Rainbow sheep in Minecraft: Everything you need to know

In Minecraft, dyes can be used on a lot of different things. They can change the color of a bed, a block of wool, a dog's collar, or even a sheep. However, those shades remain the same. Once players dye something, the color is retained until the process is repeated.

The only exception to this rule is the fabled rainbow sheep. In the game, it is possible to get sheep to change colors rapidly. Ironically, it doesn't even require a dye to pull off.

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A complete guide to the fabled rainbow sheep in Minecraft

The rainbow sheep is not made with dye, but it is arguably the most colorful aspect of the game. It's one of Minecraft's fun Easter eggs.

The first step to getting the rainbow sheep is to find a nametag. These can be found in chests, but fishing them up as treasure is a much quicker way of getting one.

Once you have one, you can put it on an anvil, which is crafted with three iron blocks and three iron ingots. On the anvil, you can name the nametag. In the bar, type "jeb_" and accept it.

The nametag should bear that name, and you can use it on whatever you want. Bear in mind that this is only effective on sheep. You can find one of those either wandering around open plains or using a spawn egg from Creative.

Once you have one, click the "use" button with the "jeb_" nametag on the sheep. It will be named that, and it will begin cycling through colors. If you don't want your special rainbow sheep to run away, make sure that you capture it with a fence or a lead.

The rainbow sheep in Minecraft is a fun Easter egg because it's named after Jens Peder Bergensten, one of the original developers of the game. Jeb was his nickname.

Now, the sheep will continually cycle through colors until it dies, which is another reason why keeping it closed away with a fence is best. This keeps out hostile mobs like Creepers that can kill sheep. It also prevents angry wolves from eating it.

A jeb sheep in Minecraft (Image via MrJasonWilmot on YouTube)

If you want to use this sheep to get different colored wool, that is unfortunately impossible. The sheep is still considered white, so it drops white wool. Timing the rotation and shearing it in pink will not drop pink wool.

Additionally, this remains true with the breeding process. Breeding a white sheep and a black one makes a gray sheep, so mingling other colors together presents unique possibilities.

Since it's still considered a white sheep, the changing colors mean nothing to its potential offspring.

Finding different colors of sheep, including Minecraft's ultra-rare pink sheep, is possible out in the wild. However, since it requires a name tag, there are no organically spawning rainbow sheep in the game.