New Zealand's most famous sheep, a merino named Shrek
that became a celebrity when he was found in 2004 after six years
on the loose, has died at a South Island farm, his owner said
Tuesday.
Shrek went missing from his herd in 1998 and was assumed dead
until he was found in a mountain cave six years later, sporting a
massive fleece that made him appear three times his normal
size.
The public in New Zealand, where sheep outnumber the 4.3 million
human population almost 10 to 1, took the rambling ruminant to
their hearts.
Television stations carried live broadcasts when a shearer
clipped his oversize fleece, which weighed in at almost 27
kilograms (60 pounds), around six times the wool normally gathered
from the average merino.
The sheep was flown to meet then prime minister Helen Clark at
the national parliament in Wellington, became the subject of
several children's books and made regular charity appearances.
But owner John Perriam said Shrek had to be put down over the
weekend as, at 16 years old, his health was failing.
"He was just an ordinary sheep, went AWOL and hid, and when he
was found he became the darling of the nation," Perriam told
TVNZ.
"He had an unbelievable personality. He loved children and he
was really good with the elderly in retirement homes."
Josie Spillane from the charity Cure Kids said it was impossible
to estimate how much money the sheep had raised for worthy
causes.
"At the end of the day, it is the death of an iconic Kiwi. He
just happens to be a sheep," she told the Southland Times.
Reports said a memorial service would be held for Shrek this
week at the Church of the Good Shepherd in Tekapo.
