While some animals are born into luxury, others are not so lucky and are destined to end up on people's plates. Ten billion animals are slaughtered for meat each year in the U.S., but a lucky few get a second chance.
LaLa the sheep's fate was sealed when she was put on Craigslist in an ad saying: "Big, fat and ready for Easter dinner. Can't get pregnant is no use to me." But Brittney Kane, the owner of Foreverland Farm Animal Sanctuary in Ohio, had other ideas.
Despite not having owned sheep, Kane was determined to save her.
"The farmer was getting rid of her because she wasn't reproducing and he didn't have a use for her," she told Newsweek, "He had tried to breed her several times without success."
In a video posted to their Instagram account @foreverfarm, Kane wrote: "There was a photo in the ad. It was blurry, and dark but the look in her eyes was haunting. I could not get her out of my mind."
Kane managed to persuade the farmer to let the sanctuary have her.
"We had her for a couple months when one day we noticed her udders were swollen," said Kane. "We began to freak out, not knowing what that meant. LaLa was pregnant, and was due any day.
"After being on baby watch for three weeks, on the night of the full moon, little Marvel was born. He came out without any complications and was a perfectly healthy little boy. The two of them now get to live their lives together and we could not be more grateful. He's only known sanctuary and has never left his mom's side for the last five years at the sanctuary."
Life for a pregnant intensively reared ewe is challenging, and many experience issues during pregnancy and birth.
"Many ewes die during winter and spring because of inadequate grazing, and because their poor body reserves don't allow them to cope with winter," Compassion in World Farming says. "Many lambs are aborted, stillborn, or die from disease, exposure, or starvation. Multiple births are common in many modern sheep breeds and often result in problems for the ewe during delivery and lambs who are weaker and more vulnerable."
There are over 105 animals at Foreverland Farm Animal Sanctuary, all of which have been rescued from difficult circumstances, except for Marvel.
"Our animals come from all over, they are all what I would consider the end of the line," said Kane. "They come from cruelty cases where animal control is involved, hoarding situations, owner surrenders, abandoned animals.
"We have two Great Pyrenees dogs who live with the animals," she added. "They guard the animals from predators by patrolling the pastures. They were from an accidental litter of puppies that had been born, and the couple wanted to donate the puppies to sanctuaries who needed them as guardians. We ended up taking in the last two from that litter."
Users on Instagram loved the video.
"Love their story so much! It's my favorite one," commented one user.
"Such an awesome story, Marvel you handsome boy!" commented another.
Do you have funny and adorable videos or pictures of your pet you want to share? Send them to life@newsweek.com with some details about your best friend and they could appear in our Pet of the Week lineup.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Leonie Helm is a Newsweek Life Reporter and is based in London, UK. Her focus is reporting on all things ... Read more
To read how Newsweek uses AI as a newsroom tool, Click here.
