Baaaarking mad! Lamb saved from slaughterhouse lives life as a dog in new rescue home 

By Becca Husselbee 

A lamb who was saved from the slaughterhouse now believes she is a dog after being accepted into the pack at her new rescue home.

Little Nellie, who is just two-weeks old, was rescued by Gail Geldard, 51, and is now copying the behaviour of her four dogs, Bulldog, Luna, four, Shar Pei, Ella, seven, French Bulldog, Noah, two, and King Charles Cavalier cross, Jake, 15, running with them in the garden, going out for walks.

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After spending a week in her new home, a five bed detached house in Matlock, Derby Nellie has flourished, Nellie goes everywhere with new Mum, Gail, even taking trips in the car, visiting the local pub and going with her brothers to doggy daycare.

Gail said: “She follows me around everywhere and looks for me when I’m gone, she thinks I’m her new mum.

“She has her own little personality and she loves to play with my dogs in the garden, in fact, I’m sure she thinks she is a dog.

“They all play together in the garden and they will clean each other like dogs do.

“She travels in the car with me, she has even had a bath, and she is bottle fed every four hours.

“She has her own little pen, with extra protection from the foxes overnight, but throughout the day she comes into the house with the dogs.

Pic from Caters News

“I even have a babysitter planned for when we go on holiday. It’s like having a baby of my own.”

Gail, who works providing accommodation for mental health patients, has given Nellie a home for life and says she has a special bond with her as well as husband, Darren, 47, son Toby, 19, and her four dogs, even taking them for walks together on their leads together.

But Nellie was a complete surprise to Dareen, who came home to discover the lamb living in the family home after a snowboarding holiday with son, Toby.

Darren said: “It was a bit of a shock when I came home to find a sheep in the house.

“But she is very cute.”

Nellie has been well accepted by the pack but loves to snuggle up to her teddy at night whilst wearing jumpers and coats to keep her warm.

Pic from Caters News

Mum-of-three, Gail, said: “Jake is especially fond of her and will lick and clean her face.

“Luna is a little bit more confused about the fact we have a sheep in the house and Ella is very curious.

“She has a teddy in her pen to keep her warm as she doesn’t have a mum to snuggle up too, she even tries to suckle on the teddy when she gets confused.”

Having Nellie around has even turned Gail off lamb, as she says she can no longer face eating meat after raising Nellie herself.

She said: “I haven’t eaten lamb since Nellie came, I can’t even think about it since having her bounding around my home.

“It just doesn’t feel right anymore, I couldn’t imagine the ordeal she would go through being sent to a slaughterhouse and I’m so happy we have given her loving home.”

Owner of the doggy daycare and play centre, Shaun Jordan, said: “Nellie has been very popular. She’s very cute and the staff have fallen in love with her. They love how she bounces around the room.”