A ZEBRA that isn't crossing is turning the heads of drivers passing through a North-East village.

Six-year-old Rebecca, the exotic pet of coal merchant Colin Mairs and his wife Heather, needs to get out more, but puts her pretty foot down in fright when she gets near a road.

Although she was born in this country, Rebecca's fine black and white coat is more suited to the scorching African plains than the freezing fells around the Mairs' farmhouse in West Auckland, County Durham.

She is confined to her stable in wet or cold weather - which means most of the winter - and Colin and Heather are desperate to take her out and about.

Colin is trying to conquer his pet's fear of traffic and he and Rebecca are often seen standing beside the busy A68 outside his house.

He said: "It would be nice to take her to different places.

She can't go in the field because she hates the rain and would probably fall over if there was frost on the ground.

"I just take her to the gates outside the farm to let her see the traffic coming.

"You can see passengers in the cars nudging and pointing."

Rebecca, a Chapman Plains breed of zebra, arrived at the Mairs' home three years ago and is most often seen rubbing manes with diminutive Paddy, one of Heather's Shetland ponies.

The Mairs came across her by chance when Colin revealed his long-held dream of owning a zebra to a dealer at a northern horse sale.

The dealer had just happened to have bought the animal from a wildlife park to join an animal entertainment troupe.

At that time Rebecca was proving hard to handle, but lashings of patience and care have transformed her into a pet so tame that she will allow youngsters to ride on her back.