Helen the blind bison lived a lonely life. For the first several years, she lived outside of Salem, where she came to the calling of her owner. She was led to her food and to her barn for sleeping, but there were not many opportunities for socializing with other animals.
She needed a new home though when her owner was no longer able to keep up with the costs of caring for her. Helen was taken to live the rest of her years at the Lighthouse Farm Sanctuary in Scio, Oregon. There she was well taken care of and loved on by the many volunteers and staff.
Something was missing though, Helen needed a friend, an animal friend. Various animals in the pasture tried out for the gig, but most were too much for a skittish Helen. The sheep and goats were not well suited to Helen's personality. They were hopeful that Luke, the blind pig might be a good match, but it was not meant to be.
More than 2 years later something happened that changed Helen's perspective on other animals. That was when Betsy, a rescued dairy cow came to live at the sanctuary too. Soon, Betsy gave birth to a sweet calf named Oliver.
Since Betsy had been a dairy cow for years, Oliver was the first baby that was not ripped away from her after birth. He would be the first calf that she would be able to love and to raise. Oliver grew older and stronger and was soon out exploring the pasture. That's when he found Helen!
Oliver got right to work making friends with all the animals in the 6-acre pasture. He must have thought that Helen looked like she needed a friend. So he decided to be that friend. Helen must have been quite surprised when the spunky little calf ran up to her!
He did not make it a one time visit either, Oliver soon ran to Helen before stopping to see anyone else. According to Lighthouse Farm Sanctuary, Helen is like Oliver's nanny. Betsy drops him off with Helen for the day while she roams around the pasture.
CLICK "NEXT PAGE" TO READ THE REST OF THE STORY...