The disappearance of an adorably fluffy miniature cow in the picturesque Adelaide Hills, SA, last month saw locals rallying to help his heartbroken owners find him.
One-year-old Olaf is truly one of a kind.
Standing at 60 centimeters tall, he weighs no more than 40 kilograms and is the size of a fully grown Labrador.
The speckled bullock vanished without a trace, sometime in the hours between the afternoon of November 15 and the morning of November 16.
Olaf’s distraught owner Julia Brown has spent the last two weeks searching nearby paddocks, trying to locate her beloved boy.
“I’m missing my little fella. It’s different around here without him,” Julia, 50, tells New Idea. “I can’t stop searching for him. I’ve never given up on him, so I can’t give up on him now.”
Julia last saw Olaf in his paddock at Barristers Block Wines in Woodside, where she also works as a wedding coordinator.
“When I came to feed him the following morning, he wasn’t there. I instantly thought, ‘Oh, he’s got out,’” she says. “From the minute I mentioned he was missing, everyone said, ‘I bet he has been stolen.’ But who would steal a cow?
“I’d love to think he’s just lost, that people wouldn’t be so cruel. My biggest hope is that someone has stolen him because they want to love him.”
Mysteriously, another steer named Rahley – a 600-kilogram Highland bullock – disappeared from an Onkaparinga Hills property around the same time. This led locals to believe a cow thief was at large.
After hearing about Rahley’s disappearance, Julia contacted his owners, Michael and Francine Trenerry. The trio launched a video calling on people for help, which garnered thousands of views.
Julia says that the community’s response has been “incredible”.
“It’s been amazing to see the support that’s been given. People have come up to me in the shops, asking about Olaf, they’ve been calling from places like Darwin and Western Australia,” she says.
“I do honestly believe it will be the public that will find them.”
Amazingly, on November 26, Rahley was discovered in a random paddock, with his owners racing to collect him.
Michael shared on social media: “The mystery of how he got there is as big as the mystery as to how he left.”
At the time of going to press, Olaf is still missing.
“You got [Rahley] home by getting the news out there and supporting us,” Julia said on Facebook. “However, Olaf is not home yet. He must be somewhere and if he’s frightened, he’s good at hiding.
“You got one back, Adelaide. I know you can do it again!”
Anyone with information is asked to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
