One of two sheep that were found roaming near busy traffic on the E.C. Row Expressway in early July has been safely taken to a farm in Chatham.
The owner of Charlotte's Freedom Farm, Lauren Edwards, who has been leading the search effort says one of the sheep has been captured and taken back to her animal sanctuary.
Edwards estimates the sheep is around six months old, and says it was secured in a trap Wednesday morning.
"He went in a trap that we had a lady come and setup, that had a door that was actually activated by a laser. So when he tripped the laser, it shut the door automatically. And that was ultimately what we needed, everything else we had tried had too much human involvement and too much space for error. This was ultimately what we needed to make it happen," she says.
Edwards and supports had been taking part in searches during the past month trying to locate the sheep once it became known that they were roaming free.
She and her team had set the pen up near the Dougall Avenue eastbound ramps leading to the E.C. Row Expressway on Wednesday.
"He really wasn't leaving that area. And sheep, they're not known for wandering or going for a walk or anything. They know where they're safe and where there's food, and they want to be with their friends. That's what made this quite sad is these two sheep weren't even together so they're both living in a state of fear."
Edwards says one of the volunteers had to go back to the spot on Wednesday because someone had lost their phone, and when they did they spotted the second sheep.
"So we know the other one is still there for sure, confirmed. And we're hoping to do something similar but it'll be a little bit harder to find a spot where the other guy feels safe. And we have to keep it away from where people or dogs would be able to walk up to it, we need to create a really safe spot for him," she said.
Edwards says their hope is to be able to get the second sheep, and reunite the two on the Freedom Farm.