28 July 2025

by Delia Liebscher

In spring 2023 I spent some time abroad on a farm in Oxfordshire, England. This type of ‘internship’ is called wwoofing, which stands for Worldwide Opportunities on Organic Farms. It's all about connecting people with organic farms around the world, creating a space for learning, cultural exchange and community building while promoting eco-friendly farming.

The idea is simple but powerful: as a WWOOFer, you stay with a host family, help out with daily tasks on their farm and in return, you get hands-on experience, meals and a place to stay – no money involved. I was very excited to start this adventure, as my main motivation was to reconnect with nature and animals and something that would get me out of my head and into my body again. But, when I arrived at Willowbrook Farm, I felt a bit like the Goose Girl, dragging my big suitcase through the mud in my white sneakers, which, in hindsight, wasn’t exactly my brightest idea. As a bit of a bummer, my accommodation turned out to be a tiny room next to the farm café’s office: muddy footprints everywhere, an unfinished carpet curling up at the corners and lovely bunk beds. It felt anything but cozy and honestly, kind of grimy. That was my first challenge right there; I actually wanted to leave immediately. So I tried to comfort myself by spending time with the animals and ended up lying down in the hay with the sheep. They were very shy though, unlike the goats, who turned out to become my new favourite animals.

The next day, I spoke to my host about my discomfort and she responded really well and adjusted quite a few things in the following days – so I stayed. I’m glad I did, because here comes the best part of this journey: the animals. How lucky I was to get close to so many different animals: chickens, sheep, horses, geese, goats and cats. My main tasks with the animals included feeding them, letting them out on the pasture, collecting eggs and so on.

On top of that, it was lambing season. Almost every day a lamb or a kid (a baby goat) was born! One night, the vet of the farm texted us to let us know that there was a lamb on its way, so we put our wellies on and rushed to the barn. The sheep was supposed to have twins and one lamb had already been born. But unfortunately the other one seemed to be stuck. So we all jumped into action, the other two WWOOFers went to grab gloves, while I found myself pressing my entire weight down on the struggling sheep, trying to soothe it and keep it from thrashing around, while the vet was all up in her business. After what felt like an eternity and with every bit of energy drained, the second lamb finally came into the world. We were all so relieved and I felt very shaky - it was truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience. The very next day, during hay feeding, I watched in awe as a goat gave birth quickly and without any complications. And let me tell you, baby goats are the most lively, playful and cuddly creatures imaginable! I could spend hours and hours in the barn with them, which in fact I did every evening. 

All in all, my journey abroad certainly came with many challenges and lots of new things to learn. I could share so much more about the farm, the animals and the people I met there, but these were the moments that stuck with me the most and I would do it all over again.

For some exclusive peaks at Delia’s farm adventure (including pics of baby goats!), check our instagram page and the according post @cultural_studies_blog_rptu !

Find out more about WWOOFing here: https://wwoof.org.uk/en/host/36178