164 PRICEY COW CUDDLES

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PRICEY COW CUDDLES

Years of floods and low food prices have driven Dumble Farm in England’s northeast to stop milking its cows. Instead, they have begun charging visitors to cuddle them.

Dumble Farm started as a dairy farm in the 1970s, but in recent years, flooding has washed out crops and killed off the type of grass the cows like to eat. Plus, milk prices are now below the cost of producing it. Both realities have proved a nearly insurmountable challenge.

“The amount of flooding and the pressures on our land were making it impossible for us to carry on,” said Fiona Wilson, co-owner of the farm.

Agriculture has been one of the areas worst-affected by climate change, with farmers in Europe and elsewhere suffering under increasing heat, drought, and flooding.

In 2022, Dumble Farm sold all but a few of its dairy cows and, in a rush to reinvent itself, began offering “cow cuddling” experiences to fund a wildlife conservation plan.

For £95 (USD$128), visitors can cuddle, brush, and stroke the cows as they lie on the straw-covered floor inside a barn. The experience also includes a safari to see Highland cattle.

“It has been so worth it, just to get so close to the cows. And, they are so loving and gentle,” guest Emma Hutton, 25, said after she spent some time cuddling one of the cows.
It took over a year to train the cows to feel comfortable with cuddling, but now the animals have fully adjusted, farmer James McCune said.

“They like being pampered. They are like big dogs. It is more of a spa day for the cows,” McCune said.