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UNTING S O HEE P:
HOW THESE WOOLY COMPANIONS HAVE HELPED PEOPLE SLEEP written by MADISON GOLDBERG photos by ILEANA HINCHCLIFF, JULIA SMITH, and BECCY ROUTLEDGE
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s many of us remember, whenever we would pester our parents about not being able to sleep, they would frequently tell us to just “count sheep.” Counting sheep has become harder than usual lately amid the anxieties posed by the global pandemic, and the isolation that comes along with it all. Animal therapy has become wildly popular in the past few years— many of my own friends have adopted cats to ease their stress in the past year. But lately, a new approach is on the rise: sheep therapy. Sheep therapy has been particularly popular in farms across the UK and Ireland, where a static tourism industry is finding creative solutions while simultaneously easing the mental health of people across the globe. One farm in particular near Loch Lomond, Scotland, is home to Beccy Routledge and her fluffy flock of Herdwick sheep: Hamish, Dougal, and Lochie. She is now offering online guided meditation sessions with her sheep via Zoom through AirBnB, called 56
“Guided Meditation with Sleepy Sheep.” Beccy answered her end of the Zoom call from the picturesque highlands of Scotland— with her sheep, of course. The stunning landscape certainly brightened my gray Boston morning. “I’ve lived on the farm for nearly five years, kept sheep for three. I initially got sheep because I had a field that needed eating, so I got them as lawnmowers. I had no idea they’d be full of personality and character,” explained Routledge. “Their intelligence level is the same as primates, and their facial recognition is as good as humans.” The sheep have played a role in Routledge’s AirBNB experience since before the pandemic, although their new therapeutic role was born of isolation. They were initially a part of what she called “Tea with Naughty Sheep,” because the sheep loved to escape and come meet the guests. “I noticed that my guests were so immersed in the world of sheep because they saw them up close, that they were getting a sort of AFFECTION MAGAZINE • HEALTH AND WELLNESS
