A neighbor contacted Terry Garner of West Alna Road in Alna September 1 to ask if he was missing any sheep. A ram was running around not far from there, near Cross Road.

Garner's sheep were all accounted for, but the Air Force retiree went to check out the ram and saw it grazing in a yard. One of its horns had broken off. From the looks of it, the break had not happened recently, and most likely was due to the horn getting caught on something. The ram was small, possibly an Icelandic-East Friesian-cross, and probably didn't lose the horn in a fight, Garner figured.

The ram hid under a deck. Garner was able to pull him out and load him into the cab of his pickup truck. On the trip back to his and wife Sandy's Little Brook Farm, the animal “just sat, like a dog,” Garner said. “He was scared.”

Garner brought the ram into the barn. Still frightened, it accepted food, but no petting. It let Garner pat it for the first time September 5.

Judging by its teeth, it's one year old or so, Garner said. It's underweight, he said, based on feeling the animal's body under its substantial fleece.

Garner said he contacted the town office and the town's animal control officer, but no one was missing a ram. Town Clerk Amy Warner emailed residents just as she does when a cat is lost or found.

While the young ram's origins remained a mystery, its future was looking hopeful. The couple will keep the ram to live out its life with them if no owner comes forward in a few more days, Garner said.

“We're not really anxious for someone to claim him,” he said.

Anyone with information may call Garner at 841-1980.