Man captured on CCTV defends taking his lamb on a train

A former Royal Marine who was spotted with a lamb on a lead at a railway station in Renfrewshire has told the BBC: "It may be odd but it's not wrong."

Jai Gibson was captured on CCTV walking the sheep at Paisley Gilmour Street station on Monday evening.

The image sparked a number of commuters to publish on social media about their encounters with the 61-year-old and his woolly companion.

Scotrail said there is nothing to say sheep are not allowed on trains and the animal complied with its rules that pets should be on a lead.

Mr Gibson said the lamb, whom he calls NJ, was the latest of many pet sheep he has cared for over the years.

He said it began about 10 years ago when he discovered a lamb in distress as he walked through a field in rural Renfrewshire.

Mr Gibson said he carried the animal for several miles to the farmer, the late Hugh Caldwell, and asked him what he should do.

Mr Caldwell, from East Mitchelton Farm near Kilbarchan, told him he would have to look after the lamb as it would now have become attached to him.

The ex-Marine, who has served in the Falklands, Northern Ireland and Iraq, says he and the farmer struck an agreement where he would care for orphaned lambs in exchange for him staying on his land.

Since then Mr Gibson says he has cared for almost 200 orphaned lambs and admits it is an "addiction".

He says he has been travelling by train with his pet lamb because he cannot drive due to suffering from blackouts.

"People were walking dogs into town, I would take the sheep down to the pub," he said.

Mr Gibson said he struggles around people and caring for the lambs gives him a focus and direction.

He said NJ would now have to stay at the farm after people have complained about his train journeys but he will still be feeding her so she does not feel abandoned.

Michelle Robertson told the BBC she had to do a "double-take" after she saw Mr Gibson on the train with the lamb.

The 38-year-old, from Glasgow, was returning from a family outing to the beach at Largs on Sunday afternoon, one of the hottest days of the year, when she encountered the pair.

She said: "As it was so hot, I thought my mind was playing tricks, and I initially thought, 'What kind of dog is this?' before realising it was a lamb.

Mrs Robertson, who is originally from Canada, said her one-year-old son Montgomery and other children on-board the busy carriage petted the animal which she said was calm with a good temperament.

Another young traveller who was taken aback by the unusual sight of a lamb on a lead was eight-year-old Ava Templeton, from Airdrie, who was travelling with her father, Gary.

She said the lamb was "trying to nibble my hat," but the animal was soft to the touch, and "felt like a pillow".

Scotrail saw the funny side and put a post on X of a CCTV image of Mr Gibson strolling along the platform at Paisley Gilmour Street.

The rail operator said in a statement, "Monday evening brought one of the more ewe-nique sights on Scotland's Railway.

"We're used to livestock on the line causing disruption, but thankfully, this visitor at Paisley Gilmour Street was on a lead and well baa-haved."

Scotrail's policy on animals on onboard trains states domestic pets are welcome and that includes dogs, cats or tortoises – but they must be on a lead or in a travel cage.