Lameness is the most prevalent welfare condition in sheep farming, affecting up to 10% of the national flock at any one time, with significant pain and reduced productivity if inadequately managed.
Sheep lameness welfare is characterised by a detection and treatment gap driven by the species' prey-animal pain masking behaviour and the challenges of managing large flocks. A sheep showing visible lameness is already in significant pain - the condition has typically progressed considerably before the animal displays it overtly. Treatment delay beyond 3 days is associated with dramatically worse outcomes and recovery times. The economic calculation on many farms historically supported accepting some level of lameness, but the Five Point Plan evidence base demonstrates that proactive lameness reduction improves both welfare and profitability. The welfare case for regular flock lameness scoring, rapid treatment, and biosecurity to prevent footrot introduction is now well-established.