Before ...
He may have dodged a bullet, but the ‘Johnsonville Shrek’ wasn’t able to escape a team lead by Wellington SPCA.
The renegade, who had been living free for the last two years following his escape from the local abattoir, was finally captured on Saturday.
“It was important to get the sheep into a home before winter, as there was real concern that if his fleece had become wet, he wouldn’t have been able to get up” said Ben Lakomy of Wellington SPCA, who led the team of animal welfare professionals and animal wranglers involved in his capture.
..and after
“Now that we know he is actually a male, however, I’m not sure he would appreciate being named ‘Alison, wonder lamb’” said Ben (just one of the many names that had been suggested by readers of The Dominion Post who had been following the sheep saga).
Despite the burden of his enormous fleece, which was around 5kg in weight and measured about 6m², and the use of very efficient heading dogs, the sheep was still able to give the team the run-around.
The fleece!
“He was certainly a very feisty boy and wasn’t too happy about being handled” reported Ben.
However, since his capture, the sheep has been rehomed at the Huha Animal Sanctuary in Kaitoke and has already made some new friends. And keep an eye out on TradeMe – the fleece might be put up for auction very soon!!
