Brienne was pictured and mentioned in the original petition, but since the one year anniversary of her death happened on Sunday the 27th I wanted to tell more of the details of her story.
On the day that Brienne was discovered at the horrific Twist of Fate property she was found with overgrown hooves that were causing her pain and very thick, dirty, and overgrown wool that was matted with her own feces. Brienne was panting, which is a sign of EXTREME distress in sheep. She needed immediate help, and Lauren of Fawn's Fortress (@fawnfortress) took her in. She trimmed the feces out of her coat (it took hours), and Brienne was sheared for the first time in who knows how long. She was also given a fan and cold fruit (blueberries and watermelon were her favorites).
Brienne was an older sheep when she arrived at Fawn's Fortress and Lauren could feel a few lumps and bumps on her. After a vet visit and some testing, it was found that one of the lumps was a walnut-size mass in her udder area, and the ultrasound revealed that it was a blocked milk duct with some scarring. Another large mass that was found was revealed to be trauma induced. It was very upsetting to hear and difficult to speculate about, but no one knows how she got this.
After she was rescued by Lauren, Brienne had one month. One month of love, care, comfort, food, water, shelter, enrichment, a clean bed, vet care, vaccines, pets, chin scritches, and shearing, which is 100% more than she ever got at Twist of Fate. There and under the “care” of Ashley DiFelice she fought for days and months without any of these things.
There is very little that is known about Brienne's previous life at Twist of Fate - Ashley seemingly didn't post anything about her anywhere. Her rescue announcement couldn't even be found - not even a photo with her in the background, which makes you wonder how many other animals Ashley took in that were just never mentioned or posted about.
Brienne was originally named Sweetheart, and her previous mom, Zoe, recognized her and reached out to Lauren of Fawn's Fortress and wrote her a letter. Zoe had once belonged to a 4-H program where she would care for the sheep, but once the program decided to close down because they were no longer able to breed them, Zoe and her family scrambled to find homes for the four sheep that they were assigned to. They saved Basil (Brienne's mom), Blossom (Basil's daughter and Brienne's older half-sister), Gracie (Brienne's half-sister), and a little boy named Stinky (unrelated to Brienne), all of whom became beloved members of Zoe's family. The other sheep from the program were sent elsewhere, with Brienne and her half-sister Meekah ending up at a farm school, which was not an ideal situation but oftentimes the sheep were sent to sanctuaries once they became "spent". Here is an excerpt from Zoe's letter to Lauren: "I just want to thank you so much for saving Brienne, and helping her and the other animals that call your sanctuary home. I have loved Brienne her entire life and have remembered and missed her since the last day I saw her." Zoe is currently getting her college degree in Animal Center Management with the intention of working in farm animal advocacy and rescue work.
After the farm school, Brienne somehow ended up with Ashley, and we do know that she was eventually reunited with her sister at Twist of Fate about a year after she arrived there herself. Sadly, her sister did not make it and died at the hands of this animal abuser, probably right in view of Brienne.
On August 27th, 2022, Brienne was rushed to the hospital - her rumen (stomach/digestion) was shutting down, which the vet believed stemmed from where she was before and what she was eating there. She wasn't able to respond to treatment appropriately due to the neglect that her body endured for so long. Her rumen not moving was said to be a result of her body failing her - a symptom, not the root cause. Despite getting the best care at Fawn's Fortress, Brienne's body gave out. Ashley DiFelice's long-term negligence is what killed her. Brienne was finally free, finally loved, but her body just couldn't recover. She only had less than a month, but in that time she knew love. It is a great comfort to all of us that Brienne's last days were filled with all the good things that she deserved to have access to for her entire life.
Even if Ashley didn't care about Brienne or any of the other animals and even if she doesn't care that Brienne died or that she killed her, WE care. WE will always remember what Ashley did.
Lauren has wonderful memories of watermelon, snuggles, and sunsets with Brienne. Please give @fawnsfortress a follow on Instagram and please leave Lauren some comments of support, condolences, and love here or on her posts. Today is a tough day for her.
You can also purchase a tee, hoodie, sweatshirt or tank in memory of Brienne & Norman (another sheep who died shortly after he was rescued as a result of Ashley's long-term neglect) on Bonfire here. A portion of the sales are divided between Fawn's Fortress and Goat's of Anarchy (Norman's rescue family).
You can also donate directly to Fawn's Fortress to help Lauren care for her many other sheep, goats, dogs, birds and other animals via Venmo (@fawnsfortress), PayPal (link is in her Instagram profile), or the Amazon Wishlist. You can also join their Patreon for any amount to make a monthly donation too - every little bit is appreciated and can go a long way.
Thank you for being here.
Also, please continue to share the petition - Ashley DiFelice's next court date is September 14th, and since the court is aware of the petition we'd like to get as many signatures and comments on it as possible before then. Thank you!