Sheep With 'Upside-Down' Head A Hoax? (VIDEO)

Footage of Terry, a sheep that looks to have an upside-down head, has gone viral on the Internet, sparking a debate over its authenticity.

Allan McNamara, a computer technician, claims to have encountered the animal in a pasture in the north of England. He shot video of the grazing sheep, which he postulated was born with a twisted spine.

"He lives happily and has been checked by a vet to ensure he is in no pain. He can eat, sleep and do everything other sheep can," McNamara told The Daily Mail.

Despite McNamara's insistence that the animal's deformity is real, some have called its authenticity into question. "The altering possibilities modern technology enables are causing some viewers to believe the video of Terry is a fake," wrote the Inquisitr.

Although McNamara reportedly responded to critics by going back to the farm to snap more pictures of the sheep, photos of Terry hosted on Imgur -- and McNamara's original YouTube post -- had been removed at the time of this writing.

The sheep remains a curiosity for many. GhostTheory joked that it was "obvious that Terry was sent from Fukushima," referring to the 2011 nuclear disaster in Japan, and posted a version of the video with thumping house music as the sound track.

But despite all the controversy, there is a scientific case to be made for Terry. According to a Web site maintained by the Purdue University agriculture department, there are more than 30 known or suspected genetic defects in sheep.

One of them, called spider lamb syndrome (SLS), can lead to deformities that "commonly include abnormally long, bent limbs, twisted spines, shallow bodies, flattened rib cages, and long necks."