Constellation of the Happy Sheep

Ever since I was a kid, the constellations have always puzzled me. Mostly because some of the constellations do not resemble anything the mythological creatures or characters they suppose to represent. A good example is the constellation Orion. Did the early poets, farmers, hunters, or stargazers have a preconceived idea of assigning a group of stars to represent Orion and his two hunting dogs - connecting whatever necessary dots to create an image of the hunter himself and his faithful canine companion? Or did they simply limit themselves to a small area of the night sky, connected the stars arbitrarily until they came up with an image that reminded them of a mythological character? The Hydra, perhaps? Whatever the approach, credit to these early astronomers, but I would have picked a better cluster of stars to actually resemble a human and not just a stick figure. And why limit them to mythological characters. Why not connect stars to conjure up the image of one's grandfather smoking his favorite pipe, or your 300-lb uncle clipping his toe nails in his underwear? On second thought, let's stick with myths. However, I can't deny the utility of the constellations to farmers, hunters, navigators, etc. Clearly, without some map of the sky, circumnavigation of the globe would not have been possible in the 16th century. But one of the most oft overlooked fact was the importance of the constellations to the shepherding culture, where, out in the open fields under a clear night sky, the stars were a source of post-coital topics of conversation for the shepherds and their ovine companion. Crude, I know... and an image unfit to be assigned a constellation because... it's not a myth! Oh how my wit kills me sometimes.