sheep roaming all of New Zealand, I did not expect to be as entertained as I was at this festivity. But learning more about these awkward animals and the worth of their wool made them no longer just the everyday New Zealand sheep seen grazing on the side of the road.