If you’re looking for a little uplifting distraction during the ongoing pandemic, an online sheep handling competition for children under the age of eight may be just the thing.
A brief glimpse into the agricultural contest comes courtesy of James Rebanks, an author, farmer, and judge in the upcoming Greatest Online Agricultural Show, which is raising money for farming charities in the U.K. Rebanks posted a clip of the competition on Twitter, noting that he had “spent the last hour judging the online sheep show” and “the young handlers under 8 class was the cutest thing” he had ever seen.
As proof, he shared a short video a three-year old handler named Barley Brook Sellar and her sheep Ethel. In the clip, the little girl, who lives on a farm in Norfolk, England, displays her handling skills, even though the sheep is as tall as she is.
In the video, Sellar, clad in a long white doctor’s coat, introduces herself and her sheep, nudging the sheep with her hip after the sheep nudges her. When asked what type of sheep Ethel is, Sellar enthusiastically responds, “White!” But realizes her error and after a brief hesitation, provides the correct answer that Ethel is a Border Leicester. She then takes her sheep for a short walk, turning around and returning to her starting point. At the end, the little girls commands her sheep to “stand”, which both sheep and Sellar manage to do. Sellar than flashes a very happy grin at the camera, clearly proud of herself.
Naturally, the internet couldn’t get enough of the tiny sheep wrangler:
The little girl and her sheep even inspired fan art:
