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Yorkshire Regiment ferrets in action in Germany
Imphal and Quebec, the 1st Battalion The Yorkshire Regiment's pet ferrets, have travelled from Yorkshire to their new base in Germany to join the rest of their battalion.
The pair of ferrets, named after two battle honours, have quickly made themselves at home in Mnster in their own special cage which now takes pride of place in front of the 1 YORKS Guard Room in Oxford Barracks.
The light role infantry battalion – nicknamed the "The Yorkshire Warriors" – has joined the remainder of the 20th Armoured Brigade in Germany, after becoming part of the British Army formation in August last year.
The handsome ferrets were originally a gift from the people of Yorkshire and have since been adopted as official pets. The tradition of keeping the animals may fall back to the First World War when the troops were short of food in the trenches and would use the animals to hunt for rabbits to supplement their diet.
The two males play a central part in Battalion life, taking part in parades and even wearing their own uniforms in regimental colours. They are looked after by the Provost Staff in the Battalion's Guard Room.
Provo Corporal Norman Shay said: "They have a jacket in Brunswick Green with a capbadge on the side of it and they have little hats and the regimental leads which are exactly the same as our stable belts. They're the pride of the Battalion."
Lance Corporal 'Dutch' Vann-Stewart, 33 from Bradford, added: "They scratch and bite every now and then, but they are good fun. They are little characters and are generally friendly – they just don't like being held too long."
Having completed the move to Germany from Catterick, most of the Battalion will now deploy to Iraq in November with the 20th Armoured Brigade on Operation TELIC 13. Meanwhile B Company have already deployed to Kosovo last month as the Intelligence, Surveillance & Reconnaissance Task Force (ISR TF).
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Weather for Driffield
Thursday 17 May 2012
Today
Light rain
Temperature: 7 C to 10 C
Wind Speed: 15 mph
Wind direction: South east
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: 8 C to 11 C
Wind Speed: 25 mph
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