No ordinary pet

Former Bacchus Marsh resident Godwin Aquilina is sleeping rough on the Northbank in a bid to save his best mate Jackie Chan the ram.

Southbank Local News spotted the pair strolling along Southbank Promenade last month, which Godwin said was one of Jackie Chan’s favourite places to walk.

Godwin said he first found the nine-year-old ram on the side of the road as a newborn and had cared for him ever since.

His love for his companion is so great that even despite threats from the Moorabool Council to remove Jackie Chan, he has resorted to living at Enterprise Park in order to save him.

“It wasn’t a pet that you chose. He sort of chose us and now he’s been thrown out of Bacchus Marsh and his only safe place is here in the city,” Godwin said.

“He doesn’t have much choice. It was either this or the mayor was going to kill him.

That’s what he wanted and that’s what the neighbours wanted.” The Moorabool Council recently ordered that the ram be removed from its home amid neighbour complaints that it had attacked people. The punishment for not doing so would have seen Jackie Chan permanently seized by the council, which ultimately forced Godwin to relocate to Melbourne’s streets. However, despite all that the pair has been through Godwin said Jackie had quickly adapted to life in the city.

“He seems to enjoy it more and more and he likes the attention I think,” he said. “You’ve got to give him time to eat his food and once he’s eaten his food he’s more than happy to have leisure time.” “He eats anything green whether it’s cucumber, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower it doesn’t matter. Plenty of people give him apples,” he said.

For more information and to sign a petition to help protect Jackie Chan head to www.facebook.com/savejackiechantheram