Sheep Mulesing Welfare and Alternatives

Mulesing — a surgical procedure removing wool-bearing skin from around the tail of Merino sheep — causes significant acute and chronic pain. Evidence-based alternatives increasingly make it unnecessary.

Key Facts

Mulesing is used in Australia to prevent flystrike — infestation of skin folds by blow fly larvae
The procedure is performed without anaesthesia in most cases and causes acute pain lasting days to weeks
An estimated 10 million lambs undergo mulesing annually in Australia
Pain relief for mulesing has been shown to significantly reduce suffering and is increasingly required or recommended
Alternatives including selective breeding for plain-bodied sheep and targeted preventive chemicals are progressively replacing mulesing

Welfare Considerations

Mulesing causes undeniable acute pain — lambs who have been mulesed show elevated pain behavioral indicators for days following the procedure. The procedure is performed to prevent flystrike, which also causes severe suffering, creating a difficult welfare trade-off. However, the welfare argument for mulesing is increasingly challenged by the availability of effective alternatives: selective breeding for skin types less susceptible to flystrike, targeted use of preventive chemicals, and prompt detection and treatment of early flystrike. Painkiller provision for mulesing, where it is still performed, significantly reduces acute suffering with minimal additional cost.

What You Can Do

Choose wool products from producers who do not mules or who provide mandatory pain relief for mulesed sheep
Support industry initiatives including IWTO and RWS standards that require phase-out or pain relief for mulesing
Advocate for mandatory pain relief for mulesing as a minimum welfare requirement pending full phase-out
Support breeding programs developing plain-bodied Merino strains resistant to flystrike without mulesing
Ask retailers about their wool sourcing and mulesing policies