Cattlemen did not like sheep because they believed the smaller animals with their sharply pointed hoofs cut the range grasses and made the ground stink so that cattle wouldn't use it. ... But certainly some ranchers saw sheep as an opportunity, another way to turn grass into a commodity in the form of meat or wool.

Why can't sheep and cattle graze together?

Sheep do not compete directly with cattle when grazing a mixed-grass and forb forage base. ... “That's because sheep are a desert animal,” Ollila says. Even during a drought, some plants will grow, such as sedges. “Sedges run about 12% protein,” Ollila says, “and the sheep did well on them last year in the drought.

Why did sheep and cattle ranchers come into conflict What was the result?

Sheep herders and cattle ranchers competed for scarce labor and diminishing range resources for their herds. ... The two agricultural systems didn't mix easily, with ranchers insisting that sheep and cows could not graze the same land.