Sheep

In the United States, 2.2 million sheep are slaughtered every year for human consumption. Because consumers prefer eating lamb, sheep are usually slaughtered at a very young age---six to eight months old. 

When they are a few weeks old, sheep typically have their tails cut off without anesthesia or their tail is tied with rubber until it rots and falls off. Both methods are very painful for lambs and cause chronic pain.

In the wool industry, sheep are subjected to the painful process of mulesing, in which large chunks of the animal's skin is sliced off without anesthesia to prevent bugs from burrowing into their skin, which has been bred to have many folds because it is advantageous to wool production. This process is obviously very painful, and only ends when the sheep are sent to slaughter at the end of their life. 

 

 

Kelsey

Kelsey is a big ram who escaped when he and his fellow sheep were being loaded for their last ride to the stockyards. Kelsey was a young lamb at the time of his escape, and he spent the next two years on the run. Kelsey took shelter at a farm that left food out for him, but would never let anyone get to close because he feared for his life. One day, our caring friend April saw Kelsey and knew she had to find a home for this handsome but unkempt wild sheep. April convinced her family to help with his capture and found a sanctuary to take him---Wedrose Acres! Unfortunately, Kelsey was too afraid of being sent off to the stockyards that catching him proved very tricky. Finally, thanks to a team of volunteers, we were able to coax Kelsey into relocating and now he lives very peacefully at Wedrose Acres and looks forward to visitors with vanilla cookies. Kelsey is named for our friend Lois Kelsey because of his great spirit and big heart, and would like to say a special thanks to his namesake as well as April, Jo, Marty, and Terry for aiding in his rescue.