Sheep turned heads at an agricultural show 'beauty contest' after getting spray tans. Farmer Sam Beachell coated his flock in light brown spray to enhance their body shape for the judges. He believes it is easier to see the contours of sheep with tans.
His Texel flock carried off two trophies at the 150th Driffield Show in East Yorkshire. Texels are known for their muscular frames, similar to human bodybuilders who use fake tan to better show off their figures before contests.
Farmer's strategy pays off
Sam said: “It enhances the whiteness of the head and the legs and then the muscle definition of the body.” The farmer has been breeding sheep near Beswick, East Yorkshire, for years and has won trophies in the past. He vowed to pull out all the stops to return to the podium.
His flock won best Texel ewe and shearling ram. They also got a runner-up rosette for best ewe in the shearling category for sheep aged one to two. Sam said he had not been 'overconfident' and would have been 'chuffed' with an 'odd rosette'. Landing a couple of winners made it a 'special day'.
Social aspect of farming
“It's a huge social,” he said. “When you're farming, some of it can be fairly on your own and it's just good to catch up with friends.”
Previous sheep spraying incidents
Farmers have sprayed sheep before, but not usually for cosmetic reasons. In 2016, Lake District farmer Pip Simpson sprayed his 800 prized Cheviots bright orange in a bid to deter rustlers. In 2021, Isle of Man farmhand Michael Osborne, then 30, proposed to girlfriend Bryony Keale, 27, by spray-painting his marriage proposal on the side of a sheep. Bryony said: "I was so shocked. I couldn’t believe it. I saw the sheep and I thought 'absolutely not' and then he let it go to get down on one knee so we had to wrestle the sheep back so we could take some pictures."
