Feeling stressed? Study finds some sheep will calm ewe

It's a sight usually confined to the countryside – flocks of sheep contentedly grazing on vast expanses of field.

But introducing them to city centres and university campuses could help reduce stress among urbanites, researchers say.

For the past two years, around 25 sheep were allowed to nibble on lawns at central campus locations at the University of California.

And scientists have discovered they are doing much more than simply mowing, fertilising and improving the ecosystem.

The four breeds of sheep – Suffolk, Hampshire, Southdown and Dorset – first took on the role in 2021, during the Covid pandemic.

Researchers say that sheep can help reduce stress among urbanites

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They are fenced in, given access to clean water and taken back and forth to their home barns in the morning and at night by trailer. 

Researchers surveyed around 200 students and staff and found that those who had walked past the sheep or studied near them had a ‘significantly lower likelihood of being stressed’– compared with people who didn’t come across the livestock at all.

Encountering the animals helped improve people’s mental health, they found, and even proved to be a pre-exam calming tonic.

Lead author Haven Kiers, an assistant professor of landscape architecture and director of the ‘sheep mowers’ project, said: ‘This started out as an experiment to test their mowing abilities, and we have now published research on how they make people feel peaceful.’ And Mina Bedogne, a research assistant, explained: ‘Just taking a break from a chaotic workday and mindlessly observing the flock has brought joy to so many people.’

The team said their findings, published in The International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, were important when students of all ages have said that they struggle with stress and mental health.

A spokesman for UK trade body the National Sheep Association said there was ‘no doubt’ introducing sheep to urban areas would benefit individuals. But they warned of the risk from dog-worrying, stressing the move would only be possible if the health and welfare of the sheep could be guaranteed.