Bleating sheep in city streets

PEDESTRIANS in the German city of Nuremberg had to make way for hundreds of bleating sheep last week as a flock was herded through downtown on its way to its winter quarters.

- Dorothy Parker

Nuremberg has a population of about 540 000 (humans, that is). According to the Associated Press, curious bystanders, cellphones in hand to capture the sight, lined the streets as roughly 600 sheep in Thomas Gackstatter’s flock hurried past on what has become a popular annual spectacle.

The sheep were on their way to winter pastures west of Nuremberg, where Gackstatter’s sheep and other herds are used in various meadows over the summer to keep the grass neat.

Its a trip of more than 10 km which takes the flock through the central market square. Nuremberg is the only place in Germany where sheep cross the central square.

Ahead of their passage, the city authorities asked people to keep the route clear and keep dogs away from the sheep—a mixture of various breeds.