Big Dog and Sheep

A giant dog and sheep tower over the main street of Tīrau, just two of a series of sculptures and buildings made from corrugated iron – a common building material in New Zealand. The quirky sculptures were erected as part of an effort to revitalise the town from the late 1980s. The idea to build an Information Centre in the shape of a dog initially came from John Drake, who owns the land where Tirau’s Dog and Sheep buildings are located When the South Waikato District Council was looking for a site to build the new Public Toilets the land beside the Sheep belonging to John and Nancy Drake seemed to be ideal. The Drakes along with local businessman Henry Clothier had a vision that the area be used not just as Public Toilets but as a complex including an Information Centre, Car Park and Picnic Area. Their vision was for a building in the shape of a Dog to be constructed next to the Sheep. Local enthusiasm was stirred and the project was approved. Work started in January 1998 with a team of willing volunteers working alongside local tradesmen. The building was officially opened in September 1998 The interior mural depicting local scenes was painted by Tirau artist Fred Luckman and is a much admired feature of the building. In April 2005 a stunning new stained glass window was officially unveiled.  This replaced the original painted window which had unfortunately faded with time.