A New York sanctuary has melted hearts online after sharing the tragic reason why they rescued their newest sheep, but thankfully she’s now surrounded by a herd that is more than happy to welcome her in.
Life certainly hasn’t been easy for Nicole the sheep, who is thought to be between 10 and 12 years of age. She was previously used for breeding, but sadly, not a single one of her babies ever survived. After giving birth to triplets in March, they succumbed to the same fate, and Nicole was going to be euthanized as a result; that was, until Woodstock Farm Sanctuary stepped in to help.
Riki Higgins, the social-media coordinator at the sanctuary in High Falls, New York, told Newsweek that the sanctuary “needed to act quickly” and ensure that Nicole’s life wasn’t tragically cut short.
The sanctuary rescued her in mid-March and didn’t waste any time in getting her seen by a vet. Nicole may not be in the healthiest condition, and there’s work to be done to determine why her babies couldn’t survive, but she is already so much happier. Although she can be nervous around people, her fears dissipated the moment she saw her new herd, as Higgins said she was “very excited” to make so many friends.
@woodstocksanctuary / TikTok
“It was a beautiful moment. The herd was heading back into the barn, but we opened the doors and Nicole jumped out. They saw that someone new had arrived, which they are used to, and came to greet her. Nicole let everyone surround her felt happy enough to start grazing right away,” Higgins said.
“She’s doing wonderful; she’s very comfortable in the sheep barn with her new family. Now, she’s not calling out constantly like she was while she was in quarantine, and she’s getting used to the routine.”
Nicole seems so much happier already, but the staff members at the sanctuary have work on their hands to determine why none of her babies ever survived. They expect it could be an abnormality with her udder, which prevented them from feeding, but they need to do more tests to get a clear understanding.
Higgins added: “Knowing that all her babies died, it sounded like they were unable to nurse, and it seemed like there was something wrong with her udder. The vet who came to examine her noticed nodules and thickening. It’s possible that her udder is abnormal due to past untreated infections, inflammation, or even cancer.”
The sanctuary is waiting for the results of bloodwork and fecal tests, but it is possible that its “new sheep resident” may need surgery in the future. Either way, Nicole will certainly be surrounded by love from all the other animals.
How Did Social Media React?
The sanctuary loves providing regular updates about its animals on social media (@woodstocksanctuary), and the video of Nicole meeting her new sheep family captured plenty of attention online. Since the clip was posted on April 9, it has already been viewed more than 6 million times and gained over 906,000 likes at the time of writing.
Nicole was “no longer wanted” by her previous farm owner, but now she has found safety and happiness with her herd of fellow rescue sheep. She has become particularly close with Toni, who is a mom and escaped her previous farm with her son, and Simon, who is one of the youngest members of the group.
“People are curious about sheep social dynamics, if sheep are always this friendly, why Nicole was bred consistently if her babies never survived, and many felt uplifted by seeing the interaction,” Higgins told Newsweek.
The sanctuary will celebrate its 20th anniversary later this year and seeing Nicole’s life transformed in an instant is another reminder of how important its work is. Its staff members have saved countless lives already across two decades, and there will undoubtedly be many more.
With over 8,400 comments on the viral TikTok post already, many social-media users have praised Woodstock Farm Sanctuary for rescuing Nicole, and lauded the herd for welcoming her so unequivocally.
One comment reads: “The way they all came to greet her omg [oh my god].”
Another TikTok user responded: “Thank you for giving her the chance to have a family!”
A third commented: “There’s something special about those people who go and rescue unprofitable factory farm animals.”
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Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.