Man takes his ewe on near-daily walks through central Hastings

Hastings man Toots and his sheep, Lily, out for a stroll on Heretaunga Street. Photo / Warren Buckland

Toots and Lily don't trot out of their Hastings home every day looking for fame.

But the near-daily walks through the centre of the city by the charismatic owner and his pet sheep are fast-earning them icon status in Hawke's Bay.

Often they venture through their home suburb of Raureka, but Lily's no stranger to Heretaunga St West either, right the way from the CBD to Stortford Lodge.

It's there in particular that she's greeted by pats, honks of approval and the inevitable smart-phone photographers.

So why does Toots walk Lily around an urban area - technically breaching a bylaw that the council has no plan to enforce with the duo?

For Toots, it's pretty simple; he doesn't have a dog so he walks his ewe.

"She's better than a dog; she's got a better temperament and doesn't bark at anyone," he told Hawke's Bay Today.

"She keeps the lawn down and eats the grass wherever we walk too – there's heaps of grass around Hastings."

The grandfather got Lily as a lamb from his grandchildren about 18 months ago and sees her as a great companion.

Lily, the town-based ewe, loves attention from her owner, Toots. Photo / Warren Buckland

However, sometimes she refuses to stay with her flock of humans.

"She can be a hard case at times. Sometimes she gets out the gate and it takes us ages to get her back in," Toots said.

"It's only my grandson who can catch her so I always send him out."

Toots said he gets a lot of attention from people wanting to pat her when he is out on his daily strolls with his woolly friend.

He also gets asked regularly by neighbours if they can borrow the four-legged lawnmower.

"She's only allowed to stay at vegetarians' houses if they want their grass mown," he added.

Research has found sheep respond well to human contact and therefore can make good pets if adequate space and shelter is provided for them.

Hastings District Council regulatory solutions manager John Payne says it is against council bylaws to lead stock along footpaths.

"You're not permitted to keep stock on premises within the urban area without an approval," he said.

But, Payne also said that the bylaw around walking on the footpath was likely not intended for individual animals like Lily.