Mootilda’s Great Escape: Rescued Cow Sparks Online Movement After Fleeing Slaughterhouse crowdfunded rescue
Mootilda the cow was saved by an animal sanctuary owner in late August. Facebook/Aimees Farm Animal Sanctuary
In a true tale of resilience and rescue, a cow that bolted from an Arizona slaughterhouse has found a forever home—thanks to a compassionate sanctuary owner and a groundswell of support from animal lovers online.
The cow, now affectionately known as Mootilda, made a daring escape last month, running for miles before being recaptured and returned to the slaughterhouse. But her brief taste of freedom, captured by astonished locals in videos and photos, touched hearts far beyond Arizona.
One of those hearts belonged to Aimee Takaha, who runs an animal sanctuary just four miles from where Mootilda had been taken. After seeing the images of the cow’s determined flight, Takaha called the facility and pleaded for a chance to save her.
“I thought she’s so remarkable, and how awful for her to be brought back to that place,” Takaha told The Washington Post.
The slaughterhouse put Takaha in touch with the buyer who had originally ordered Mootilda. While he was still prepared to go through with the sale, he agreed to release the cow for $2,500 within 24 hours—a price that would cover his financial loss.
With no time to spare, Takaha turned to social media for help.
“It is worth a try,” she wrote on Facebook. “Maybe we can come together and save this animal whose will to live is extraordinary. And if we can’t, well, it will be a sad day—but at least we tried.”
The response was overwhelming. Within hours, generous donors met—and exceeded—the goal. The outpouring of support was so swift that online scammers tried impersonating Takaha’s Venmo account to cash in on the goodwill.
But the real donations reached their mark, and Mootilda was soon delivered safely to Takaha’s sanctuary, where she now shares a pasture with her new bovine buddies: Adorabull, Moona Lisa, and Moothias.
Underweight and wary when she first arrived, Mootilda has begun to put on healthy weight. There’s even a chance she might be pregnant, as she was previously around a bull without supervision and has had calves before.
Nicknamed a “grass puppy” for her nervous but curious demeanor, Mootilda kept her distance from humans at first. But according to sanctuary updates, she’s slowly warming up—allowing a few cautious chin scratches and beginning to trust her new caretakers.
Takaha’s sanctuary is home to about 60 animals, including chickens, alpacas, a miniature zebra, and a three-legged rabbit. Many of the animals in her care are elderly, disabled, or abandoned.
“People are very vain about their animals—they want them to be perfect,” Takaha said. “But to me, they’re absolutely perfect when they’re less perfect.”
Thanks to one cow’s daring escape—and a community’s compassion—Mootilda now has a second chance at life.
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