Intelligent and quick to learn
Sheep can learn and remember. They recognize many other sheep and know who they can trust. Behind their calm gaze is an animal who feels, chooses and understands.
About animal species
Sheep are intelligent, social and sensitive.
Sheep can learn, remember faces and recognize many other sheep. They are social animals who look to their flock for safety. Yet in the animal industry, they are often treated as if their lives only matter as products.
About sheep.
Highly social
Sheep like to live together. Their flock provides safety, calm and social contact. They follow and respond to one another, and prefer to stay close to familiar companions.
A wise leader
In a flock, sheep often choose an older, intelligent ewe as their leader. She knows the surroundings, recognizes danger and helps guide the flock towards safety.
A stark contrast.
What they need
Sheep need safety: their mother during the first months of life, familiar companions, shelter from cold and heat, space to move and the peace to live together as a flock.
In the animal industry
After the first few months, young sheep are often separated from their mothers and placed with other sheep. Trade, transport and slaughter may then follow, bringing stress, crowding, noise, unfamiliar animals and little control over their own lives.
Natural lifespan
20 years
Lambs
6 months
Sheep used for wool or milk
6 years
Images from the animal industry
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Born with their mother
During their first months, lambs seek warmth, milk, protection and closeness from their mother.
Then separated
After that first period, young sheep are often taken away, moved and placed with other animals.
Outside day and night
Sheep are often kept outside, even when the weather is harsh, cold, wet or extremely hot.
Cold, heat and exhaustion
Not every sheep receives enough protection or care. Some die from cold, heat or physical decline.
Crowded transport
For a social and sensitive animal, transport means noise, crowding, unfamiliar animals and very little space.
Long journeys
Some sheep are transported over long distances, sometimes enduring heat, exhaustion and too little rest along the way.
Fear on the journey
Crowding, heat and sometimes a lack of food or water can make such a journey exhausting and frightening.
A violent end
At slaughter, a life ends that began with a mother, a flock and the desire to keep living.
This has to stop.
The number of sheep we kill each year is almost impossible to comprehend. These are individuals, each with their own personality, emotions, unique experience of the world and desire to live.
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An estimate of the number of sheep killed worldwide since you opened this page. This estimate is based on figures showing that around 704 million sheep are killed each year (Our World in Data
).
Protect sheep.
Sheep are intelligent, social, alert and sensitive. They recognize one another, seek out their flock and want to live. When we see them for who they really are, it becomes difficult to reduce their lives to wool, meat or a number. We can leave these beautiful animals in peace by choosing plant-based.
Get startedPhoto credits
- “Born with their mother”: Andrew Skowron / We Animals Media.
- “Then separated”: credit not provided.
- “Outside day and night”: credit not provided.
- “Cold, heat and exhaustion”: credit not provided.
- “Crowded transport” and “In the animal industry”: credit not provided.
- “Long journeys”: credit not provided.
- “Fear on the journey”: Wess Burdett / We Animals Media.
- “A violent end”: Havva Zorlu / We Animals Media.