About: Olfactory imprinting in sheep

Imprinting is most often used to describe an early-life bond that can later affect an animal's mate choice. More broadly, the term refers to a rapid and selective learning process that only can occur during certain times in an animal's life. In sheep, ewes having just given birth imprint onto their lambs on the basis of olfactory cues, allowing mothers to distinguish their own offspring from other lambs in the flock. This olfactory-based imprinting is dependent on a ewe's behavior after giving birth, on the presence of amniotic fluid, and on a specialized odor-influenced learning process which allows the ewe to quickly memorize the smell of her offspring, to whom she then forms an exclusive maternal bond.