Scottish farmer pranks tourists by claiming sheep produce tartan wool - because they drink Irn-Bru

Bright red tartan sheep loving their new coats at Auchingarrich Wildlife Centre, Perthshire (Photo: SWNS)Bright red tartan sheep loving their new coats at Auchingarrich Wildlife Centre, Perthshire (Photo: SWNS)
Bright red tartan sheep loving their new coats at Auchingarrich Wildlife Centre, Perthshire (Photo: SWNS)

A cheeky farmer is winding up American tourists by spray-painting her sheep tartan - and claiming it’s caused by the animals drinking popular Scottish soft drink, Irn-Bru.

Owner Maxine Scott, 62, used her skills with a spray-can to brighten up ewes April and Daisy.

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Scott puts up a sign pretending that the sheep turn bright orange naturally and that their fleeces are then used to make tartan wool for kilts and blankets.

The sheep live on Auchingarrich Wildlife Centre, Comrie, Perthshire, and are decorated using marker spray, used by farmers to identify sheep during lamb numbering.

A sign on their pen explains that their diet consists of "mainly grass, but are known to enjoy Irn-Bru and Scottish Tablet or shortbread".

Continuing the tartan tradition

“When we got the park, they always had tartan sheep. It was just for the tourists," said Scott.

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“We just continued the tradition. The public do like it - Americans are really impressed by them.

“We have got a sign up saying the lambs come out normal, but they change as they grow older and tartan starts to develop.”

The tongue-in-cheek sign attached to the tartan sheeps' pen (Photo: SWNS)

The jokey sign explains, “A spectacular sight to see, tartan sheep were first discovered here at Auchingarrich many years ago.

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“When sheared, their wool can be used to make tartan kilts, scarves and blankets.

“As a lamb they will look similar to a regular sheep, as their colours won’t fully show until they are about a year old.

"Then as they get older their colours can change, so if you visit us again you may see a new tartan.”

Ten years of tartan

Scott bought the farm 10 years ago, and has been decorating the sheep since then.

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She added, “You can buy marker spray, if they are lambing or in a race you would mark them with spray to identify which is which, to tell if they have all been done.

“We tried hair dye, that worked quite well, but we’ve gone back to using the marker spray.

“Certainly American visitors seem to think it’s funny.”