By ANEEKA SIMONIS
WHEN a Pakenham resident saw two lambs slung over the shoulder of a man trudging up Racecourse Road last week, he knew to raise the alarm.
About 11.30pm on Friday 31 October, neighbours spied a group of men pull the baby sheep from Swallow Engineering’s roadside paddock and travel up the main road by foot.
Travis Howell, the owner of the lambs, said he received a phone call from the engineering company who had been alerted to the cruel Halloween theft.
“He rang me and told me the sheep had been stolen and then I rang the police,” he said.
Mr Howell’s partner took the barnyard snatch to social media which started a successful “estate-wide hunt”.
“The police were receiving calls that a sheep was spotted here there and everywhere and by the time we would get there, they had moved on,” Melissa Elliott said.
“On Sunday morning, a kind Pakenham resident spied them in the drain on Racecourse Road and alerted us. The first lamb was caught by a couple in Kingston Way. The lovely couple returned it to our paddock.
“The second however took a lot longer. A gentleman living on Cameron Way caught the sheep in his backyard and called the police. My hubby got there and they loaded the sheep into the back of the divvy and returned it to the paddock, too,” she said.
Both Travis and Melissa are relieved their four-month old lambs were unharmed by the thieves.
“They are both now resting and recovering back in their paddock after both having an eventful couple of days,” Melissa said.
“We are very glad that even though they were left on their own (in the drain), they weren’t harmed.”
She said Pakenham’s strong sense of community coupled with the power of social media meant her sheep were bound to be found.
“I hope (the thieves) have learnt that for every wrong you do you will eventually get caught out. Today’s technological era is working against you as is the good old community spirit,” Melissa said.
