Jacob Sheep

The Bible StoryThe Jacob sheep takes its name from the story told in the Old Testament Book of Genesis of how Jacob became a selective breeder of pied (spotted) sheep.

Jacob, the second son of Isaac and Rebecca, had so infuriated his older brother Esau that he was sent away to stay with his uncle Laban who lived over 1000 kilometers from Jacob's home. While he was there, Jacob fell in love with his beautiful cousin Rachel, but had to work as an unpaid shepherd for his uncle Laban for fourteen years before permission was given for them to marry.

After Jacob and Rachel's son Joseph was born, Jacob wished to return to his own country. To retain Jacob's services as a shepherd, Laban promised to allow Jacob to establish his own flock by taking all the spotted and speckled sheep and black lambs from Laban's flock. Laban agreed to this, but then gave his sons all the black lambs promised to Jacob.

In an effort to produce more spotted lambs, Jacob placed spotted sticks near the water where the sheep drank, thinking the sticks would create more spotted lambs. Then God instructed Jacob to use only spotted rams. This sound advice marked the first recorded use of selective breeding in livestock.

Jacob took all the spotted and pied sheep, and used them to establish a large flock and grew exceedingly wealthy. God then came to Jacob in a dream and told him that he should return to the land of his birth, so Jacob fled with his wives and children and flocks and returned to Canaan and his father Isaac.

During the flight, Jacob's son Joseph was sold by his brothers to a caravan of traders carrying gum, balm and myrrh. Joseph eventually settled in Egypt where he became governor.

At a time of famine the brothers, not knowing that Joseph was governor, came to Egypt to buy corn. Joseph recognized them and ordered that they be imprisoned. He later released them and told them to return to his father Jacob and ask him to come to Egypt with his children, his children's children, his flocks of pied sheep, and all that he had.

Jacob's pied sheep thus traveled from Palestine to Egypt. Over the following thousands of years, so it is said, the descendants of Jacob's sheep traveled to Spain via the coast of North Africa and Morocco.

(Taken from Jacob Sheep Society, and the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy Notebook)