Last week, about 50 wayward sheep broke off from their flock and stormed the Penny supermarket in Burgsinn, Germany, startling and delighting customers. The woolly incursion occurred on Monday during a routine seasonal migration of the sheep in the Bavarian municipality. A few dozen of the sheep had other ideas about the route and made their way into the supermarket. Store manager Jürgen Kippes said it was impossible to tell whether the sheep were looking for something in particular or just wanted to warm up, noting that the flock seemed particularly fond of the checkout area where shoppers were present. While the animals resisted the urge to nibble their way through the fresh produce on display, their foray into the store left mess of droppings and a path of destruction in the drinks section, as their bustling knocked glass bottles off the shelves. The approximately 20 customers seemed to take the spontaneous animal visit in stride. After about 20 minutes, the sheep were successfully coaxed out the door and rejoined their flock. Philipp Stiehler, Chairman of the Board of the Penny chain, said the supermarket does not plan to bill the shepherd for the damage or cleaning costs. Instead, in exchange for the nationwide media attention, Penny will donate feed for the 50 runaways for a year.
