Farm Sanctuary Celebrates 25 Years

DiMaggio lives at Farm Sanctuary's Watkins Glen shelter

This year, Farm Sanctuary (www.farmsanctuary.org) celebrates its 25^th anniversary!  From the official press release:

Over the past quarter century, Farm Sanctuary has provided rehabilitative care and lifelong sanctuary to thousands of rescued farm animals at its world-class sanctuaries in Watkins Glen, New York and Orland, California. When some of the worst natural disasters in U.S history have struck, including Hurricane Katrina and the Midwest floods of 2008, devastating entire regions of the country and stranding thousands of animals, the organization has been on the ground providing emergency relief and rescue to animals in need. Nikki, a pig at the New York Shelter who gave birth to a litter of piglets while stranded on a levee during the Midwest floods, was celebrated in the media for her awe-inspiring courage under fire and commitment to ensuring the safety of her babies when her own life was in peril.

Farm Sanctuary holds a special place in heart.  I made a trip to the Watkins Glen shelter in 2008 and it changed my life.  I can tell you, firsthand, how peaceful you feel when surrounded by unadulterated happiness.  It was (and is) a beautiful reminder of why I am a vegan advocate.

Susie Coston is the National Shelter Director for Farm Sanctuary and writes for their compassionate quarterly publication.  In the Spring 2008 issue, Susie talked about overcoming the weight that advocacy work can bring.  It really resonated with me at the time and I think it represents the wonderful role that sanctuaries have in vegan advocacy work.

Happy Anniversary Farm Sanctuary!  And thank you for all that you do.

Need a recharge? Come to the shelter!

~ Susie Coston, On the Shelter with Susie, Sanctuary, Spring 2008, pg 10

Ever since I started advocating for farm animals more than 15 years ago, I have been talking with fellow activists about the exhaustion and frustration they often feel while fighting for the rights of animals seen as food by most of our society.  And in a world where billions of these animals are senselessly killed every year, it is hard to deal with the range of emotions- from the intense anger to pure sadness- that working against such odds brings up from our depths.

I have always felt very lucky to be able to see- through my direct work with farmed animals- victories unfold before my eyes daily.  This part of my job helps keep burnout and depression at bay no matter how physically exhausted or emotionally drained I am.  Watching a sick, lethargic and scared animal blossom into a secure, playful and healthy being is a blessing- a rarity in a movement that bears witness to so much pain.

Of course, losing an animal who arrives too weak to survive, or a friend who has been with me for years, is deeply painful.  But for every sad moment at the shelter, there is happiness right around the corner.  For each of our residents whose bodies cannot fight the aging process any longer, a new family member joins us and brightens our lives.  Fro each cruelty case we investigate, only to hit a wall and not be able to save all the animals, there is another that is a success.  The very fact that each animal we care for once faced a horrible death, but now thrives, allows us to remain hopeful.

If you’ve ever met me before, you probably know that I am constantly inviting people to come to the farm.  Over the past eight years, I have seen countless activists heal and recharge at Farm Sanctuary’s shelters, each unique encounter they have with a survivor driving home the reasons why they are fighting so hard to touch the hearts and open the minds of others.  So if your life as an activist ever seems overwhelming, I urge you to join me in taking a break at our shelters where you can shower a pig with love, play with a goat, relax with a cow or let a turkey nest in your lap.  When you need that extra boost to keep going, let the animals show you just what you advocacy work is making possible every day.

Photos credits: Debra & Swoosie, Colvin & Bleu, Alicia & Ari by Connie Pugh; Dorothy & Chico by Jean Liebenberg for Farm Sanctuary

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KD Traegner is an unapologetic vegan. She believes that animals besides us, and including us humans, have the fundamental right to a natural and free life. She is compassionate, believing that her choices matter, and she takes that power seriously.

Her mission is simple: to bring the vegan evolution to the masses, connect vegans with other vegans, and support vegans in their own lives, as well as their advocacy work. She does that through the use of her website, Your Daily Vegan, and her big mouth.