White Sheep Of The Family

Montana is a much-loved pet in the Lees’ home and her best pal is Moonshine the Labrador

- Joanie Bergh

If you didn’t see it yourself, you might think someone was trying to pull the wool over your eyes. Because really, having a large sheep as a pet? Feeding it in the kitchen along with the dog? Taking it for walks on a lead on the beach? Stroking it while you watch TV?

Un-baaa-lievable. In fact, ewe couldn’t make it up.

Yet there’s no bleating about the bush: Montana is a much-loved member of the household and gentle as a lamb when it comes to her best friend, Moonshine the Labrador – and it’s not hard to see why.

The dog has been instrumental in her very survival and the pair have been inseparable for four years, frolicking on the beach, eating dinner together and vying for the attention of the humans in the house.

For Binki and Gary Lees, who live in picturesque Pringle Bay in the Western Cape, watching their four-legged friends enjoying life together is reward enough for not giving up on Montana.

They adopted her in 2015 when she was an itty-bitty, sickly little thing. She was deemed too weak to survive but the couple were determined to give her a chance at life. So they hand-reared her, feeding her formula from a cider bottle and lavishing her with TLC.

And she grew stronger chop-chop. Now Montana, Moonshine, Binki and Gary are a regular sight in the seaside village the Lees moved to 12 years ago from Pretoria.

Still, you get the odd smart Alec trying to roast them when they’re out and about. “Walking your dinner?” a young man asks as Montana trots by.

“We’re used to remarks like that,” Binkisays, stroking the sheep’s head. “We just ignore them.”

The young man stalks off, looking a little sheepish.