Why were hundreds of sheep mysteriously walking in a circle in China? Expert explains over viral video

Remember the bizarre sheep walking video? A video showing some hundred sheep continuously walk in a circle for nearly about thirteen days had gone viral on social media, earlier this month. However, the case remained more of a mystery, with some claiming it to be a result of unlikely food intake by the animals.

In a development in this regard, a plausible explanation has been made by a professor from the Department of Agriculture at Hartpury University, in Gloucester, England. Identified as Matt Bell, the expert traced the reason behind the weird walking pattern of the herd to be "frustration."

"It looks like the sheep are in the pen for long periods, and this might lead to stereotypic behavior, with the repeated circling due to frustration about being in the pen and limited [as to where they can go]. This is not good. Then the other sheep join as they are flock animals and bond or join their friends, Bell told Newsweek.

Here's the video which had gone viral in mid-November, 2022; watch

Initially, when the video circulated on social media, Metro reported that a bacterial disease called "Listeriosis" may have caused the sheep to take constant rounds, stating that the health disorder is known to cause ‘circling’ in animals. The media outlet had further suggested the case to be associated with spoilt silage consumed by the respective animals.