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.
A general attitude towards animals, most particularly those which have been domesticated, has been, therefore, to see them as objects of use. And those animals which have been taken from their wild and natural existence to be farmed have thereafter had their way of life being ordained by humans and towards the objectives of humans. Sheep have been domesticated for some ten thousand years. The history of sheep use is varied, and with a heyday in the medieval period in which era sheep were held in a high-regard, of sorts, because of the lucrativeness of their fleece. The generality over the most of the whole ten millennia, whatever the state of human regard was for sheep, is of sheep having being farmed in way that represented humans taking control of running sheep’s lives but keeping with and deploying sheep’s natural inclinations. The shepherd, though acting for their own objectives, guided sheep over landscapes suitable for them and suitable for them to feed upon, and at a pace natural to them. Gradually over the last two centuries or so, farming of sheep has scaled up, and, with this, procedures have become more industrialised and complex and with more people being involved. The process of sheep farming has to a large extent become more impersonal; though by contrast a sector remains of sheep farming conducted traditionally, done ‘to the old ways’.
Concerning the attitude of mind towards sheep, ‘old farming’ ways of perceiving them and large-scale ‘modern’ sheep farming ways of regarding them seem not to differ that much fundamentally, but the latter - with its big size of number of sheep, large-scale processes and greater number of people involved - carries, almost inevitably, a reduction of relationship with a sheep on an individual basis, and bringing potential too for a consequent reduction of care and concern from the human about each individual sheep. And, of course, the general public will pick up on, and so manifest too, the attitudes.
In his book The Longest Story: How Humans Have Loved, Hated and Misunderstood Other Species (2021) Richard Girling describes humans’ attitudes to animals, in history and as of today. An attitude of using animals seems deep-seated.
Let us now look at some happenings and instances concerning sheep, for considering what they may reveal about how sheep are nowadays seen.
In late spring of 2021, on three occasions newborn lambs were found ‘in suburban gardens’ of Sunderland residences (The Guardian, 5th June 2021). They had been stolen and left there by ‘a prankster or pranksters’. One lamb was described by Northumbria police to be ‘distressed and … headbutting the fence, trying to get out of the garden’. At one call ‘an RSPCA rescue officer ‘attended … to find a lamb cold and shivering’. The officer, Heather Wade said ‘These little ones were only days old so were very vulnerable and would have been frightened to be away from their mum.’ She continued ‘I know the lambs could not have wandered into the gardens as they were enclosed.’ She said ‘We are not sure where they have come from as there are no nearby farms, so we could not reunite them with their mum, and they are now being hand-reared by a specialist.’
With the headline ‘14 sheep killed on railway line after being chased on to tracks by dog’, the East Anglian Daily Times (4th January 2022), reported on a horrific happening on 29th December 2021. The owner of the sheep was deeply upset. Among what they said in relation to the appalling incident and its potential outcomes was the remark, ‘It’s not just the financial impact though’.
In a Special Report entitled ‘How settler violence fuels fresh West Bank tension’ The Guardian (28th November 2021) reported how ‘settlers from … two outposts’ who had invaded a West Bank village had ‘advanced on the flock of a Palestinian shepherd … throwing stones and stabbing sheep, killing six of them.’ And other such attacks on, and killings of, sheep are reported to have occurred.
Change in the Howgill Fells was depicted (The Guardian, The age of extinction, ‘Un-managing the land: sheep make way for trees in Cumbria’s upland’ (30th October, 2020) by Phoebe Weston. One farmer is ‘selling his sheep and retiring after 55 years of upland farming’. A younger farmer in the area, Frank Hunter, aged 55, ‘believes farmers will be more actively involved in managing tree plantations in the future and will use grazing animals such as sheep as a management tool’. And the added remark is given, ‘Their meat will sell at a premium and will help the land deliver “ecosystem services” that the farmer can be paid for.’
The first example displays cruelty, ignorance, and lack of seeing lambs as for loving or caring about.
The second example implies the pre-eminence of the financial element in how a sheep farmer regards their sheep.
The third example displays cruelty, and callous disregard for the life and suffering of sheep.
The fourth example shows what fundamental change of attitude and approach for the future are being required of farmers in relation to sheep.
Humans’ mindset traditionally and until now concerning sheep has appeared to be: that of seeing sheep simply and only as objects for human use; that of not seeing sheep of being much value in their own right. From the mindset seem to have sprung various ways of thought and approach to sheep. And the essential mindset has existed so long that it would appear that what is done often occurs unquestioningly, because it has always been done that way, without latest information being taken cognisance of, without thought as to whether a way of approach is appropriate or humane.
As the first example above illumines, deliberate cruelty towards sheep can exist. Neglect too can be deliberate, but probably more often neglect is an outcome of pressure of time, shortage of people to do what is needed, absence of other resources, lack of knowledge, experience or understanding, insufficient funding. Mostly, bad treatment of sheep seems to be due to: ignorance; insufficient care about the sheep; absence of understanding of, and sensitivity to, the sheep’s traits and needs. Some sheep suffering comes from humans’ inattention, from their absence of attention; and, so, these sins of the humans towards the sheep are more sins of omission than those of deliberate choosing. A general dimension likely to lead to sheep not being treated as well as they should be is sheep farming conduct of industrial scale: in that circumstance operatives can develop a mindset that they are dealing with units not individual creatures.
Sheep farmers, as those of some other work disciplines, have an existence which is somewhat enclosed and distanced from the mainstream. To an extent they are a breed apart. And it can appear that sheep farmers, in the endeavour of sheep farming, do things according to custom and as they have always been done, and without thinking or re-evaluating whether a mode of action is as kind and considerate to sheep as it could be. For example, handling of sheep can seem unduly rough.
Jeffrey Masson, in his book The Secret World of Farm Animals (2004), poses a pertinent question, ‘Is there something about the innocence of sheep that stimulates men to ever-greater heights of cruelty?’
In a document with the title ‘The suffering of farmed sheep’ - and which starts by depicting the dimensions that farmed sheep suffer which they would not have to endure if they were wild - the animal rights group Animal Aid goes on to discuss under headings causes to bring suffering to sheep. These headings are: Size of the industry; More pregnancies and multiple births; Routine mutilations; Diseases; Forced adoption; Shearing; Livestock markets; Live exports.
It can be seen that if a mindset exists in humans of not seeing sheep as their fellow creatures, who are sentient, who can suffer as they do etc, they will never treat them aright. And if humans fail to appreciate sheep’s qualities, intelligence and sensitivity, they will miss out on the joy and pleasure from sheep’s company, and will not learn what sheep teach.
To date, the general attitude has been to see sheep as items for use. With concerns about climate change, to obtain biodiversity and sustainability, to reduce methane emissions, it is being recognised that the traditional needs from, and uses of, sheep need alteration. Compassion in World Farming [CIWF] reported (Farm Animal Voice, issue 207 - winter 2021), that at the United Nations Food Systems summit in September 2021, ‘the Summit’s official “repository of ideas” included
Moving away from industrial animal agriculture
Reducing the size of the livestock industry
And seeing animal welfare as an essential component of healthy, regenerative food production.’
Earlier in the year, on 3rd February, Chatham House (an independent policy institute), the United Nations Environment Programme [UNEP] and CIFW launched in partnership the Chatham House report ‘Food System Impacts on Biodiversity Loss’. And on 11th November 2020, in launching its ‘Rethinking Food’ programme, CIWF said ‘Compassion recognises we are fast approaching a critical juncture and there is an urgent need to transform our global food system.’
It can be that there are good reasons to alter uses of sheep, as examples: humans reduce their sheep meat eating, and so there is less methane being delivered by sheep due them being less in number; sheep put to a conservation grazing task.
Near the end of her book A Short History of the World According to Sheep (2020), Sally Coulthard asks what the future of sheep is, and states ‘We’re at a crossroads.’ She goes on, ‘The future for sheep is uncertain. The planet cannot tolerate a future of overstocking and aggressively intensive farming practices that pay scant attention to the animals’ welfare.’
It is necessary time for change of uses of sheep. But, also, time is not only ripe, but many centuries overdue, for changing how we see sheep, for altering our mindset in relation to them. Sheep are animals of great gentleness. They are stoic. They are prey animals. In a domesticated situation, they need to depend on humans. They seem to trust humans. So often that trust is betrayed. Sheep seem to forgive humans, and albeit that the forgiveness may be not at all deserved.
There has been a long - Anthropocene - age of human activity as the dominating influence over the environment. Humans should stop having a mindset to dominate sheep and should see sheep, not as inferiors, but as comrades and partners on earth to be treated as appropriately, considerately, understandingly, knowledgeably and compassionately, as humans themselves would wish to be treated. It cannot just be due to practical causes that humans alter to the fresh way of thinking about sheep, but from the impulses of ethics and morality. The fundamental is that we should now, at last, value sheep for what they are in themselves, rather than for what they can do for us. Sheep should be liberated from serving roles and having a way of life that humans have imposed upon them. Sheep have had to do, and have suffered from doing, what humans, in their mindset - of arrogance and dominance - have seen and decided is ‘what/all they are good for’. The uses to which sheep are put in future should fit with the natural way and behaviour of sheep, and to ensure them the very highest standards of welfare. How we have deployed sheep in the past has been the outcome of how we have regarded them. Our mindset now must be that of seeing sheep truly, and as our fellows not our servants.
How we treat sheep stems from how we see them. We need to have a new mindset in humans which - at last - recognises sheep’s qualities and worth in fullness and entirety and which carries an insistence that sheep must always have best care. The change of mind is demanded of us all - sheep farmers, stakeholders, general public.
1st February 2022