Humans’ attitude to animals has been a complex one. Animals have been regarded by humankind as any or all of: matter for food; helpmeet’s (transporters and carriers); providers of substances to give warmth, clothing, protection; companions; items to render sport and entertainment; agents towards delivering a desired landscape or environment.

Recognition is dawning on humankind that, in following the tenets of industrialisation, in pursuing profit ends first and foremost, in looking for economies of scale, in pursuing material progress, in ignoring damaging dimensions of its activity while pursuing objectives of gain, it has produced harm to the planet and its process, elements, and nature.

The end of a sheep’s life can come about naturally, or it can be produced by humans, either in the best interests of the sheep or in the human’s own interests.

A sheep dying at the conclusion of what is regarded as natural span, and without there having been any medical intervention, or external cause to the death, has reached its death without human input. However, when a sheep dies at the decision of a human, and at a time of the human’s choice, the process to death will have complexity and elements absent from a death that has happened entirely naturally.

The season of festivity in relation to Christmas seems to seep ever-more backwards into autumn. By linkage to Christmas, Northern hemisphere ‘winter’, in atmosphere, can feel present in advance of its meteorological arrival, and yet further in advance of its astronomical arrival at the solstice. Wikipedia reports that ‘In Celtic nations such as Ireland (using the Irish calendar) and in Scandinavia, the winter solstice is traditionally considered as midwinter, with the winter season beginning 1 November, on All Hallows, or Samhain.’

A field in which sheep are placed will be their territory, and where sheep needs prevail. And the field will have boundaries - wall or fencing or hedge - that are clear and pronounced. And too, essentially the space is private space; at any one time being in individual responsibility - that of the owner/tenant/lessee/licence-holder.

Sheep, it can be interpreted, are already experiencing the effects of climate change. And it can be projected that, without soon and significant action by human beings to bring some amelioration of the situation, there will be more impact of greater extent on sheep from climate change.

Sheep are also form part of one element contributing to climate change. They render methane.