Central Office of Information; Department of Agriculture Scotland
Campbell Hopper Films Ltd
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The basis of Britain's sheep industry is the hill sheep farms of Scotland. This film gives an account of the life and work of a Scottish hill shepherd through the seasons, and tells of the government help offered.' Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Film Catalogue 1957, p. 151 Film opens in a sheep market. Auctioning sheep. Highland scenes, wrecked crofts and a deserted village. Hunters shooting game. Highland sheep farmer and his family outside his croft? with postman. Land shown which has not been managed: drainage, fences and bracken taking over. Hill Farm Act gives grants for improvements. Burning of heather on reclaimed land shown. Coarse grass cleared by cattle, lower pasture ploughed and reseeded. Shepherd shown checking sheep for disease. Close up of tick. Vaccination and dipping of sheep. Selecting rams, rams turned out onto the hills, rams with ewes. Winter snow, postman delivering to shepherd. Shepherd's wife getting into car. Spring lambing time shepherd inspects his flock on hillside, sheep in labour, lamb born. Dead lamb in stream. Ewe fretting for dead lamb. Dead lambs skin is cut off and placed over an orphan or twin lamb. Sheep and lamb put together overnight. Remaining sheep that haven't lambed are brought down off the hill and inspected. Sheep which aborted marked. Milk from a sheep is wiped on a lamb to get it to accept the lamb, they are shut up together. Sheep that have lambed turned out to the hills again. Sheep are counted in pens, separated and the ears marked, rams castrated. Wool clipped, dipping and drenching, sent to market. Flock of Leicester rams shown for crossing to grey face. Butchered meat. Central Office of Information for the Department of Agriculture Scotland Campbell Hopper Films Ltd
