Arnold

It was Christmas Eve when we learned of Arnolds situation after he was spotted unwanted online listed for ‘Free’. Being advertised as a giveaway on Gumtree is deeply concerning for an Animal who finds themselves in such an unfavourable predicament, but when you are a Sheep or a member of any other farmed Animal species, then you’re really in trouble.

Given the urgency we reached out immediately and secured his release to Sanctuary. We Learned that Arnold was initially purchased as a 6 month old Lamb, selected for the dark black colour of his fleece. His purchaser was a wool spinner and desired to make ‘natural’ woollen garments with no dye. This ultimately never eventuated and Arnold was left to live his days completely alone in a pen with no other sheep for company and limited human interaction, resulting in Arnold being extremely fearful of other sheep and having no trust at all in humans.

It took months for Arnold to integrate with the flock, and even longer for him to stop running away from the humans. He would head for the farthest most point in the paddock from us and vigilantly watch to make sure we weren’t approaching. These days he is one of the most playful members of the main Sheep flock and has a reputation for starting trouble then standing back to watch it unfold. Although he still doesn’t completely trust us, he will take a treat from our hands, we think that is pretty special given all he has endured.