Time In The Countryside

Now is a time of the year when a lot of people in the Northern Hemisphere visit the countryside for purposes of relaxation and enjoyment. Many of them will be urban, or suburban, dwellers, and so they will not necessarily be arriving in the countryside with knowledge of rural ways and knowing about sheep.

Staying in holiday accommodation at, or nearby to, farms that have sheep can give visitor outsiders the great opportunity for discovering about sheep and their characteristics and needs; as similarly can camping out in those areas of countryside where sheep reside and graze. Signage and leaflets etc are around for explaining what is expected of visitors to the countryside and saying how they should behave for sheep to be safe and unharmed. Those who are day visitors may not during their visit be gaining all information needed.

Of those who dwell full-time in the countryside, most require to earn a livelihood in it, unless they are commuting to work in a town. Farmers often need to diversify to obtain an adequate income. In a tourism area, many other people, in whole or part, depend on visitors for their income. The challenge for all of these persons is to welcome visitors but to deter visitors from doing any harm or damage. For sheep farmers, dogs not managed and controlled properly by their owners is the great worry. Sheep are prey animals. Dogs’ instinct is to chase sheep. Sheep can suffer stress, injury or death due from being chased or attacked by dogs. It is vital that owners keep their dogs on leads when the dogs are near sheep.