The baaa-king mad wolf in sheep's clothing ... that's 'Timmy the dog'
TIMMY the sheep was baa-rely a few weeks old when he realised his true ambition was not to frolic in the fields with his woolly friends... it was to be a dog.
The lamb, as he was 18 months ago, was taken in and bottle-reared by Samantha and Eric Perry at their Aston-on-Trent smallholding.
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18-month-old Timmy enjoys a favourite treat of dog biscuits with owner Samantha Perry and some of her real dogs.
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Timmy at three weeks old, above left, being fed milk by Samantha Perry from a wine bottle with a teat on. Above right, with another sheep being fed by Eric's grandson, Oliver Perry.
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Within a few days he had developed a taste for dog biscuits and now the 200lb sheep loves nothing more than to go on long country walks with his "fellow canines".
And although he was originally allowed in the house, he now lives outside in his own kennel, along with six dogs at the home of Samantha and Eric in Moor Lane.
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Samantha, 42, said: "Timmy definitely thinks he's a dog – he always has.
"He will eat absolutely anything we give him but his favourite food is dog biscuits. He absolutely loves them. When we take the dogs for a walk, he thinks nothing of coming along with us.
"He's become quite a popular figure with the people in the village, especially the children. They seem to love him."
Penny and Eric took in Timmy 18 months ago when he was orphaned by his mother.
Penny bottle-reared him and he grew up inside, along with the couple's dogs.
At Clover Leaf Farm, the name of their smallholding, there is Yorkshire terrier Poppy, seven; Shih tzu Daisy-May, five; three-year-old Cairn terrier Tyson; Jack Russell Sapphire, two; and Jack Russell/Yorkshire terrier cross Barney, also two.
They have now been joined by Pandora, a nine-month-old Chihuahua.
And the menagerie does not stop with Timmy and the dogs.
Also on the farm are three donkeys, including nine-week-old Marley, geese, ducks and cats.
Eric has owned the smallholding for 20 years and they have lived there as a couple for 10 years, nine as Mr and Mrs Perry.
Samantha said: "Bearing in mind Pandora is only nine months old, she took to Timmy straight away and he is great with her and all the other dogs, just getting on and doing the things they do.
"I suppose some people might see having a pet sheep as a bit strange but we don't see it that way. To us, he's just part of the farm.
"The fact that he thinks he's a dog at the same time just adds a little eccentricity.
"The other dogs accept him as one of theirs and he seems perfectly happy.
"We are used to all these animals running around anyway so why not have a sheep joining in the fun, too?"
Comments
by oscardoodle
Tuesday, January 01 2013, 8:42AM
“Since most responsible dog owners clear up their pet's mess with those blue bags, does Samantha have to use a wheelie bin?”