A BABY lamb stolen from a farm over the Easter weekend has been named 'Lucky' after being returned by police.

Two men were spotted by an off-duty police officer carrying a strange-shaped parcel along Durham Road in Sunderland.

The men, aged 18 and 26, dropped the parcel and the three-day old black and white Zwartble lamb was discovered inside the bundle.

They were later arrested on suspicion of theft and have been bailed.

The rare-breed lamb, from Barnwell Farm, Penshaw, Sunderland, was noticed missing by volunteer Christine Dover, 55, during the morning feed.

Ms Dover said: “I went out last Sunday morning (March 24) to feed them and I realised he was missing so I searched the field for him.

“I knew in my heart that he couldn’t have got out. We looked all over for him.

“There were gale force winds that morning and I was panicking because I knew he wouldn’t survive for long in that cold.”

After being found, Lucky was taken to the safety of the Page Pastures Farm in Sunderland, while police sought the lamb's owner.

Ms Dover added: “Three hours later, we were just leaving the field to go back to my house and warm up when a police van pulled up.

“I think somebody had mentioned to them that there was a black flock here in Penshaw.

“They took us down to the farm and by the time we had got him back in the afternoon he had gone without 14 hours of feed. He was very, very hungry but he was over the moon, as was his mum.

“The police were absolutely fabulous, I can’t fault them.”

Lucky is now back home and enjoying regular meals with a little help from Ms Dover’s granddaughter, ten-year-old Hannah Lakey.