Baaaaad Sheep.

It was a calm Tuesday, nothing special going on in the quiet little village of Malta. The morning air had been crisp and the leaves which had turned gold, rust and were also crisp. It was looking to be another day of life in the zip code of 59538.

Then, within minutes several individuals were posting on social media about the concern around a sheep loose and wandering the town. Within minutes, this reporter received several calls providing information about the ongoing event and the whereabouts of the sheep inn question. Then another call came and several text messages indicated an urgency as if no one had even experienced a ram on the run, or a wether in the wild, or even an evading ewe. Finally, to fulfill the public curiosity and at least cover the event, this reporter sprung into action (just short of a bolt of lightning let loose) and the case was under investigation.

The sheep had been first spotted, according to "sources" at Trafton Park. Calmly perusing the edge of town, there was no sheep to be found in Trafton. From Trafton, the next spot to check was by Fine-Line Auto Body. There a city employee was on careful watch for the woolie and was on the radio with others checking out any possible spotting.

Taking a calm and quiet drive around the streets of town, I listened carefully for the barking of dogs – which were more than likely being aroused and startled by a new-to-them creature which they were unable to identify. At the end of town on the west edge, a city pickup was parked and as I was waiting, two workers, Nick Cilz and Matt VanWinkle emerged from having walked the brush of the river. They were coiling up their lariats as if they had attempted an apprehension at some point. They had spotted the creature, however were in pursuit again after it eluded them with its' creativity.

So, the search continued.

There are many places a sheep could find refuge in this town and quite possibly it had found a unique one and was sitting beneath a tree cooling off after being on the run for quite some time now.

In general, sheep are docile animals. They are unique in that their eyes are rectangular. This allows for a wide field of vision, around 270 to 320 degrees. This means that sheep can see just about everything that is around them except what is directly behind them without turning their heads. This allows for the sheep to stay aware of their surroundings, even when their head is down while eating.

Sheep can also recognize about 50 faces for up to two years and research shows that sheep can remember how to navigate a maze. And here you thought they were just "dumb sheep."

While a glance at a sheep may look like the one standing next to it, sheep have ewe-nique personalities. They display shyness and boldness and are highly social. They can feel afraid, angry, bored, optimism, and empathy. Which some of you will think about when your spouse acts up!

While there was to BLAST from the sirens at the City Hall, rest assured the city crew was working on locating the four-legged woolie. As quickly as a message was relayed to someone about the woolie being located, it was off and on the run, seeking safety from four-wheelers, lariats and flashing lights. There never was a point in time where anyone felt the need to engage the local National Guard unit on the east side of town; the search just continued peacefully.

As I drove around with my keen vision working at its' best, I came across the woolie! He/she was standing, catching its breath and making plans for the next few minutes. I waited and sure enough around the corner came Cilz and VanWinkle and I held my arm out the window and pointed (repeatedly) to the sheep in question and target of the on-going search. The two talented and skillful leaped into action and started to approach the sheep.

The woolie could care less if these artful and trained individuals were wanting to capture and conquer...and stated to amble away. It walked past me and gently strolled through back yards and hedges to a lane.

VanWinkle took pursuit after a while, on foot, while Cilz brought the pickup. Fast forward to the point where VanWinkle managed to persuade the woolie into the back yard of Chuck and Jodee Lee. Cilz moved in with a second rope and as he entered the yard, the woolie attempted to high jump the woven wire fence and escape.

VanWinkle would have not have the target escape from him, despite taking several runs at various spots on the fence.

The action and activity has now drawn an audience of Jodee Lee and Rufus Rameriz, the neighbor.

Single-handed, with no consideration of possible outcome, VanWinkle took a gigantic leap at the woolie as it was heading toward the gate. He lands on top of the sheep and Cilz is quick to come to his aid with a lariat.

After discussing options, it was decided to leave the sheep in the safe haven of the Lee yard. It had been determined that the sheep belonged to Jordan Olson, who resides several houses from where it was captured. The sheep had escaped the confinement it was in over in Green Acres. The woolie was to be on display for classes from the grade school later in the week when it apparently got overwhelmed with being on display.

PWD Truelove arrived on the scene (perhaps having been hiding incognito to avoid having to show others he really could have done what the two crew had done) and he was briefed as to the apprehension success. It wasn't such a baa-d day, after all.

The be-on-the-lookout notice was cancelled and all is well that ends well.