Tootsie, a 6-month-old Jersey and one of the two cuddling cows at Phippen Pharm in Carver. Photo: Suzanne Sausville/WBZ NewsRadio
CARVER, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — There's no denying these are stressful times, but one farm in Carver has a solution: cow cuddling. Phippen Pharm is letting families come cuddle with their two cows, Tootsie and Darla.
When Lara Phippen approached her husband Rick with the idea of starting a cow cuddling business, he was skeptical.
"'You've got to be kidding me,' you know what I mean? I chuckled," he said. But now, he's sold on the idea.
Along with a dozen chickens, the family farm has two cows, a 6-month-old Jersey named Tootsie and a 2-month-old Angus named Darla.
"Tootsie is the cuddler, she's the one who will sit down with you pretty much on demand. We put a blanket down and when she sees all of you sitting down, she'll come sit down with you," Lara said.
Tootsie weighs almost 600 pounds.
Lara said cows are calm animals and their heartbeats are a lot slower than human ones, and that rubs off on the people that visit and cuddle with the cows.
"You leave here a calmer, happier person I think, I really believe it," she said.
The farm is charging $70 for 45 minutes to an hour of cuddling time for up to five people.
WBZ's Suzanne Sausville (@wbzSauzville) reports:
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