Meet the sheep convinced that it’s a dog

Lamo pictured with Jennifer. Picture: SWNS

13-month-old Lamo was hit by a car last February, when he was a lamb, and was taken in by Jennifer Jones, who runs the Rockfield Animal Rescue centre in Wentnor, Shropshire.

She fed him milk and brought the young sheep up with her three dogs, but attempts to find his rightful owner were unsuccessful.

She explained: “Lamo was given to me as a terrified little lamb and we have no idea where he came from.

Lamo the sheep in the van. Picture: SWNS

“I raised him with my three dogs so now he thinks one of them.”

And now the sheep fetches sticks and balls, wears a collar and lead to go for walks, jumps up on his hind legs, and even tries to bark.

“He gets really excited when we take him out in the van for a walk down the country lanes,” she added.

Asked about Lamo’s canine behaviour, vet David Howell said: “Sheep are more intelligent than some people think and they are very capable of learned behaviour.

“Most sheep do revert to their natural characteristics if they are not brought up in their natural surroundings but clearly Lamo prefers life as a dog.”

Lamo is also employed as a part-time lawn mower by Jennifer, who takes him to her friends’ houses where he chews the grass to keep it short.

She said: [Lamo] really is wonderful, he follows us around everywhere and is always under our feet.

“He doesn’t care about the other sheep, he prefers humans. He’s always trying to get our attention and is constantly getting up to mischief.”