A ewe dubbed “Britain’s loneliest sheep” has been rescued from the foot of a cliff in the Scottish Highlands by a group of farmers.
Cammy Wilson, one of the rescuers, said the rescue took place on November 4. Wilson, a sheep shearer in Ayrshire, Scotland, and a presenter on the BBC’s Landward programme, decided to rescue the sheep , named Fiona, after learning about her plight.
According to The Straits Times on November 5, the sheep was pulled up from the cliff by five men using heavy equipment. Two men stood at the top of the cliff to control a rope ladder while the remaining three were lowered down 250m to reach the sheep.
They found it in a cave.
The sheep, now known as Fiona, has been trapped at the foot of a cliff in the Cromarty Firth in Scotland for at least two years. Photo: The Independent
The Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SSPCA) said the rescue efforts were extremely complex. “We had to get the sheep up a very steep cliff. She was so fat that it was quite difficult,” Mr Wilson said in a video posted to social media, with Fiona seen right behind the car in the video.
The SSPCA said it was also at the scene of the rescue on 4 November. Inspectors from the association checked Fiona’s condition. “Thankfully she is well, apart from the need to shave her wool. She will be taken to a specialist in Scotland for rest and recovery,” a spokesman for the association said.
The sheep was first spotted by Jillian Turner while canoeing along the coast of Scotland’s Sutherland County in 2021. On a recent trip, she was shocked to find the sheep still in the same place with its wool growing too long.
“The poor sheep had been there alone for at least two years. For a herd animal, that must have been torture. It looked desperate as it tried to approach us on the two occasions we passed by,” Ms Turner said.
Finona the sheep and the farmers who joined the rescue. Photo: The Sheep Game
Many British newspapers reported on this, calling Fiona “Britain’s loneliest sheep”.
Animal lovers were delighted with the news of Fiona’s rescue.
“Today is a day to celebrate. We have saved the life of a beautiful and lonely lamb,” said Edoardo L’Astorina, who started a petition to rescue the sheep on October 29. His petition has attracted more than 55,000 signatures.
