This is why the transition from shoe polishing to sheep keeping failed.

(quoted fragments taken from Wikipedia)

As a prey species, a sheep’s system is adapted to hide the obvious signs of illness, to prevent being targeted by predators. However, there are some obvious signs of ill health, with sick sheep eating little, vocalizing excessively, and being generally listless.

So far little different from people in ill health.

Many breeders take a variety of preventative measures to ward off problems. The first is to ensure that all sheep are healthy when purchased. Two fundamental preventative programs are maintaining good nutrition and reducing stress in the sheep. Handling sheep in loud, erratic ways causes them to produce cortisol, a stress hormone. This can lead to a weakened immune system, thus making sheep far more vulnerable to disease. Signs of stress in sheep include: excessive panting, teeth grinding, restless movement, wool eating, and wood chewing.

This too I can handle. They are the same signs as those of sexually frustrated humans. But this is the sort of thing that destroyed the dream:

External sheep parasites include: lice (for different parts of the body), sheep keds, nose bots, sheep itch mite, and maggots. Keds are blood-sucking parasites that cause general malnutrition and decreased productivity, but are not fatal. Fly maggots cause the extremely destructive condition of flystrike. Flies lay their eggs in wounds or wet, manure-soiled wool, when the maggots hatch they burrow into a sheep’s flesh, eventually causing death if untreated.

Nose bots are flies that inhabit a sheep’s sinuses, causing breathing difficulties and discomfort. Common signs are a discharge from the nasal passage, sneezing, and frantic movement such as head shaking.

A wide array of bacterial diseases affect sheep. Diseases of the hoof, such as foot rot and foot scald may occur, and are treated with footbaths and other remedies. These painful conditions cause lameness and hinder feeding. Ovine Johne’s disease is a wasting disease that affects young sheep. Blue tongue disease is an insect-borne illness causing fever and inflammation of the mucous membranes.

A few sheep conditions are transmittable to humans.

Sheep, be glad there are people who think little of maggot-ridden wounds! Maybe we can still be friends?