KEY HIGHLIGHTS
- Cow cuddling has been a popular trend across the world for quite some time now
- The concept of cow cuddling literally includes cuddling with cows outdoors
- Organizations have found away to milk money out of this emerging trend
The world is one amusing place. If we weren’t already in the middle of something crazy going on in all our lives, well, in the history of mankind, perhaps then we would have been able to appreciate it better. However, thanks to the internet, despite a pandemic, we are not disconnected from the world. In today’s episode of “Here is what the world is up to during the pandemic”, we will talk about cow cuddling.
Cow cuddling – What is it?
Originating in a rural area of Reuver in the Netherlands, the concept of hugging cows soon started gaining popularity worldwide as people began using it for therapeutic purposes. They called it ‘koe knuffelen’, which is Dutch for cow hugging. As the name suggests, cow cuddling involves hugging cows, patting them, and spending them with them in their natural habitat. Several farms across the world have opened their doors and have been organizing ‘therapy sessions’ that involves cow hugging to help people find an escape during the harsh times. In India, Kamdhenu Gowdham and Arogya Sansthan, an NGO based in Haryana established a cow cuddling centre.
Cow cuddling – Why is it trending amidst the pandemic?
The pandemic induced an immense amount of loneliness in people. With restrictions imposed on physical touch and forced isolation, it pushed people into a gloomy and sad mindset. While preventive measures are necessary to ensure one’s physical health, the abrupt alterations to the human lifestyle did take a toll on the mental health of people.
People who have experienced cow cuddling reported feeling a sense of relaxation. It has also instilled a sense of positivity and helped reduce stress. Ever since the pandemic began, people have been longing for touch, warmth of it, optimism, and stress reduction methods. A probable explanation of why cow cuddling has been popular around this time could be the therapeutic effects it induces. A boost of oxytocin is highly welcome in the current scenario and cow cuddling came to the human rescue in a time when they needed it the most.
