DITTMER, Mo. — For those who remember the St. Louis Six, a group of cows who escaped a slaughterhouse, five of them have been providing hug therapy to visitors at the Gentle Barn since their rescue in 2017.

What You Need To Know

  • The Gentle Barn is a national nonprofit that rescues and rehabilitates abused farm animals

    After they have been healed, the animals have an opportunity to provide their own therapy to those who visit, including cow hug therapy, horse therapy and barnyard therapy

  • In addition to cows, the Gentle Barn’s Jefferson County location in Dittmer has horses, donkeys, pigs, chickens, turkeys, goats, a duck, and a guinea fowl, totaling around 25 animals

  • The Gentle Barn is open to the public every Sunday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. year-round. During the week, the organization hosts private tours and events

The Gentle Barn is a national nonprofit that rescues and rehabilitates abused farm animals. After they have been healed, the animals have an opportunity to provide their own therapy to those who visit, according to Christine Weinhold, program specialist. The Gentle Barn’s Jefferson County location in Dittmer offers cow hug therapy, horse therapy, and barnyard therapy to visitors.

In addition to cows, the 27-acre farm has horses, donkeys, pigs, chickens, turkeys, goats, a duck, and a guinea fowl, totaling around 25 animals. Rehabilitation of abused farm animals include vet care, medication, acupuncture, chiropractic, massage therapy, music therapy, and more, according to Weinhold. Once the animals have recovered, they can join in healing people.

“We have a lot of different personalities. Some animals would rather be observed from a far, so we never will force an animal into an interaction, it’s always up to them,” Weinhold said. “But then we have some animals who love people, they love pets and attention.”

She mentioned cow hug therapy provides comfort, healing, and relaxation to individuals.

“They can come hug our cows, they’re very gentle giants. It kind of mimics infancy, you feel very small when you’re hugging them,” Weinhold said.

Horse therapy is for people who want to sharpen their confidence and leadership skills, according to Weinhold, where visitors learn how to groom and walk the horses.

Barnyard therapy offers fun experiences for guests, such as playing ball with a goat, giving pigs belly rubs, and petting turkeys and chickens.  

“The barnyard is definitely for people who just need a break from the world, and wanting to find happiness again, and have a reason to smile and laugh,” Weinhold said.

 

The response from people has been positive, according to Weinhold, as some have visited because they love farm animals and others went for the different therapies.

“It’s cool to see the change in people when they leave the barnyard or the horse area, or the cow area, and to see how the animals react,” Weinhold said. “The animals are really intuitive.”

She mentioned an instance when a mother visited the farm for cow hug therapy after losing her son.

“One of our cows, Chico, he came right over and just plopped down and laid down right in front of her,” Weinhold said. “She got to spend the whole hour hugging him, cuddling him and crying into their shoulders.”

The Gentle Barn also invites schools and other places that have experienced tragedy to receive animal therapy. The nonprofit additionally partners with other organizations that help veterans, the homeless, at-risk youth, people with disabilities, and more.

Weinhold said she loves introducing animals to people who may have not had the opportunity to meet, such as a blind turkey named Smudge.

“Some people are scared of birds, or they’re scared of turkeys specifically, and so getting to introduce them to Smudge and she sits in their lap, she falls asleep, and some people get emotional, they start crying,” she said.

Weinhold also mentioned that her favorite part is watching the animals interact with visitors and figure out who may need healing.

The Gentle Barn is open to the public every Sunday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. year-round. During the week, the organization hosts private tours and events.

In addition to full-time employees and a supervisor who lives on the property, about 40 volunteers work at the Gentle Barn who are paired with an animal to share their rescue story to guests, along with other duties.

Sunday tickets and private tours can be reserved online.

About The Gentle Barn

The Gentle Barn was founded in 1999 by Ellie Laks and Jay Weiner in Los Angeles, California. The second location was formed in 2015 in Nashville, Tennessee.

Dubbed the St. Louis Six, a cow named Chico freed himself and five other cows from a slaughterhouse in the city of St. Louis. The other cows were named Houdini, Roo, Johnny Cash, Eddie, and Spirit.

After roaming the streets for hours, they were rounded backup, however, they had received media attention to where people had named them and started fundraisers for their rescue, according to Weinhold.

The previous owner of the cows was willing to negotiate if someone could take them. To no avail, some people reached to the Gentle Barn co-founder Jay Weiner to see if the organization could take them.

After quickly arriving in St. Louis, Weiner used the money that the community had raised to save the cows. It was decided then to open a Gentle Barn location about an hour from where the cows made their escape.

While Spirit was injured during the roundup, there is a pond named after him at the Gentle Barn. The five other cows roam free and provide hug therapy to visitors.

For more information about the Gentle Barn, click here.