A sheep and three lambs were rescued from the roof of a house after they escaped from a field and tried to avoid being caught by police.
Penrith Fire Station manager Darren Wright said he and his crew were “baffled” when they arrived at the two-storey property in Graham Street, just before 11:00 BST, and were greeted by the sight of the animals up high.
With the assistance of a local farmer, ladders and reaching poles, they managed to bring them down to safety and return them to a field.
Mr Wright said the escaped family had climbed on to a section of roof at the back of the house, which was 2ft (0.6m) off the ground, “to get away from police” who had been called to help round them up.
“We are called to a lot of animal rescues, but sheep on a roof was a first,” he told BBC Radio Cumbria.
“We couldn’t fathom out why there would be sheep in that area in the first place and how they even got on the roof – there was a lot of confusion.”
He explained that police officers were at the scene and told them they were “trying to capture them after they’d escaped from a field”.
“It all became apparent when we realised the roof at the rear of the property went down near the ground and the sheep had used it to get away from the police,” he said.
Mr Wright, of Cumbria Fire and Rescue Service, said although “it was a shock” to see the animals, they were glad there had been “a happy outcome”.
Additional reporting by Sian Hall.
