Cecil the sheep is keen to hoof it to his new home.
It has been a week since he was relieved of 38 kilograms of fleece after he was discovered stranded on a ledge at Heybridge, Tasmania.
RSPCA Tasmania chief inspector Ray Kroeze said he was walked around the grassy yard, enjoying the sunshine.
“He even has a bit of a spring in his step,” Mr Kroeze said.
Before the big shave, the five-year-old sheep weighed more than 105 kilograms as he did not appear to have been shorn during his lifetime. A sheep should be shorn at least once a year.
The excess fleece left him unable to walk properly.
Cecil weighed closer to 67 kilograms last week after his big shave.
“He can even run now.”
There have been several expressions of interests from people hoping to give Cecil a new home.
He would stay with RSPCA and be monitored for a few more days before looking to move, Mr Kroeze said.
It was not a simple first-in, best served approach for bringing Cecil home.
Potential owners would undergo a background check to make sure they were suitable to look after Cecil, Mr Kroeze said.
“Everyone is interested in him. He’s a famous sheep."
Cecil appeared to have picked up a quirk during his time in the bush at Heybridge.
He does not seem interested in most foods livestock enjoyed, Mr Kroeze said.
“When we try to feed him hay and chaff, he sniffs it but wouldn’t eat it. It’s probably because he has no idea what it is.”
The sheep appeared perfectly content grazing on grass and whatever else he could find, he said.
Relieving Cecil of his fleecy burden took shearer Susan Gunter 1.5 hours.
The suffolk cross merino sheep had been found in “an acceptable condition”, but Mr Kroeze hoped his new home would care for him and shear him more often.
“If a sheep isn’t shorn, it does get quite uncomfortable for them.”
His 38 kilogram fleece far outweighed an average fleece, which weighed about five to six kilograms.
His fleece was three kilograms away from the official world record claimed by Chris the sheep for a mammoth 41.1 kilograms.
Tess Brunton
I recently returned from across the ditch where I worked at New Zealand Fairfax paper The Timaru Herald and developed a love of mountains. Originally I'm a mainlander from an area known for cheese, the Bega Valley, who also dabbled in radio at ABC RCAFF before finding a place in newspapers. I can often be found hiking, caving or climbing when I'm not cursing at my work computer or technology in general.
I recently returned from across the ditch where I worked at New Zealand Fairfax paper The Timaru Herald and developed a love of mountains. Originally I'm a mainlander from an area known for cheese, the Bega Valley, who also dabbled in radio at ABC RCAFF before finding a place in newspapers. I can often be found hiking, caving or climbing when I'm not cursing at my work computer or technology in general.
