50 sheep go on baa-zarre adventure through German supermarket, before ewe-turning and leaving

A flock of sheep “baa-rged” into a discount supermarket in Bavaria, Germany, on the morning of Jan 5, leaving excrement and products strewn across the floor in their wake.

According to the German Embassy in London, the sheep spent about 20 minutes in the supermarket, before “ewe-turning and seeing themselves out”.

A video of the incident sent to Osthessen News shows the sheep crowding around shelves as staff watch. The video then cuts to the aftermath of the incident, with broken wine bottles among the damaged products on the floor.

The sheep are seen following each other out of the supermarket through the same way they entered – the front entrance.

The embassy said in a Jan 7 Facebook post that the sheep, which belonged to shepherd Dieter Michler, were part of a 500-strong herd that was being led between an industrial area and a nearby river, when the rogue group broke away and went on their “baa-zarre” adventure.

German news website Osthessen News reported that the flock of about 50 sheep made their way through the aisles of Penny supermarket in the Burgsinn municipality of Bavaria, Germany.

Penny’s head of corporate communications Andreas Kramer told the news site that the sheep stayed “exclusively in the checkout area of ​​the store”.

He said that the affected area was cleaned immediately, with additional cleaning carried out the next day, including in the carpark.

All unpackaged produce was also carefully checked. “For Penny, the impeccable quality of its products is clearly the top priority,” said the supermarket in a statement, while declining to comment on the extent of the damage.

It added that it had no intention of pursuing claims against the shepherd, despite initial reports that it might.

Mr Kramer stressed that the incident was not a planned advertising campaign. “This is not a controlled PR (public relations) stunt. More like: That’s life,” he said.