For the first time in 10 years, the U.S. sheep sector experienced a year-over-year increase in sheep and lamb numbers. As of Jan. 1, inventory was at 5.2 million head, up 1 percent from January 2014.

Of that total, Texas has 720,000 sheep and lambs, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS).

Click here for a Texas Radio Network interview with Peter Orwick, American Sheep Industry Association executive director.