There wasn't a quantum of solace to be found when police in the Eastern Cape made a rather odd discovery on Sunday night.

Officers saved 44 lambs from the slaughter after arresting four men suspected of stealing livestock near Somerset East.

The men had packed 27 sheep into a Quantum taxi when police conducting waylay duties on "major routes" in the area stopped them.

Police spokesperson Captain Khaya Tonjeni said officers then found a makeshift kraal where another 17 animals were kept.

"The owner, Mr Fick from Greenlands farm, positively identified the stolen sheep as his property. The vehicle used in the crime was confiscated by the Asset Forfeiture Unit," said Tonjeni.

The men will appear in the Somerset East Magistrate's Court on Tuesday.

Police arrested four men suspected of stealing 44 sheep from a farm near Somerset East on Sunday 9 February, 2020. (Supplied)

Last month, police in Stilfontein in North West arrested two men and found 29 sheep stuffed into two vehicles, one believed to be a Volkswagen Polo.

A farmer near Hartbeesfontein sounded the alarm after noticing his livestock had been stolen the night before.

- Compiled by Sheldon Morais