Here We Meet Some Of The Lucky Few Who Survived
Behind every piece of meat, glass of milk and egg-based product, there is an animal whose life was as important to them as ours are to us. Today, as we commemorate all those beautiful souls who deserved so much better, we’d like to introduce you to a few of the lucky ones who made it out alive … Warning: they will steal your hearts.
Meet Boots
Boots was born on a sheep farm to an exhausted mother. Ewes are artificially inseminated and given hormones to ensure they produce as many babies as possible, and Boots’ mum had given birth to twins. Sadly, she was too weak to feed both her lambs, and so a neighbor asked if she could rear Boots. In doing so, she saved his life. She fell in love with Boots – who wouldn’t? – but as he grew up, he grew lonelier and his foster carer knew he needed some friends. Thankfully, he found his forever home and his flock, at Charlie’s Acres.
This is Molly
Molly was unlucky to be hatched within the egg industry. This means she never met her mom but was incubated inside an industrial hatchery before being sent to life in a cage. It is common for egg-producing hens to have broken bones. This is because they are bred to produce unnaturally large numbers of eggs, and eggshells need calcium, which is taken from the birds’ bones, which weakens them. And, without being able to walk anywhere, hens’ bones get weaker still. Molly was rescued just in time and avoided the slaughterhouse, but she had already suffered a broken leg, which never properly healed. Nonetheless, she LOVES her new life, and gets around pretty well on one leg. She has made friends with a group of chickens who need additional support and care at Heartwood Haven, and life has never been sweeter for Molly.
Hello Amy!
Turkeys are packed into filthy factory farms with most being bred to be slaughtered ahead of Thanksgiving and Christmas – ironically, the two times of year when people think most about compassion and kindness. While millions of birds are killed, Amy and her three friends were miraculously rescued. They had already had the ends of their beaks cut off and their claws removed without anesthetic. This is a common procedure on turkey farms where the animals are so stressed by their surroundings that they take out their frustrations on each other. Amy is a shy girl, but has made friends with the other turkeys, and loves to nap outside in the sun. How beautiful is this girl? Thank you to Woodstock Farm Sanctuary for giving her a life worth living.
Beautiful Pinky
Life on a farm is bad enough for pigs – they have their teeth ground down or removed and their tails cut off, all without anaesthetic – but some must endure additional terrifying ordeals. Barn fires are commonplace. The electrical wiring is often outdated, and old sheds can burn very quickly. Pinky was lucky. The fire that burnt the farm she was kept on did not reach her shed. She made it! And she is one of the few lucky pigs who avoided the slaughterhouse, too. Today, she is cared for at Wilmslow Farm who say that, despite all she has been through, Pinky is a really sweet girl. You can see it in her face, can’t you?
The Fabulous Rufus
Rufus was living in a beef herd in the UK when he got to know a local student Ashwin, who walked through his field every day. The two became friends, looking out for one another, and spending time together. As this was a time of pandemic lockdown, the friendship meant so much to Ashwin who was feeling especially isolated and lonely. He could not bear the thought of Rufus being killed and so he contacted the farmer to negotiate Rufus’ freedom. Today, Rufus lives without fear at Goodheart where he will always be safe and loved.
Brave Mixie
Mixie was in a trailer headed for slaughter. She was so young, but like many calves, was not wanted. The dairy trade impregnates cows as that is the only way to get them to produce milk, but the calf is little more than an unwanted by-product. Many are slaughtered young for veal. Whether or not Mixie sensed where she was going, she made the decision to jump from the trailer. She hit the ground hard, sustaining nasty wounds to her legs and abdomen, and hitting her jaw, which was already swelling when a passing car stopped. The driver tracked down the farmer who said he didn’t want Mixie back, and so she called Edgar’s Mission. And that’s where beautiful Mixie has lived ever since.
