Cow cuddling is healing hearts!

Growing up on diary farms, Amanda Klein and Lisa Buccieri discovered just how calming being around cows could be. So they began offering cuddling sessions with the animals to bring joy to others.

- Diane Nichols

After yet another stressful day carrying an endless workload at her corporate job, 43-year-old Lisa Buccieri let out a sigh of frustration.

"There has to be something better out there for me," she blurted out loud in exasperation.

Suddenly, memories of her past growing up on a dairy farm filled her mind. She had always gone to her cows when life got her down. Just a simple hug, their sweet grassy smell, the calm in their loving brown eyes as she just sat with them in the quiet, was all it took to give her just the therapy she needed.

What if there was a way to start a cow cuddling business where others could feel that same comfort, too? she asked herself. For the last few years, she had been pitching in part time at Klein Farms Dairy and Creamery in Easton, Pennsylvania, with Amanda Klein, a friend she had met through 4-H when they were younger. The two often shared stories of growing up on dairy farms and their passion for the animals.

Excited, Lisa couldn't shake her wacky idea and ran it by Amanda, who was immediately on board. It was something the two loved to talk about, thinking someday it could be worth a try.