Friday, December 24, 2004

Youths rescue bedraggled sheep

Stranded ram found in Slaughterhouse canyon

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By MEGAN THOMAS
Express Staff Writer

Blake Judd stands by Brutus, the sheep he and a friend rescued from Slaughterhouse Canyon. Photo by David N. Seelig

A recent all-terrain vehicle adventure evolved into more than an adrenaline-filled tour of the surrounding Wood River Valley hills as two teens turned their ATV trip into a rescue of a lost sheep. Blake Judd, 17, of Bellevue, and Joey Mackenzie, 18, of Hailey, rescued the wandering ram while riding in the Slaughterhouse Canyon area east of Bellevue on Saturday, Dec. 18. Now the boys want to return the animal to its owner.

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"I was four-wheeling out the canyon and we saw the sheep. It looked pretty sickly," Judd said.

After spotting the lost sheep, the teens decided to rescue the ailing animal. The boys quickly returned home to dress for the cold weather before venturing back to the canyon for the rescue. With a little coaxing, they got the critter loaded onto their ATV for the trip back to Bellevue.

"We lifted its back legs into the back of four-wheeler, and he basically jumped in the back," Judd explained.

Judd and Mackenzie brought the sheep to Judd's house in Bellevue. Judd said the ram earned the name Brutus, for his brute like behavior. Brutus continues to live at the Bellevue home, housed in a kennel in the yard where the family attends to the animal.

The rescue effort has since turned to finding the sheep's owner.

"I am trying to find out who (the sheep) belongs to. I know about a sheepherder who was herding sheep out there, but I haven't gotten a hold of him yet," Judd stated.

Anyone missing the lost sheep can contact 788-3974.