Zhu Jianyou herds his sheep on the morning of March 18. ZHAO DONGSHAN/ZHANG ZHAOWEI/FOR CHINA DAILY

Affectionally called "commander of the sheep herd" by locals, Zhu Jianyou is a 51-year-old farmer from Lucun in Yiyuan county, Shandong province.

Unable to make money through heavy labor after contracting an eye disease as a child, Zhu was considered impoverished by local government standards in 2014.

Zhu Jianyou and his wife, Qi Wenying, put grain stalks through a shredder to make fodder on March 14.ZHAO DONGSHAN/ZHANG ZHAOWEI/FOR CHINA DAILY

With the help of the local poverty alleviation department, he began raising sheep in 2016. After one year, he earned nearly 10,000 yuan ($1,411) from breeding sheep and was lifted out of poverty.

In the following two years, Zhu and his wife, Qi Wenying, built a sheep breeding pen. He now has more than 200 sheep and his annual revenue from sheep breeding is more than 70,000 yuan. With support from the local government, Zhu believes his sheep breeding business will develop further in the future.

Zhu tends to his sheep in the yard on March 14.ZHAO DONGSHAN/ZHANG ZHAOWEI/FOR CHINA DAILY

Qi holds a lamb on March 18.ZHAO DONGSHAN/ZHANG ZHAOWEI/FOR CHINA DAILY

Zhu (left) takes a sheep out of the yard for sale.ZHAO DONGSHAN/ZHANG ZHAOWEI/FOR CHINA DAILY

Zhu and Qi till a field on April 13.ZHAO DONGSHAN/ZHANG ZHAOWEI/FOR CHINA DAILY

Zhu sprays veterinary chemicals in the sheep herding yard on April 20.ZHAO DONGSHAN/ZHANG ZHAOWEI/FOR CHINA DAILY

Qi feeds a sheep from a metal plate on April 20.ZHAO DONGSHAN/ZHANG ZHAOWEI/FOR CHINA DAILY