Gao Ning takes cares of a lamb in a sheep pen located in Lyushan township, Changxing county, Huzhou, Zhejiang province. [Photo/hz66.com]

In a spacious sheep pen situated in Huzhou, Zhejiang province, Gao Ning adeptly attaches a microchip ear tag onto a lamb before utilizing a handheld device to scan the tag and transmit the sheep's information online.

The sheep under Gao's attentive care are indigenous to Huzhou and renowned for their exceptional fertility and economical breeding costs, with Lyushan township serving as their primary production hub.

As a technical supervisor at the sheep house, Gao elaborated on the process, stating, "The electronic ear tag functions as the sheep's identity card. We promptly tag the lambs with chips after birth, upload the data to the cloud, and during the subsequent breeding cycle, the system automatically recognizes the blood relationships, thereby averting inbreeding and guaranteeing the purity and caliber of the sheep breed."

Having gained comprehensive insights into the growth patterns and nutritional requirements of Huzhou sheep, Gao has devised an intelligent breeding approach for the local sheep variety by analyzing extensive data related to reproduction and growth performance. This innovation not only accelerates the growth rate and enhances the meat quality but also curtails breeding expenses and environmental impact.

In recent years, the premier-quality Huzhou sheep have been introduced to underprivileged areas as part of Huzhou's involvement in the east-west cooperation program for poverty alleviation initiated by the central government, leading to the prosperity of numerous farmers.