A sheep that dodged capture for 45 days around Wadsworth finally met its match Wednesday afternoon, when a teenage roper on horseback chased it down in a field bordering U.S. Route 224. The sheep, now named Gerry Reagan, had become a local fixture of sorts, crossing State Route 94 multiple times and sending rescuers scrambling to keep it from getting hit by a car.
According to the Akron Beacon Journal, the roper was Reagan Crumpler, a 13-year-old from Litchfield who captured the sheep with the help of her horse, named Cat. However, News5 Cleveland reports the roper was 14 years old and riding an 18-year-old horse, a discrepancy that remains unresolved between the two accounts. The outlets also differ on the sheep's name — the Beacon Journal spells it Gerri Reagan, while News5 renders it Gerry Reagan.
A Chase Months in the Making
Crumpler had been taking roping lessons a few times a week and practicing the skill for the past few months before Wednesday's rescue, per the Beacon Journal. She said her horse seemed to understand what was happening and accelerated as they closed in on the sheep, and she updated her mother, Shannon Crumpler, about their location by phone throughout the pursuit. Shannon Crumpler had first learned of the search after seeing a Facebook call for help catching the sheep.
The rescue took a couple of hours to complete once Crumpler was on the scene, but the saga itself stretched back roughly 45 days, to when the sheep was first spotted roaming Wadsworth. Rescuers tried everything from using another sheep and a goat as lures to cornering tactics and a drone in their efforts to track the animal down. A Wadsworth woman had fed the sheep after finding it in her yard at one point during its monthslong wander.
Volunteers, Neighbors and a Four-Mile Walk
Janine Smalley, owner and founder of Whispering Acres Farm Animal Sanctuary, and Rebecca Roxberry, a volunteer with the sanctuary, led the rescue mission alongside help from the Medina County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, the Wadsworth Police Department, the Medina County Sheriff's Office and the broader Wadsworth community, according to the Beacon Journal. Smalley said rescuers walked about four miles during the final push to corral the sheep.
Roxberry announced the successful capture at 3 p.m., saying, “After 45 days of hard work, patience, and teamwork,” the sheep was finally secured, as reported by the same account from News5. Neighbors came out to watch, shout and take videos during the chase, Roxberry said. Roxberry also said she had wanted to prevent the sheep from being hurt, and Crumpler said she would help with a similar rescue again in the future.
What Comes Next for Gerry Reagan
The sheep is now staying at Whispering Acres and is on a 72-hour hold, during which a potential owner could reclaim her by providing legal documentation of ownership, per the Beacon Journal's reporting. As of publication, no owner had come forward, and the sheep will remain at the sanctuary indefinitely if that continues to be the case. Smalley said the sheep was a bit on the thin side and that next steps include a refeeding program and a veterinary visit, per News5's report.
If no owner surfaces, Gerry Reagan will join the more than 100 farm-animal rescues the sanctuary says it already houses, including goats, sheep, chickens, turkeys, pigs, guinea fowl, ducks and geese, according to Whispering Acres Farm Animal Sanctuary. The organization says its mission is not just to rescue and rehabilitate animals from suffering but also to educate the public on proper farm-animal care. Smalley described the sheep as cuddly and happy despite her ordeal, and the sanctuary says it plans to start a Facebook page dedicated to posting updates on her recovery.
The monthslong search also left a mark on the sanctuary's volunteer roster: the rescue effort brought in six new volunteers, the sanctuary reported. Under Ohio Revised Code Section 951.11, a person who finds an animal at large in violation of Section 951.02 may take and confine it, while a law enforcement officer is required to do so upon seeing the animal or receiving a report of it — though the statute's full notice and follow-up procedures go beyond what is spelled out in that excerpt.
