Sheep - who's in your chop?
Just because you see sheep and lambs out in the fields, doesn't mean they are living a natural life and are happy and healthy. You see sheep standing out in rain, snow or scorching heat – but it's not by choice. They have nowhere else to go, no shelter, and frequently not even enough water to drink. Each year, about one in five (20%) of all newborn lambs die within a few days of birth – from disease, exposure or malnutrition.
And hundreds of thousands of adult sheep also die in the fields annually, often due to pregnancy complications. Sheep would naturally give birth to one baby at a time. But nowadays, through selective breeding and special feeding programmes, they routinely give birth to two or three. This is a great strain on the mother and results in a high early-death rate in the ‘extra’ offspring.
Shortly after birth, lambs are subjected to two painful mutilations: castration and tail-docking. Males are castrated in order to prevent unplanned breeding (even though many lambs are slaughtered before they reach sexual maturity). Tails are cut off to prevent flies laying their eggs in the dirty skin underneath, even though more shepherds doing a better job of caring for the sheep would make this unnecessary.
Sheep suffer lameness, bug infestation, rotting teeth, blindness and viral and bacterial infections, caused by the stress on their bodies. ‘Preventive’ drugs for a wide range of parasites have to be given, either by injection, pouring them down the throat or submerging the animals in a chemical ‘sheep dip’.
Although they can live for 15 years, sheep are typically slaughtered at 4 months old to be made into lamb chops and other meat products.
Make a difference
Want to know more?
- Read The Suffering of Farmed Sheep section in adult site
