{"id":3009,"date":"2024-11-08T12:43:12","date_gmt":"2024-11-08T12:43:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/advice\/cattle-advice-2\/"},"modified":"2025-03-19T10:24:44","modified_gmt":"2025-03-19T10:24:44","slug":"sheep","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/advice\/sheep\/","title":{"rendered":"Sheep"},"content":{"rendered":"<section class=\"hero bg-Rose\">\n      <div data-aos=\"fade-in\" data-aos-delay=\"700\" class=\"bg-img bg-cover img-wrap-rel\">\n    <img decoding=\"async\" width=\"847\" height=\"508\" src=\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/Sheep-Advice.jpeg\" class=\"img-ab\" alt=\"Sheep\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/Sheep-Advice.jpeg 847w, https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/Sheep-Advice-300x180.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/Sheep-Advice-768x461.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/Sheep-Advice-245x147.jpeg 245w, https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/Sheep-Advice-600x360.jpeg 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 847px) 100vw, 847px\" \/>  <\/div>\n      <div class=\"container-xl py-5 d-flex align-items-center\">\n        <div class=\"hero-content py-4\">\n            <div class=\"content-wrap btn-mob-full pe-0 pe-lg-2\">\n                                    <h1>Sheep <\/h1>\n                                <p>With a mix of both lowland and upland sheep, flocks are a common sight across much of Scotland\u2019s countryside.<\/p>\n                                                            <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n<\/section><div class=\"block-wrapper my-5 core-spacer\"><div class=\"container-xxl\"><div style=\"height:50px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><a id=\"options\"><\/a>\n<section class=\"jump-links\">\n    <div data-aos=\"fade-up\" class=\"container-xl wrapper-sm\">\n        <div class=\"rose-wrap\">\n                            <p>\n                    <strong>On this page:<\/strong>\n                <\/p>\n                                        <ul>\n                                            <li>\n                                                            <a href=\"#welfare\" target=\"_self\">What welfare standards should sheep have?<\/a>\n                                                    <\/li>\n                                            <li>\n                                                            <a href=\"#expect\" target=\"_self\">What do we expect of people who own sheep?<\/a>\n                                                    <\/li>\n                                            <li>\n                                                            <a href=\"#concerns\" target=\"_self\">Got concerns about sheep?<\/a>\n                                                    <\/li>\n                                    <\/ul>\n                    <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n<\/section><section class=\"text-block my-5\" data-bs-theme=\"white\">\n    <div data-aos=\"fade-up\" class=\"container-xl wrapper-sm\">\n        <div class=\"content-wrap\">\n            <p>Did you know there are more sheep than people in Scotland? Figures show there are 6.59 million nationwide. With a mix of both lowland and upland sheep, flocks are a common sight across much of Scotland\u2019s countryside.<\/p>\n<p>Year-on-year, our inspectors visit more and more sheep farms to make sure welfare needs are met. Since 1999, our partnership with Quality Meat Scotland has helped us to drive up welfare standards in sheep farming.<\/p>\n        <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n<\/section><a id=\"welfare\"><\/a>\n<section class=\"text-block my-5\" data-bs-theme=\"white\">\n    <div data-aos=\"fade-up\" class=\"container-xl wrapper-sm\">\n        <div class=\"content-wrap\">\n            <h2><strong>What welfare standards should sheep have?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Sheep have the same rights as all other animals in that they should be able to enjoy the \u2018Five Freedoms\u2019. This framework is the basis for assessing the welfare of sheep. These freedoms are:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Its need for a suitable environment \u2013 by providing an appropriate environment including shelter and a comfortable resting area;<\/li>\n<li>Its need for a suitable diet \u2013 by ready access to fresh water and a diet to maintain full health and vigour;<\/li>\n<li>Its need to be able to exhibit normal behaviour patterns \u2013 by providing sufficient space and proper facilities;<\/li>\n<li>Any need it has to be housed with, or apart from, other animals \u2013 by providing company of the animals\u2019 own kind, if appropriate;<\/li>\n<li>Its need to be protected from suffering, injury and disease \u2013 by ensuring conditions and treatment to avoid suffering, including mental suffering.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n        <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n<\/section><a id=\"expect\"><\/a>\n<section class=\"text-block my-5\" data-bs-theme=\"white\">\n    <div data-aos=\"fade-up\" class=\"container-xl wrapper-sm\">\n        <div class=\"content-wrap\">\n            <h2><strong>What do we expect of people who own sheep?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>The volume and type of sheep owned, the suitability of the land, the competence of the shepherd and the quality of stockmanship are all key factors in caring for sheep properly. Anyone involved should have a full understanding of the Five Freedoms.<\/p>\n<p>Sheep should always have access to feed and fresh, clean water and have a diet that allows them to maintain full health. The shepherd, and anyone employed by them to work with the sheep, should be able to notice any signs of ill-health and check on the condition of all animals in the flock every day.<\/p>\n        <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n<\/section><a id=\"concerns\"><\/a>\n<section class=\"text-block my-5\" data-bs-theme=\"white\">\n    <div data-aos=\"fade-up\" class=\"container-xl wrapper-sm\">\n        <div class=\"content-wrap\">\n            <h2><strong>Got concerns about sheep?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>If you have seen a sheep or flock and are concerned about their conditions or welfare, call our confidential animal helpline to report it. Get in touch on 03000 999 999 and one of our experts will take down all the information you have and ask an inspector to look in to it.<\/p>\n<p>As well as preventing cruelty, we work alongside farmers to make sure they can manage their flock properly to ensure the highest welfare standards possible are met.<\/p>\n        <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n<\/section><section id=\"donate-2956\" class=\"donate-block  mt-5 pt-5 pb-5\">\n\n    \n\t            <div data-aos=\"fade-up\" class=\"container-xl\">\n            <div class=\"outer-row row g-5 align-items-center\" data-aos=\"fade-up\">\n                <div class=\"col-lg-2 d-none d-lg-block\">\n                    <div class=\"bg-img bg-cover img-wrap-rel\">\n\t\t\t\t\t    <img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1369\" height=\"750\" src=\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/banner-1369x750.jpg\" class=\"img-ab\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/banner-1369x750.jpg 1369w, https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/banner-300x164.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/banner-1024x561.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/banner-768x421.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/banner-245x134.jpg 245w, https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/banner-600x329.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/banner.jpg 1512w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1369px) 100vw, 1369px\" \/>                    <\/div>\n                <\/div>\n                <div class=\"col-lg-7\">\n                    <div class=\"donate__content\">\n                        <div class=\"heading-wrap\">\n                            <h2><h2>Support us from \u00a35 a month<\/h2>\n<p>It costs us \u00a363,000 every day to continue the work that animals across Scotland depend on. Our work is only possible because of the generosity of people like you.<\/p>\n<\/h2>\n                        <\/div>\n                    <\/div>\n                <\/div>\n                <div class=\"col-lg-3 text-center text-lg-end\">\n                    <a href=\"#XBBXAQBN\" style=\"display: none\"><\/a>\n                    <div class=\"pay-wrap pt-2 text-center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/payment-logos.svg\" alt=\"Accepted payment methods\" class=\"pay mx-auto img-fluid\"><\/div>                <\/div>\n            <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n\n    \n<\/section>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>With a mix of both lowland and upland sheep, flocks are a common sight across much of Scotland\u2019s countryside.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":3686,"parent":1873,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-3009","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v24.7 (Yoast SEO v24.7) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Sheep - Scottish SPCA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"With a mix of both lowland and upland sheep, flocks are a common sight across much of Scotland\u2019s countryside. Read our sheep advice and care.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/advice\/sheep\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Sheep\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"With a mix of both lowland and upland sheep, flocks are a common sight across much of Scotland\u2019s countryside. Read our sheep advice and care.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/advice\/sheep\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Scottish SPCA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/scottishspca\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-03-19T10:24:44+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/sheep-6262928_640.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"640\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"433\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@ScottishSPCA\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/advice\/sheep\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/advice\/sheep\/\",\"name\":\"Sheep - Scottish SPCA\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/advice\/sheep\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/advice\/sheep\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/sheep-6262928_640.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-11-08T12:43:12+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-03-19T10:24:44+00:00\",\"description\":\"With a mix of both lowland and upland sheep, flocks are a common sight across much of Scotland\u2019s countryside. Read our sheep advice and care.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/advice\/sheep\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/advice\/sheep\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/advice\/sheep\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/sheep-6262928_640.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/sheep-6262928_640.jpg\",\"width\":640,\"height\":433},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/advice\/sheep\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Advice &#038; Care\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/advice\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"Sheep\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/\",\"name\":\"Scottish SPCA\",\"description\":\"cottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Scottish SPCA\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/logo.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/logo.png\",\"width\":738,\"height\":231,\"caption\":\"Scottish SPCA\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/scottishspca\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/ScottishSPCA\",\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/official_scottishspca\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Sheep - Scottish SPCA","description":"With a mix of both lowland and upland sheep, flocks are a common sight across much of Scotland\u2019s countryside. Read our sheep advice and care.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/advice\/sheep\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Sheep","og_description":"With a mix of both lowland and upland sheep, flocks are a common sight across much of Scotland\u2019s countryside. Read our sheep advice and care.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/advice\/sheep\/","og_site_name":"Scottish SPCA","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/scottishspca","article_modified_time":"2025-03-19T10:24:44+00:00","og_image":[{"width":640,"height":433,"url":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/sheep-6262928_640.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_site":"@ScottishSPCA","twitter_misc":{"Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/advice\/sheep\/","url":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/advice\/sheep\/","name":"Sheep - Scottish SPCA","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/advice\/sheep\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/advice\/sheep\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/sheep-6262928_640.jpg","datePublished":"2024-11-08T12:43:12+00:00","dateModified":"2025-03-19T10:24:44+00:00","description":"With a mix of both lowland and upland sheep, flocks are a common sight across much of Scotland\u2019s countryside. Read our sheep advice and care.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/advice\/sheep\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/advice\/sheep\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/advice\/sheep\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/sheep-6262928_640.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/sheep-6262928_640.jpg","width":640,"height":433},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/advice\/sheep\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Advice &#038; Care","item":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/advice\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Sheep"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/","name":"Scottish SPCA","description":"cottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/#organization","name":"Scottish SPCA","url":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/logo.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/logo.png","width":738,"height":231,"caption":"Scottish SPCA"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/scottishspca","https:\/\/x.com\/ScottishSPCA","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/official_scottishspca"]}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3009","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3009"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3009\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":864458,"href":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3009\/revisions\/864458"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1873"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3686"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scottishspca.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3009"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}