MILFORD – His rugged masculinity drew the women to him, and as they got to know him they were charmed by his soulful eyes and playful spirit.

During their regular walks together down Savage Road, Bonnie Byrd and Vicki Pelczar would bring carrots and other vegetables to feed the young Scottish Highland bull.

The relationship was tinged with sadness, though. The women knew the shaggy creature’s future had more to do with hamburgers and steak than to lazy summer days chomping grass and running to meet passersby.

Then one day they got the news. Instead of a butcher shop, the bull will be going to a farm-animal sanctuary in Massachusetts.

“I was thrilled to death,” said Byrd. “I told Vicki, ‘He’s not going into the freezer!'”

That’s because someone else was charmed by the charismatic bull.

About a year ago, David Wirbal began to notice him when he drove by the pasture on his way home from work. Eventually he slowed down, and one day he stopped. Then he started bringing treats like celery, apples and alfalfa sprouts.

“I noticed that he recognized my truck,” he said. “He’d be on the other end of pasture” and would run toward the road. He gets excited when sees someone he recognizes” and he would moo – “a sound like a fire truck.”

The bull “exudes a high level of warmth and playfulness,” he said in an email. “He is extremely social and has a gentle and loving spirit. Eventually, I began to bring apples, carrots, alfalfa sprouts, etc., which he loves immensely.”

On Christmas Eve, Wirbal stopped and met the owner of the bull he calls Dudley and asked if he could buy him. The answer was yes.

Then came the anxiety.

“I wondered if I had bitten off more than I could chew,” he said. “I bought a bull? Where do I place him? How do I get him there? Can I afford him?

Wirbal started to research farms that might want to take care of Dudley forever. For one reason or another, none of them seemed right, until he found Unity Farm Sanctuary in Sherborn, Mass., a nonprofit that provides permanent housing for farm animals.

Dudley’s former owner offered to help transport the 1,200 pound animal. All that was left to do was raise money for the $6,000 purchase.

Wirbal started a GoFundMe page and pledged $3,000 himself. By May 21, 28 people had donated $1,975. They will be part of “Team Dudley” and get an ‘I Saved Dudley’ t-shirt.

Wirbal’s anxiety turned to elation.

“One of the greatest, and most unexpected, aspects of this journey is the outpouring of support we have received,” hel said. “Friends and co-workers have visited Dudley and fed him treats and have immediately felt a connection with him.”

During a visit to Unity Farm Sanctuary, Wirbal learned they are preparing for him and putting fans in his shed. Because of his heavy two-layer coat – ideal for the bitter winds of the Scottish Highlands, less so for Massachusetts summers – he is sensitive to the heat.

Wirbal isn’t a vegetarian, but he hasn’t eaten any meat since last October. He is quick to say this is not an anti-meat campaign.

“We do not push any agenda,” he said. “The goal is simply to save this incredible creature.”

Dudley has a Facebook page (https://m.facebook.com/SaveDudleytheScottishHighlandBull/) and Wirbal said there will also be a “Dudley cam” on the farm’s website. at http://www.unityfarmsanctuary.org, so everyone can watch him enjoy his new life.