Where we live there are often sheep wandering by the roadside, sometimes scary to come across as it's a fast moving A road and I fear for their safety. But it's especially bad at this time of year when the grazing in the fields is poor and they spy greener looking grass outside their boundaries. And after all the recent heavy rains and floods there are lots of places where the fence posts holding up the fences where there are any have all but collapsed.
For farmers busy in the midst of lambing season the last thing they have time for is mammoth fencing projects, so it's a bit hit and miss in places and we have come to expect escapees from time to time and locals drive accordingly.
The farmer that owns the field across the road from us was busy a couple of weeks ago mending his fences, adding new posts, wires and trimming trees that were falling onto some of them. He did a great job and all that was left for him to do was to add a new gate to the field and he would be all usable again. We thought he must have done this last week when we woke up to find two new residents on the field ... although we thought it a bit strange that there were only two sheep in a pretty big field!!
Then when Lovely Hubby walked past there on his way to see our next door neighbor a few days later he noticed that the gate had not been renewed and there was just the usual gate sized space leading onto the main road.
These happy sheep had wandered into stray sheep paradise .... long ungrazed grass, trees for shelter from bad weather and strong winds, and a stream running under the trees for a fresh water supply. But at the back of their minds they must have realised they shouldn't be there because every time a car pulling a stock trailer goes by .....
... they both look up as if to say "have we been found out ... have you come to get us?" Then as the car goes past it's heads down and back to grazing.
To get them to look up for the photo at the top of the post .... I simply whistled from the office window ... they are obviously very clever sheep .... which is a rarity ;-)
Sue xx