From the fertile soil of hope…

Crude and inexpert attempts at castration have left them physically and emotionally scarred. This has caused their testicles to retract, partially or fully, into their groins. Here, they now swell uncomfortably in their incomplete testicular sacs.

And then came their abandonment.

For sheep like Pip and Pop, kindness was scarce, until fate led them to a rural country pound. There, among a growing wave of compassionate outcomes, slaughter was not their destiny. Instead, they were given a chance so few sheep ever get—the chance to live.

Wide-eyed and frightened, they clung to each other as they arrived at sanctuary. Their fear was palpable, their bodies tense. They desperately looked everywhere for a place to flee. Their trust, shattered by their cruel past, was something they hadn’t been able to shake. Bundled balls of testosterone and terror, they scooted to the furthest corner of the barn, casting our kind in the dimmest light.

“This is going to take some work,” was our collective thought.

While surgery will soon mend the physical remnants of their suffering, the deeper challenge lies in healing their fear. We trust that, over time, our love will seep through their porous hearts.

The distinct colouring of these handsome two—Pip, black and white, and Pop, chestnut and white—is symbolic of their now contrasting life experiences: from hardship and harm to hope and harmony.

Pip and Pop’s story reminds us of the power of our choices. A story that prods us deeply to never forget we humans hold the seeds to cultivate a kinder world for all—one where we can fertilise fields and forms with compassion, care and tender mercy.

And when we do, only love can take root and kindness can bloom.