Despite large numbers of hill sheep reared in the UK, little is known about how hill farmers react to health challenges in their flocks. This paper addresses this lack of knowledge of sheep health management practices and presents farmers’ opinions and concerns, particularly regarding ectoparasite control. Focus groups and interviews with UK hill sheep farmers were carried out to collect information on management practices, health concerns, in addition to incidence and impacts of six major ectoparasites (ticks, lice, sheep scab mite, blowfly, keds and headfly), to determine how they viewed the effects of ectoparasites and their control on production practices