Amorous sheep get fined

• By Chen Kuan-pei and William Hetherington / Staff reporter, with staff writer

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A livestock farmer in Changhua County was fined NT$1,000 after his flock of about 95 meat sheep made noises in the night, disturbing nearby residents.

According to the final ruling delivered on Tuesday last week by the Changhua District Court, the man surnamed Chen (陳) began raising meat sheep in the residential area in 2023, with his flock now grown to almost 100 sheep.

Neighbors said that the sheep frequently made high-pitched noises of varying volume and frequency, particularly at night, disrupting their sleep, the ruling said.

A gavel is pictured in an undated photograph.

Photo: Taipei Times

Police visited the farm in January and issued a citation ordering Chen to address the noise problem, the ruling said.

However, the sheep again began bleating collectively late at night in mid-May, prompting neighbors to call police again, it said, adding police subsequently fined Chen NT$1,000 under the Social Order Maintenance Act (社會秩序維護法).

Chen said the bleating was not a persistent problem and mainly occurred during the spring and autumn mating seasons, when rams and young male sheep would call out, the ruling said.

It quoted Chen as saying he had since taken measures to address the problem, including separating the rams and castrating young males that matured early.

Chen said the sheep’s calls were only brief sounds and were “quieter than birdsong,” making them acceptable, and said the authorities had failed to properly investigate the matter.

The judge ruled that noise covered by the Social Order Maintenance Act does not have to exceed a specified decibel level or continue for an extended period, and that noise that is sufficient to disturb others’ peace and quiet can constitute an offense.

Although the sheep’s calls were brief, they were particularly noticeable and piercing at night, and could disturb nearby residents’ sleep, the judge said.

Although Chen had separated and castrated some of the sheep, the measures displayed limited effectiveness and had failed to prevent the flock from disturbing neighbors, the ruling said.

The court rejected Chen’s appeal and upheld the NT$1,000 fine.