Waimate police are seeking the driver of a car that crashed through a fence, killing six sheep and seriously injuring another.
Police said the crash occurred sometime between midnight and 2am on Sunday.
Constable Fred Lomano said the injured seventh sheep had to be put down by police.
A passing milk tanker driver found the vehicle abandoned in a paddock, surrounded by dead and dying sheep just north of the State Highway 82 and State Highway 1 intersection, he said. The driver had not reported to police that they had maimed or killed any animals.
Const Lomano said it appeared the driver failed to take an easy bend and had gone straight through a fence, striking the sheep before coming to rest.
The sheep owner was concerned and wanted answers, he said. "The major concern was that he thought maybe his sheep were out on the road, but they weren't in this case.''
Police knew who the driver was and were working to locate them.