Sheep Are Not Dumb

The two things I hear the most about sheep is "sheep have no personality" and "sheep are dumb." I guess it's probably because they're so skittish, and they run at the slightest sounds or changes in their environment. They also band together closely and do nothing the rest of the flock isn't doing, giving the illusion that they are just thoughtless followers. But since flocking and running are a sheep's only defense against predators, this actually isn't dumb behavior in context.

Who are you calling dumb? We're just following Dorrie because she knows where the tasty grass is!

A 2001 study published in Nature magazine found that sheep can remember up to 50 other sheep faces for as long as 2 years, and can recognize several human faces as well. Other studies have shown that sheep have excellent spatial memory, are capable of following cues (especially leading to food), can work together to accomplish a goal, and may even be able to self-medicate to some degree.

Eeny, meeny, miney, mo. Which one of these grasses will best soothe my soul?

But anyone who keeps sheep doesn't need studies to tell us these critters are smart and full of personality. Spend 5 minutes with a herd on a pasture, and you can see who is bossy, who is curious, who is shy, etc. As for smarts, well, many farmers have stories of master escape-artists, sheep who know their name, sheep who watch TV, and of course, sheep who come flying out of the fields for a tasty treat.

I wonder what's for dinner? Sure, I'm just now eating lunch, but I really like food. Like, a lot.

My own ewes are super smart about their grain rations. As one fellow farmer put it. "Soay don't miss a trick when it comes to food." They've been coming into the barn at night for a spot of grain since the day I first let them into the pasture, and they know that when they see me walk toward the barn at dusk, it's grain time (as opposed to seeing me walk to the barn at noon, which they don't even lift their heads at anymore).

Heeeey. You got any grain with you?

The alpacas get grained at night too, in their own pen. They're not very tidy about their grain eating, often dropping quite a few grains on the ground that they don't necessarily pick back up later. The ewes have figured this out, so their new morning ritual is to run over to the alpaca pen first thing to see if there's any leftover grain. They also make sure to investigate the alpaca hay and minerals, to see if they're any better than their own (they're not).

Oh, don't mind us. Just, uh, cleaning up. Yeah, cleaning. With our mouths.
Oh, a grain morsel! I had no idea this was here. Honest!

And if the alpaca door isn't open yet (I usually let the ewes' out before the alpacas), they will queue up outside of it and wait. 

Oh, man, you guys! I thought the grain bar would be open already!
Jasmine! Where are you going? You know this door will open ANY MINUTE.

It's honestly such a kick to watch all the animals and learn their little quirks. So far, I walk away from morning chores with a big ol' smile on my face. (This may change as I get used to farming, or after I've been hauling water buckets in below zero weather for weeks!) I encourage everyone to spend at least a few afternoons a year on a local farm, learning what raising animals (or growing veggies) is really like!

I'll leave you with a parting video of the sheep being vacuums in the alpaca pen: