Sheep are highly effective at concealing pain as a prey-species survival strategy, making accurate welfare assessment challenging but essential.
The sheep's evolutionary strategy of concealing pain has created a welfare paradox — the animals most likely to suffer silently are those managing a condition that threatens their survival in the wild. Farmers who work with sheep daily often miss signs of significant pain because the animals continue eating and moving despite substantial discomfort. Evidence-based pain assessment tools including facial grimace scales, gait scoring, and behavioral checklists have been developed to help farmers and veterinarians identify pain that would otherwise go undetected and untreated. Routine analgesic provision for painful procedures like castration, mulesing, and lambing complications is an important welfare priority.