Sheepdog saves stranded ewes on flooded Welsh farm

Max McLean, PA

A sheepdog came to the rescue of three ewes who had been cut off by floodwater as Storm Babet unleashed floods all over the UK.

Llyr Derwydd, 44, a farmer from near Ruthin in Wales, said he had gone to check on his sheep in Flintshire on Friday afternoon when he saw three ewes “stranded on this little spot on the field” having been “cut off basically by the water”.

With the water producing dangerous conditions for a rescue, sheepdog Patsy was the heroine of the hour.

Mr Derwydd told the PA news agency: “We thought we’d better go check, make sure all the sheep are safe, and that’s when we saw the three ewes stranded on this little spot on the field.

“It was getting smaller and smaller so we thought we’d better get them off and make sure they’re safe.

“I just thought, ‘I’ll see if the dog will go’. I gave her the command and she swam across.

“It was quite dangerous because I didn’t know how deep it was. She’s a strong swimmer and she was able to swim across.

“I knew she was quite a good swimmer otherwise I wouldn’t have done that, but I was quite surprised that she didn’t have any issues, she just went.

“(It) saved me getting wet and getting into a dangerous situation and saved the sheep so it was perfect.”

Traffic Wales said flooding caused the A483 in Powys and the A55 in Flintshire to be closed, while Mr Derwydd said it was “a mission to get there today”.

One social media user suggested a T-bone steak would be a worthy reward for Patsy after her efforts, but Mr Derwydd said that as a working dog her treat was “a pat on her head”, being told “she’s a good girl” and an extra dog biscuit.