SCP-5160, without hat, during photo session with the "Grandmother Sheep" charity logo designer.

Item #: SCP-5160

Object Class: Keter

Special Containment Procedures: When physically in Foundation custody, SCP-5160 is to be housed in a medium-sized, camera-monitored livestock enclosure at Site-17. Standard food and custodial amenities are to be provided. Light grooming is to take place once monthly.

SCP-5160 has been fitted with a custom-designed decorative tracking collar, to allow for the Foundation to identify locations at which it manifests. Should SCP-5160 be confirmed to have manifested near a public school, Foundation agents are to enter the premises under the guise of retrieving a fundraising charity mascot, and escort the entity away from the campus. Children are permitted to interact with SCP-5160 during the escorting process so long as low-dose amnestics are administered afterward. Should SCP-5160 disappear and re-manifest in its typical enclosure, no action is to be taken.

Any overtly anomalous instances of SCP-5160-1 produced by SCP-5160 are to be confiscated and kept in Foundation custody at the nearest Foundation Site, with a non-anomalous replacement provided to the original recipient. Currently, there are 27 such items in storage; these instances may be used for experimentation by any researcher with Level-3 or higher clearance. Instances of SCP-5160-1 that do not exhibit any noticeable anomalies may be retained by the individual whom originally received the instance from SCP-5160. Followup investigations may proceed as necessary.

A Foundation cover company named "Grandmother Sheep" (with the image of SCP-5160 used as its mascot) has been established as a disinformation initiative to deter civilian investigation of SCP-5160. The company is to function as a nonprofit charity dedicated to providing clothing, specifically handmade woolen items, to schoolchildren of low-income households.

A full-time team of five Foundation agents is to maintain the Grandmother Sheep cover company's documentation and handle donations and distribution. The team is also to facilitate regular public appearances of non-anomalous SCP-5160 lookalikes for mascot "meet-and-greet" events. D-Class personnel with positive behavioral records may be recruited to assist with these tasks; paid leave will be granted to skilled Foundation researchers willing to host group knitting sessions for these individuals.

Description: SCP-5160 is a small female Ouessant sheep (Ovis aries), which wears1 a pointed "witch hat" adorned with a purple ribbon and bow. SCP-5160 has the appearance of a non-anomalous geriatric sheep, but has not shown evidence of further aging. When approached by a human, SCP-5160 will anomalously release aromas considered by the individual to be comforting and pleasant.

Should SCP-5160 be observed continuously, observers will note that it gradually takes on visible qualities reminiscent of their grandmothers, including hairstyles, accessories (glasses, jewelry, hair curlers, etc.) and clothing (aprons, knitwear). These visual anomalies are unique to the observer.

Approximately once a week, SCP-5160 has been observed to vanish in a cloud of colored smoke and re-manifest in a housing area2 occupied by low-income families. SCP-5160 will then seek out a public gathering space and wait to be approached. Children (individuals under 18 years of age) who speak to SCP-5160 will be offered an article of woolen clothing, produced from SCP-5160's hat.3 These items (designated SCP-5160-1) have been found to possess minor anomalous properties, thus far demonstrated to manifest solely for the recipient. A partial list of SCP-5160-1 instances allowed to remain with their recipients is as follows:

Article of Clothing
Anomalous Property
Recipient/Brief Background

Black Mittens
Provides a subtle "heating" effect, presumably to keep hands warm. Stated that "it feels like someone is holding my hand."
██████, Samuel. Was often placed in free afterschool programs due to parents working fulltime. Frequently did not return home until very late.

Light Grey Beanie
(Self-reported) "Thinking cap whispered and helped [me] remember more things."
███, Gabe. Was previously teased for losing items and quickly forgetting names of classmates.

Salmon Pink Sweater
Raised confidence, slightly improved overall body strength. Subject stated that they "feel like someone is cheering for me."
██████, Layna. Frequently sat out of sports and outside activities, cited fear of being hurt or "being the worst on the team".

Black Scarf
(Self-reported) "When I wear the scarf, I have an easier time thinking of funny things and I can make people laugh easily-er."
█████████, Esmerelda. Noted to be timid and had difficulty making friends during lower-grade elementary years.

White Socks
(Self-reported) "I feel more comfortable when I wear the socks while studying. When I focus on the feel of the wool on my feet, I get distracted less often."
███, Hiroshi. First-generation college student, graduated high school early on a full scholarship.

White Mittens
(Self-reported) "When I look at the mittens, I see patterns in the wool that remind me of happy things, like clouds and ice cream and my favorite blanket from when I was little."
██████, Garyl. Child history seems unremarkable; mother was noted to have suffered severe postpartum depression.

Addendum SCP-5160-1: SCP-5160 first attracted Foundation attention when many elementary schools within the same region of France reported a singular "lost sheep with a fancy hat" roaming campuses and evading capture. After months of surveillance, Foundation agents were eventually able to intercept SCP-5160 at ████████ Primary School, in North Yorkshire, England.

Containment specialists dispatched to the location reported that upon their arrival, SCP-5160 appeared to half of the team4 as 5-meter tall versions of their maternal grandmothers. Additional assistance was called in and SCP-5160 was transported to the nearest Foundation site with no incident.

Initial housing of SCP-5160 proved difficult, as it would repeatedly demanifest for long periods of time, only to reappear in various other rooms in the facility. Research personnel were able to lure SCP-5160 back to its usual enclosure using fresh fruits and other treats. However, after SCP-5160 had manifested in the site's break room, it was discovered that it had a fondness for reading knitting magazines. Upon being provided with several monthly subscriptions (and a basket to keep old issues in), SCP-5160 was persuaded to remain in its enclosure for extended periods of time.

Over the course of the next few months, Foundation personnel attempted to communicate with SCP-5160, who consistently would only respond5 to binary ("yes/no") questions, and would only acknowledge three questions per day, if addressed as "grandma" or variations on the title. A tentative agreement was established: in exchange for SCP-5160's compliance, the Foundation would found a charity in its image, devoting a certain annual portion of the site's budget to said charity. SCP-5160 was to be given the final say in any publicity decisions, including the design of the charity logo.

Addendum SCP-5160-2: Roughly three months after the founding of the Grandmother Sheep charity, undercover Foundation agents began receiving letters and artwork from children who received items through the organization. Dr. ████ █████ (the lead containment specialist on the SCP-5160 project) suggested that rather than storing the documents in the archives, they instead be kept in the interior portion of SCP-5160's enclosure. A large bulletin board was added to the containment area to allow SCP-5160 to display its favorite6 letters and drawings.

Shortly after this change was made, SCP-5160 presented Dr. ████ █████ with a pair of woolen socks, presumably for Dr. █████'s toddler daughter. Thus far, the only observed anomalous effects involve the socks playing gentle, low-volume piano music when worn during evening and nighttime.7 Close inspection of the objects revealed small text embroidered into the inner lining of each sock, reading "Grandma believes in you."

As of currently, Dr. █████ has been given provisional custody of the item.

Footnotes

1. No attempts have been made to remove the hat, though it has been observed that no matter how SCP-5160 moves or is moved, the hat stays firmly affixed to its head unless SCP-5160 removes the hat on its own.

2. SCP-5160 seems to manifest primarily in developed countries, particularly those where sheep are relatively commonplace.

3. SCP-5160 will lean down to remove the hat, and pull the item of clothing out from the hat with its teeth.

4. It was later noted that the affected personnel had participated in industry work involving animal testing.

5. SCP-5160 will express affirmatives with loud bleating, and negatives with softer bleating.

6. Thus far, SCP-5160 consistently exhibits a fondness for works that reference its purple witch's hat.

7. Dr. ████ █████ expressed gratitude to SCP-5160 for the gift, as he previously was concerned about his daughter having difficulty sleeping through the night.