Soay sheep are one of the most primitive breeds of sheep in existence today. The sheep take their name from a small Scottish island. The old Scandinavian name Sauda-ey means ‘Island of sheep’, so they were probably present on the island of Soay in Viking times (9th and 10th centuries AD). A small group of these sheep have survived in a feral state, protected from cross breeding for nearly 4000 years. Until 1932 these sheep could only be found on the island of Soay,