Sheep are herbivores, which means their diet does not include meat. They typically eat seeds, grass and plants³.
Lambs walk just minutes after they are born, though they are still dependent on their mothers for the first four to six months of their lives³.
Sheep can recognize up to 50 other sheep faces and remember them for two years². However, sheared sheep don’t recognize each other and may fight for a few days to re-establish hierarchy. Sheep can also recognize human faces.
A sheep is much less likely to show obvious signs of pain than a domestic dog. This is believed to be the case because signs of weakness attract predators and sheep are a species that is preyed upon⁵.
Like various other species, including humans, sheep make different vocalizations to communicate different emotions. They also display and recognize emotion by facial expressions and prefer a smile to a frown⁴.
Most sheep have large, curling horns made out of keratin – the same element that's present in human fingernails³.
Sheep are able to experience emotions such as fear, anger, rage, despair, boredom, disgust, and happiness⁴.
Sheep are very gentle animals and were one of the first animals to be domesticated¹.
They build friendships, stick up for one another in fights, and feel sad when their friends are sent to slaughter⁴.
Sheep have excellent peripheral vision. Their large, rectangular pupils allow them to see almost 360 degrees and they can also see behind themselves without turning their heads².
