She was dubbed ‘Britain’s loneliest sheep’ after falling over a coastal cliff before spending two years on a Highland beach cut off from her flock.
And even when she was dramatically rescued from her unintended exile, Fiona the ewe struggled for months to bond with other animals.
But now, after a spruce-up and a strict weight-loss programme, Fiona is set to become the heart of a new family after it emerged she is pregnant with twins.
Ben Best, manager of Dalscone Farm in Dumfriesshire, revealed the happy news in a video on the farm’s Dalscone Daily Facebook page, posting: ‘Fiona’s having twins. What have we done? We have actually got her in lamb. The pressure is on.’
Fiona became an internet sensation after a kayaker who first spotted her in 2021 stranded by cliffs near Balintore, Easter Ross, was amazed when she saw the sheep was still stuck two years later.
Fiona became stranded after falling over a coastal cliff
Fiona spent two years on a Highland beach before being dramatically rescued
Ben Blast with Fiona, who is expecting twin lambs
Jill Turner, from Brora, Sutherland, pleaded for someone to rescue her and a petition calling for a rescue operation gathered more than 55,000 signatures.
Donations to help with the rescue came in from as far away as Australia, the USA and Canada and it raised four times its initial target of £2,500.
Specialist climbers used a winch mounted on a truck parked at the top of the cliff, 200m of rope and a feed bag fashioned into a makeshift sling in what was described as an ‘epic’ mission.
Two men stayed at the top to operate the winch while three others were lowered 250m down the steep descent where they found Fiona in a cave and guided her up the rock face.
They were amazed to discover how fat the three-year-old had become.
Fiona the sheep was winched up the cliff in the rescue
Fiona the sheep pictured with her rescuers
In November 2023, she was brought to Dalscone where Mr Best noticed she struggled to socialise with other sheep, suggesting that ‘she has kind of forgotten how to be a sheep’.
The farm’s social media channels and webcam had topped three million hits in the first days after she arrived as interest in her story grew internationally.
Viewers watched as the once-tubby Fiona slimmed down to 90kg and she was given hormones to help her conceive before she was put to a Suffolk ram.
The plan worked only too well as she is now expecting to give birth at the beginning of February.
Mr Best said Fiona’s weight loss had also helped her cope with arthritis in her front leg, adding: ‘She’s doing really well. She is the world’s most famous sheep.’
She is having regularly blood tests.
