What Happened to the Animals at Farmyard Friends Therapy Farm? Everything to Know About the Theft
Twelve animals were stolen from a therapy farm that serves children with additional needs in North Lincolnshire, England — and the owner fears they may already have been killed for food.
Julia Stewart, who runs Farmyard Friends C.I.C. near Messingham with her mother, Mary, and sister Nicola, discovered eight sheep and four turkeys missing on the morning of April 6, 2026. Humberside Police said the theft is believed to have occurred between Sunday, April 5, and Monday, April 6.
Which Animals Were Stolen From Farmyard Friends?
Stewart named all 12 stolen animals: “They all had names - my turkeys are Albert and Bernie, and the two girls were Hip and Hop, because they walk funny. And my sheep were Milkshake, Juniper, Daisy, Dixie, Fleur, Betty, Sooty and Teddy.”
One sheep, Teddy, holds a particular place in Stewart’s heart. “One of the sheep, Teddy, I have had since he was 2 weeks old, I bottle fed him and he slept on my bed until he was old enough to go to the farm,” she wrote on Facebook.
Nicola said three of the four turkeys were rescue animals with deformed feet that had been sitting on eggs when they were taken. “They were in a terrible condition when we got them but had really come into their own, and now they’ve been taken,” she said. “These animals are pets. They have names.”
How Did the Thieves Break Into the Farm?
Nicola described the break-in at the farm, which sits near Scunthorpe about 180 miles north of London: “They have cut through a gate, driven across a farmer’s field and backed up to our hedgeline and made a track through the hedge to take eight of our pet sheep, one of which, Teddy, Julia hand-reared from two weeks old.”
The theft came just two weeks after what the GoFundMe page describes as “a freak weather event (apparently a tornado)” that struck the farm on March 29, collapsing multiple wooden buildings. Stewart told the BBC the storm “wiped out some of our shelters.”
“We were trying to rebuild everything and now this. It’s just hit us really massively,” Stewart added.
What Is the Origin of Farmyard Friends?
Farmyard Friends began as a place of therapy for Stewart’s eldest son, Ethan, who is on the autism spectrum and is home-schooled. Nicola said: “Ethan is the reason it was set up. Julia has a Masters in autism and has worked with special educational needs children and there was nowhere for them to go.”
The farm, which is in the process of gaining its animal welfare license, provides animal therapy, community interest visits and educational farm services. Stewart is a single mother who runs the farm seven days a week alongside caring for her two sons with additional needs.
What Has the Family Said About the Stolen Animals?
Stewart told Grimsby Live: “I’m just absolutely heartbroken. It’s the fact that my animals are my pets, and I’ve had them all since I was young. They just come up to you, like dogs do, wanting cuddles.”
“The fact that somebody’s taken them, and I know what’s going to happen to them is just destroying me. It really is. I feel absolutely broken by the fact somebody’s going to hurt them,” she said.
Nicola described having to explain the theft to Ethan. “We’ve had to tell him that the people who have taken them have stolen them because they’re their best sheep in the world, and the best turkeys in the world, and they’ve taken them to set up their own farm,” she said. “But we know that they’re probably no longer with us and they’ve been used for human consumption.”
What Are Police Doing About the Farmyard Friends Theft?
A Humberside Police spokesperson said: “Officers from our Rural Task Force received a report of animals being stolen from a farm on Brigg Road in Messingham, North Lincolnshire, which is believed to have occurred between Sunday, 5 April and Monday, 6 April 2026. It is reported a number of sheep and turkeys were stolen, and enquiries remain ongoing to determine the circumstances around the report and identify those involved.”
Police asked anyone with information or CCTV footage to contact their non-emergency number.
A GoFundMe has been started by a friend to help Farmyard Friends purchase security cameras.
This article was created by content specialists using various tools, including AI.
