Sheep Lameness Prevention and Welfare Management

Lameness is the most important welfare problem in sheep, affecting millions of animals globally, yet its prevention is achievable with evidence-based management.

Key Facts

Footrot and contagious ovine digital dermatitis (CODD) are the most common causes of sheep lameness, accounting for the majority of cases.
Lameness prevalence in UK sheep flocks averages 5-8% but ranges from 0.5% to over 30% across farms.
Lame sheep experience significant pain measured by altered behaviour, reduced feed intake, and gait changes.
The Five-Point Plan for sheep lameness — developed by AHDB — provides evidence-based protocols for prevention and control.
Prompt treatment within 3 days of lameness onset dramatically improves recovery rates and reduces chronic suffering.
Vaccination against footrot is available and effective when combined with management measures.
Lameness scoring systems allow regular flock monitoring to identify and treat lame individuals before conditions worsen.
Breeding for resistance to footrot is possible and offers long-term genetic reduction in lameness susceptibility.

Welfare Considerations

Sheep lameness is a welfare problem that is both widespread and largely preventable. The evidence base is clear — prompt treatment, vaccination, regular monitoring, and careful foot-bathing protocols reduce lameness prevalence dramatically. The gap between best practice and average farm performance reflects training, time, and economic pressures on sheep farmers. Farm assurance schemes that measure lameness prevalence rather than just checking management protocols create accountability for welfare outcomes. Consumer support for welfare-assured lamb products creates the market signal that incentivises farm-level investment in lameness prevention.

What You Can Do

Choose lamb products from farms with welfare assurance certification that includes lameness management.
Support AHDB and equivalent organisations that provide practical lameness management tools for farmers.
Advocate for welfare outcome measurement — lameness prevalence scoring — in farm assurance standards.
Support training programmes that help sheep farmers implement evidence-based lameness prevention protocols.
Donate to sheep welfare research developing better prevention, treatment, and genetic resistance strategies.