UPDATED: A WOOLLY mammoth has strolled out of the scrub in southern NSW and the RSPCA has moved quickly to remove the sheep's heavy coat.
The errant sheep underwent a risky shearing operation this morning at 9am near Canberra in the hopes of saving its life by removing the unwieldy woolly load on its back.
Shearer Ian Elkin said it took about 45 minutes to finish the first pass.
This woolly mammoth is the latest in a line of rogue sheep to emerge from hiding enormous fleeces.
In 2004 a New Zealand sheep that avoided musterers for six years found fame in when it was discovered in a cave with 27kg of unshorn wool.
Mr Elkin claimed he "smashed Shrek's record of 27kg no worries".
"I don't think he's been shorn before, and I think he's five or six years old," he told local radio.
The sheep will be checked by vets, but initial indications were it came through the process relatively well.
The RSPCA estimated the sheep had "five years of wool on him" and it "could barely walk" when found near Mulligan's Flat.
After it was found, the team put out an urgent call for a shearer and Ian Elkin, who has shorn before royalty at the Royal Sydney Show, responded.
RSPCA ACT boss Tammy Ven Dange has warned the process of shearing could lead to shock and death.
"There could be a really nasty thing under that coat but we won't know that until we get there," she said.
With Canberra Times