Goat and Sheep 'On The Lam' In Bayport

Chris and Alida Thorpe returned home on Aug. 10 to find two uninvited guests- a goat and a sheep- standing in their driveway on Demarre Lane in Bayport.

After they took a moment to take in the strange scene before them, the Thorpe's called Suffolk Police's 5th Precinct. Chris told the officers, one of whom was an ASPCA liason, that he thought the farm animals were "on the lam."

It was suspected that the animals had wandered from a home on Seaman Avenue where the owners keep a large number of farm animals, according to neighbor Dan Pichney.

Despite attempts by the local police and the investigators from the SPCA, the farm friends remained ensconced in the confines of the Thorpe's back lawn.

After spending more than three hours at the Thorpes the police were unable to resolve the problem. The Bayport residents had to head out, but the officials assured them that the animals would be gone when they got home. In the meantime, officers contructed a make-shift corral from the Thorpes patio furniture.

When the Thorpes returned home at 9 p.m., who was there greeting them in their driveway? You guessed it: The four-legged friends.

Upon further investigation, the Thorpes discovered that the barnyard denizens, led by the goat, butted down the corral, sending one of the Thorpes' patio chairs into the Brown's River canal behind their house.

Over the course of the next three days, the two animals came and went, always returning to their new "home" on Demarre Lane.

Hibiscus, petunias and geraniums were the food of choice as local animal advocates searched in vain for the owners of the goat and sheep.

Chris Thorpe said the SPCA representative was at a loss for a safe placement.

"SPCA officials seemed to shrug and avoid our repeated phone calls," he said.

After watching their flowers being recycled into animal droppings, the Thorpe's once again became frustrated by the difficult, though slightly amusing, situation. A friend of the Thorpes suggested contacting the Double D Bar Ranch in Manorville.

The folks from Double D arrived promptly, and after what Chris Thorpe referred to as "some impressive animal whispering," the farm staff had one goat in hand. "Mr. Lamb," as the Thorpe's began calling him, was another story, and required several neighbors running in circles as he dodged and sprinted to avoid capture until all parties concerned were exhausted.

Eventually, the Thorpes and their neighbors waved farewell as "Mr. Goat" and his best friend "Mr. Lamb" headed to their new home.

There is another part to this story's happy ending: Chris Thorpe recovered his patio chair, part of the make-shift corral, from the canal.

With their two farm friends gone, the Thorpe's can now work to reclaim their chewed-up garden, but that doesn't mean the experience was all bad.

"Now that the critters are gone, we kind of miss them," Chris Thorpe said.