Tangled

Don't worry, it's not a dead sheep. It's a stuck sheep, having a thick rope of bramble wrapped around its neck.

I thought I'd get a walk in before the rain arrived, then I stumbled into a couple of sheep stuck in bramble at Moorside.I freed one fairly easily but this one was wedged solid, with briars twisted around its neck. A passing dog walker went to try to raise the farmer and I returned home for some cutting devices. It was still there when I returned and I made a bit of progress removing bits and pieces. Then the farmer turned in and gave me a lesson in how to untangle sheep.

After studying the way the bramble was wrapped around he took a firm hold of the sheep and slowly wound it back, turn by turn, in the opposite direction. Two minutes and the sheep was free. The farmer reckoned a dog had got among the sheep as they were very skittish and had been scattered everywhere, including this group which had broken through onto the moor.

So, a different Christmas morning to usual, now a quiet few hours until I pick up the kids for Christmas tea and their second batch of Santa sacks.

Merry Christmas everyone.