Photo: Merino Sheep Show Rotorua New Zealand

At the sheep show in Rotorua, New Zealand, a beautiful Merino sheep poses behind the sign showing off his thick wool coat and spiral horns.

A Merino sheep sits quietly in the lush green grass behind his sign outside the Agrodome in Rotorua on the North Island of New Zealand. The wool on a Merino sheep is some of the softest and finest wool which is what this type of sheep is bred for. The eyes on the sheep are barely visible as the wool grows very close to them on either side with their long spiral horns twisting around their ears. Many of the Merino ewes in New Zealand are bred with Border Leicesters which will produce first cross prime lamb mothers.

The Agrodome Sheep Show happens three times a day all year round, except for Christmas Day, where people can view nineteen different types of sheep, one being the Merino. Visitors can also learn the technique of shearing a sheep, milking cows, feeding a baby lamb or bidding on a sheep during the auction.

Merino Breed of Sheep, Male, at the Agrodome in Rotorua, Bay of Plenty, North Island, New Zealand.