Intern Interview with Eva Wagner

How did you develop your interest in the vegan lifestyle?

I’ve been vegetarian since I was 16 and in the back of my mind always knew that being vegetarian isn’t the whole thing. After moving out of my parents home and being able to shop and cook on my own, I felt it’s time to “do the real thing”. I also watched and read a lot of documentaries and facts about factory farming, animal rights, and the vegan lifestyle.

Is there a particular animal at the sanctuary you connect with? 

I was impressed by all the animals. Due to the fact that you don’t get to spend too much time with the cows and the big pigs (because of safety reasons) I connected more with all the other animals. The curiosity and boldness of the turkey girls amused me every day. And I also learned much more about chicken, by just being in their stall. It always felt right to me, not to eat eggs, but after my experiences with the chickens, this feeling totally improved.

  Besides animals, what else are you passionate about?

My dogs… Oh wait these are animals again… Music, of course, and cooking, baking and learning more about all kinds of things and different people.

  What advice would you give people interested in transitioning to a vegan diet?

Watch some of those cruel videos that show reality, but after you know the facts, don’t watch stuff like that too often. You already know what’s going on. That helps you be consistent in your diet. Cook with/for friends, meet other vegans, go to vegan cafés and restaurants once in a while and please take a vitamin b12 supplement.

  Have you learned anything in your internship at Animal Place that you can apply to a future career or your home life?

The most important thing I have experienced was that being surrounded by vegans and like-minded people is something I really enjoyed and miss in my home life.

I have also learned a lot about animal care and animals themselves.

  What has been your most memorable experience in the Animal Place internship program?

The most memorable experience maybe was when some visitors came with their little girl who weren’t vegans or vegetarians and I invited them to come into the stall with me while I was feeding the animals and I told them a little bit about them. The look in their eyes, when they realized that they are eating those animals, who are just like “them”. Enjoying life and having feelings. I could see their bad conscience.

  Do you have any advice to anyone interested in applying to the Animal Place internship program?

Do it. :)

"Unless you are a climate change denier, it is inconceivable to ignore one of the largest contributors to global climate change -- industrialized animal agriculture ... If it's hard to go vegan, how much harder will it be to either endure floods or extreme heat and droughts, which will lead to food shortages and power outages at the very least."

Know someone who is yet to realize how awesome pigs are? Send them Animal Place's first-ever BuzzFeed post! Rudy wants everyone to see him in all his piglet glory.

Animal Place is trying out something new: BuzzFeed! Check out our first post to learn about VERY important, irrefutable proof that piglets make the perfect playmates.

Resolve to ditch dairy in 2014 with these five easy suggestions!

Intern Interview: Gabby Levey

How did you develop your interest in the vegan lifestyle?

My older brother Brandon was the first in my family to transition to the vegetarian lifestyle. He introduced me (and my whole family) to the horrible practices present with the animal agriculture business. I was eleven at the time and increasingly appalled at the tremendous injustices perpetuated upon my furry friends and a change in diet was necessary and immediate. Three years later, I became vegan!

Is there a particular animal on the farm you connect with?

Wow, that’s a tough question. I have made such fabulous connections with so many animals. I have a particularly close bond with Frank, the pot belly pig. He has such a kind and gentle nature – when I am with him, I am at peace!

Besides animals, what else are you passionate about?

In addition to animal advocacy and activism, I am interested in human rights. I try to do as much as I can to assist those individuals who many often turn a blind eye to. Furthermore, I have a strong love for the environment and nature. Camping and hiking are favorite activities of mine!

What advice would you give people interested in transitioning to a vegan diet?

Go for it! The thought of abstaining from animal products may seem daunting but once you take the leap, it is far easier than it seems. Veganism will change your life. The positive effects that come from a cruelty-free, compassionate diet are miraculous, for real! Not only will a vegan lifestyle help you in ways unimaginable; you will have a direct and positive impact on the millions of innocent beings who are suffering. I believe in you!

Have you learned anything at Animal Place that you can apply to a future career or home life?

Of course! The internship at Animal Place has taught me so much. I hope to use my experience here to advocate for the animals with increased fervor when I return home. The connections I have made with these beautiful, smart, sentient beings will help me more effectively communicate to the community the importance of a conscientious and compassionate approach to life and to our relationships with all beings on this planet. As human beings, we have to change our mindsets and understand that animals are our fellow creatures on this earth who are profoundly affected by our actions, that we have the power to destroy and the power to heal, and that the knowledge, abilities, and resources in our possession should – must – be used to make the world a better place.

What has been your most memorable experience in the Animal Place internship program?

Hmmm…it’s tough to target one specific experience. I can honestly say that the whole experience here has changed my life. The people involved with Animal Place are fabulous individuals. The animals are AMAZING. The geographic land is beautiful. Gosh, I could go on forever…I am so incredibly fortunate for this wonderful opportunity.

Do you have any advice to anyone interested in applying to the animal place internship program?

Apply! You will not regret the experience — an all-around excellent program.

Sanctuary Tours

Do you know who LOVES visitors? Willy the goat! Caregiver Anna may have wanted to give Cornelius attention but Willy was having none of that! You can visit us for FREE (heck, if you're new, we'll pay you). We have tours every Saturday (weather permitting):  http://animalplace.org/animal-place-pays-you-to-visit-sanctuary

Central Valley Meat Co. In the Spotlight Again

In 2012, the Central Valley Meat Co. in Hanford, California was shut down for a week as federal investigators did nothing in response to a Compassion Over Killing investigation (video at link above) showed workers torturing cows. The conclusion by the USDA was that hey! these animals didn't enter the human food chain or the bellies of our school children...ergo, no big whoop.

A few congressional members even complained that it wasn't Central Valley Meat that was the problem, but the undercover investigators...who they compared to - wait for it - terrorists. Labeling something that isn't actually terrorism terrorism is all the rage these days.

So it shouldn't be surprising that Central Valley Meat Co. - a year later - is in the news again. This time, they are recalling 60,000 lbs of dead cow flesh because of possible contamination with plastic pieces of something or other.

There was this moment of hilarity, "Per FSIS, the recall was described as a Class 1: “A health hazard situation where there is a reasonable probability that the use of the produce will cause serious, adverse health consequences or death.”

I thought they were talking about the dead bovine flesh! But no, they meant plastic. Central Valley Meat Co. still sells the muscle of slaughtered animals to the USDA which in turn feeds schoolchildren in several states with the dead animals.

And people think veganism is extreme?

-Marji Beach, Education Director, Animal Place

Remembering Sally

Every so often, the lucky nonhumans we save from unspeakable fates succumb to a cruel genetic quirk.

Sally saved herself from being butchered, breaking out of an urban San Jose yard before her abusers could cruelly cut her throat. Sally arrived at our Rescue Ranch adoption center in February of 2011, a sassy piglet with attitude.

Sally liked being the baby. She liked to be coddled and appreciated. In return, she would flop over for a belly rub or rush up to you as if meeting a long-lost friend. She could make you feel special.

Sally had an attitude about things. I remember trying to get another pig into the barn and Sally just came right up and nipped me in the butt! Just because. And when we introduced little Lucille, the new baby, to the herd, Sally would have none of it! It was the first time I saw Sally be a real jerk. 

It's okay to honor the beauty of another being and their pettiness too. Sally's bad attitude made her bold and confident. Sally's love of contact made her seek out physical touch with other pigs and people. 

Sally died suddenly, probably of an aneurysm. By chance, her sudden collapse was witnessed by a caregiver and Sally died with a dear human friend by her side. Sally was only 2 and that is unfathomable, a life lived fully but cut short. Everyone who knew Sally will miss her.

-Marji Beach, Education Director

Sally was one of my favorite pigs in the world. She was so sweet and curious, not to mention super adorable.  Her best pig friend was Ruby, and more often then not, the two would nap snuggled up as close as can be, even on hot days.  She really liked people.  Each time I entered the pasture, she would make her way over to me and ask for attention. Or, if she was laying down, and feeling too comfortable to get up, she would stretch out to ask for a big belly rub.  In the past year, I've given her belly rubs whenever I had the chance. Sometimes she would be completely covered in mud from her adventures in the pond that day. Sometimes I would be in a rush to get work done. But whenever Sally rolled onto her side, so clearly just asking for a little bit of love, I could never resist.  I am very fortunate to have had all these beautiful moments with her, and only wish that they could have lasted for years and years more.  She will be dearly missed.

- Celeste De Santiago, Animal Caregiver

Mental Disconnect in Action

If you want to see what it looks like for people to "love" nonhumans when they only mean "some nonhumans", check this out.

So, we rescued 3,000 hens last month. Why 3,000? Originally we agreed to 2,000 because that is what we felt we could handle for adoptions in California, Oregon, and Washington. A private donor called and asked if we could save more. We mentioned that we could if there was a way to get hens to the east coast. It is harder for east coast sanctuaries to rescue "spent laying" hens and we knew they would love to participate in this rescue. So we reached out to the sanctuaries and came up with 1,000 additional hens we could rescue.

1,000 lives were liberated from cages. They were not gassed. If they survived gassing, their necks were not wrung by workers. Their bodies were not dumped in their feces, then in a landfill*. They will live. That is meaningful - to the hens, to us.

Here's the disconnect. When our story was published to MSN.com, reading the comments would lead you to believe we were committing a grievous crime against humanity by saving these hens.

http://now.msn.com/chicken-rescue-takes-more-than-1000-chickens-to-animal-place-sanctuary

Now go and read this story of 367 Pit Bulls saved from the horrors of dog fighting. Suddenly a bevvy of "animal lovers" come out to defend the abused dogs.

(This is my Pit Bull Mina being mugged by the most annoying foster puppy ever)

http://now.msn.com/dogfighting-raid-leads-to-rescue-of-367-pit-bull-terriers

Probably some of the same commenters who made positive remarks about saving Pit Bulls from dog fighting left negative remarks about saving White Leghorn hens from slaughter. 

And if we called them out on it, they would argue vehemently, perhaps violently, about how saving chickens from torture is bad but saving dogs from torture is good. That's probably because most people eat eggs and eat chickens and it's pretty hard to celebrate saving chickens from slaughter if you still enjoy eating slaughtered chickens. 

Cognitive dissonance is powerful. It's pretty ugly to witness too. I saw those hens being gassed and a worker about to break a hen's neck. I watched as their bodies were callously and casually flung to the ground. I witnessed them live in cages so freaking small, their battered wings barely had feathers left. Decomposed hens were being stepped on by the living. I glimpsed bloodied and shit-covered eggs rolling down conveyor belts. I touched mangled beaks and broken bodies.

Dog fighting is ugly. I love the 15-yr-old Pit Bull who I share my home with and cannot fathom harming her the way dog fighters hurt Pit Bulls. It is no more ugly than egg farming. It isn't. A dog's ability to feel pain and fear is no different than a bird's. A dog's ability to learn new behaviors, a new way of living, is no different than a chicken's. The act of fighting a dog is illegal while the act of cutting off a hen's beak is not. Both want to live. Both want to be free of pain and suffering. To oppose that for one group of nonhumans because you don't like them or you benefit from their slaughter makes zero sense. Zero. 

-Marji Beach, Education Director

(This Pit Bull would like you to stop fighting her kind and stop eating her friends on the bales of straw)

*It was a miscommunication that lead to the erroneous claim that these hens would have been sold for human or nonhuman consumption. Egg farmers in California have to pay people to kill their unwanted hens. It is cheaper to gas hens than to pay people to transport them to slaughterhouses, then pay the slaughterhouse to kill them. So virtually all "spent laying" hens (white leghorns) are gassed and dumped.

Saying Goodbye to Susie

We said goodbye to one of our beloved pigs, Susie. She lived at Animal Place since 2001, coming with us on the big move in 2010. Susie was euthanized after a long battle with cancer. 

Executive Director Kim Sturla wrote:

I will never forget the night - - August 11, 2001 - a stock trailer pulls up at 11:30 pm to the sanctuary with six 5-month-old pink piglets snoozing in a bed of straw. They just made an 8-hour trip from the research lab in Southern California to our sanctuary in Vacaville. Susie was used to test surgical ventilation equipment. She had served her purpose for the researchers, so therefore was set to be killed – until a wonderful philosophy professor – Susan Finesen - got notified. She intervened and negotiated the release of the 6 pigs.

Animal Place was the first stop on the loop; we were taking two of the six. As we tried to quietly unload the pigs in the dark, the rescuer pointed out Susie and said we MUST take her. I asked why and she simply replied, “Trust me. She is a special girl.” So, in her rescuer’s honor, we named this special girl Susie. And special she was. Of all the years I have lived with pigs, I have never met a sweeter more gentle pig than Susie. She was well known for dropping on a dime for a belly rub. Each time I walked through the pasture, Susie would approach and if even my index finger touched her, Susie would plop down on the ground expecting a belly massage.

Susie’s first 5 months of life were hell. But her last 12 years heaven. My life is enriched with each animal I have the opportunity to intimately know. But, a little bit of me dies with them when we say our final farewell.

·         Susie and her sister Valerie were profiled in our video, “The Emotional World of Farm Animals.” They are the pigs I was giving ice baths too.

A Happy Ending

Roxy Kushner is one of our wonderful interns. She spent three months in the animal care department at Animal Place and is leaving September 1. She was part of the 2-day 3,000 hen rescue effort. Here is her story.

Our alarm is set for four in the morning so we can head to the farm before the sun even rises to begin our rescue mission. Seeing the egg-laying farm for the first time is a bit surreal; I had only ever seen photos of these kinds of places, but it is even worse in person, which may be partly due to the fact that I can actually smell the wretched odor of feces and death paired with feeling the chicken lice crawling along my arms. As soon as we arrive, we quickly set up our vans and crates next to the shed we will be taking birds from for the day and right away begin to liberate the hens.

I kneel next to a pile of poop three feet high that just almost reaches the bottoms of the tiny cages these beautiful girls are so cruelly forced to live in for the first two years of their lives. Fellow intern Anna is passing me hens that she is pulling out of the cages and into their first breaths of freedom. I place them into a temporary crate which we will use to move them to our sanctuary where they can learn how to be real chickens and follow the instincts they have been forced to suppress their whole lives. All is going well with situating them in their crates until I look to my right. In the kneeling position I am in I can see under the rows and rows of cages and into the many other sheds that imprison thousands of other hens. In this shed where I kneel are compassionate people all here to liberate as many chickens as we can from their confinement; but two sheds down from us is a farm worker yanking hens out of their cages, carrying them by their feet while they hang upside down in fear, and throwing them into the back of a truck. Once the truck is full, the farmer takes these hens to be gassed to death, which is what this and most other farms do when the hens can no longer produce enough eggs to create a profit. I was warned we would see this kind of atrocity, but nothing could prepare me for the real thing. I become sidetracked and lose focus on the hens Anna is passing to me. Some escape my arms and I am frightened they will run free and end up being eaten by a predator. These girls, however, have never even touched the ground before or had the opportunity to take more than one step in any direction; they don’t know what to do with all the space around them and provide me with no battle in recapturing them and placing them in our crates.  I know I need to regain focus so that we can continue our mission of saving 3,000 hens from the only miserable life they have known.  

We fill up van after van with about twenty-four crates in each, and soon we are reaching our capacity. We have only two crates left, but around fifty more girls left in this shed. We know there is no way we can fit them all, but how can we ever choose which ones to take and which ones to leave behind to a sure death? I slow down and I look at each of the girls left and tell them they are beautiful and I love them and that they will be moving on to a better place very soon—that soon they will be liberated from their misery. We fill up the two crates, trying to pick girls that are alone in a cage so that we don’t separate any friends. The girls are reluctant to leave their cages, but once I finally have them out, they nestle into my arms’ embrace, rest their head on my hands, and curl their toes around my fingers. This, I realize, is the first time these hens have been treated with any sort of compassion or kindness in their lives, and I just hope they know this is the beginning of a whole new life in which they will be surrounded by caring people that want only the best for them. I try to focus solely on the girls we are able to liberate, but I can’t help but tear up as I realize there are about thirty girls left in this shed who will be destined to death, along with thousands more throughout the farm. I cry as I carry the lucky ones to our crates, but I am happy for the 3,000 girls we are able to save, because we have at least made a difference for these girls. 

No longer and never again will these 3,000 girls experience the fear and confinement they experienced at this egg-laying farm. No more wire cage to sleep on; now they have straw and dirt and perches. No more being cramped next to one or two other girls who they can never escape; now they can establish a pecking order and run away if a girl is bugging them. No more being trapped inside an extremely hot shed; now they can sunbathe at liberty and nap in the shade when they feel too hot. No more being thought of as an item that produces income; now these beautiful girls are loved and fed and cared for by people who consider them a part of their family.

It has only been a few short weeks that we have had the hens here at our sanctuary, but it has been amazing to witness their progression. They still fear human presence, but are slowly becoming accustomed to us and even beginning to approach us, but not quite long enough to get a pet in. One highlight of their progression was the day I witnessed them take their first steps outside, which was unfamiliar and a bit overwhelming for them at first, but now all of them have begun to dust bathe, nap in the sun, and hang out under the trees, amidst the rocks. I am also beginning to see their personalities emerge, some being much more outgoing and curious than others, deciding they’re thirsty just as I begin to clean out their waters or chasing after me as I carry their feeders. Others seem to have established their dominancy, such as Joy—the only brown hen among thousands of white ones—who seems to pick on all the other girls if they get too close for comfort. Most of these girls are slowly becoming strong and healthy as we work to help rehabilitate them so they can soon be adopted out. I feel very lucky to observe this progression and I can actually see the girls right now as I look out the window of my house; they are outside their barn, soaking in the last rays of sunshine as the sun sets, surely appreciating their new lives as liberated hens who are free to act upon their instincts, flap their wings, lay in the sun, and admire the beauty of sweet freedom.

This hen is ready for her coastal plane trip to New York!

Big news! Animal Place is flying out 1,150 hens to east coast sanctuaries and shelters.

Today.com covered the story - please share: http://www.today.com/pets/chickens-plane-1-000-take-red-eye-freedom-8C11033576

We'll be updating this story as it progresses and as we get closer to next week's lift off!

Interview with former Animal Care Intern Amber

How did you develop your interest in a vegan lifestyle?

I’ve been a vegetarian since I was five. I remember sitting at lunch in kindergarten and realizing what I was eating. I haven’t touched meat since. Growing up in the Midwest was not ideal for being vegetarian. Being vegetarian where I lived was so strange to other people that I had never even heard of veganism. I would never wear or buy other animal products - leather, fur, wool - but I still ate dairy and eggs. I just never thought about it, which is hard to believe now that I’m a vegan. Then, about two years ago as I was starting college, I started learning about the dairy and egg industries, which I had never really thought about before. As soon as I put the pieces together, I became a vegan. It really all came down to awareness and education.

Is there a particular animal on the farm you connect with?

I really connected with Charlie, the pot-bellied pig. He has such a great personality and always makes sure to steal my attention. He gets what he wants out of life despite his age and having arthritis. He would grunt at me in different ways to tell me if he was content or upset. And he loved his food (a trait we have in common), so much that he would steal Frank’s bowl from under the fence and eat his food. But that’s Charlie - knowing what he wants and going for it.

Besides animals, what else are you passionate about?

My two other passions are sports and music. I have played percussion since fourth grade, and started running when I was about 7 years old. I have continued music by playing in several bands and learning to play other instruments, including the trombone and accordion. I have been involved in all kinds of sports - volleyball, basketball, track, soccer, and fencing. I would say I’m the most passionate about running, and am starting to train for a half marathon, and my goal is to eventually run a full marathon.

What advice would you give people interested in transitioning to a vegan diet?

Just don’t be afraid of it - don’t be afraid of going hungry, or what other people will think, or how you will be able to eat your favorite foods. Being vegan is the best decision I’ve ever made. You will be amazed at how much better you will physically feel after about a week. You can still eat delicious food - there is a way to make a vegan version of everything. I think vegans appreciate food more than anyone, and we get really excited about it! Not to mention how good you will feel about saving a few lives and not supporting animal exploitation.

Have you learned anything in your internship at Animal Place that you can apply to a future career or your home life?

I think that I have taken a lot of life skills away from my time at Animal Place. I am much better at discussing why I’m vegan than before my internship, which will help me educate others. It has really motivated me to keep working toward becoming a veterinarian because I now know how the DVM credentials play an important part in the animal rights movement, and we really need more vegan vets.

What has been your most memorable experience in the Animal Place internship program?

I think the most memorable experience for me (and probably anyone else interning at this time) has to be helping with the rescue of 3,000 hens. We already knew what happens in the egg industry, but it was a different thing to witness firsthand. Seeing the hens take their first steps of freedom was very emotional for everyone. The fact that those girls could have had their lives taken away is just heartbreaking. The rescue was emotionally challenging, but it gave me a new perspective on life and has added to my motivation to fight for animal rights.

Do you have any advice to anyone interested in applying to the Animal Place internship program?

If you are at all interested, you should definitely apply! It has been the most amazing experience. I’ve made some great friends, and learned so much. It is such a beautiful place, full of compassionate people and happy animals.

Do you have any advice to anyone interested in applying to the Animal Place internship program?

If you are at all interested, you should definitely apply! It has been the most amazing experience. I’ve made some great friends, and learned so much. It is such a beautiful place, full of compassionate people and happy animals.

If you have any interest applying for an Animal Place internship, please check out our website: http://animalplace.org/intern.html

TBT: The Spice Girls

#ThrowbackThursday: Sleepy-heads! This is a photo of the Spice Girls before they had names! These two turkey babies could barely stay awake, let alone learn their names. This November, they turn a year old. We hope you'll join us November 23rd for our 4th annual Thank the Turkeys celebration! You can feed these ladies some pumpkin pie!

This is Ellen with Animal Place intern, Adrienne. Through gentle patience and compassion, Adrienne gently convinced Ellen that not all people are out to harm her. That some can be sources of kind touches and simple bonding. 

Ellen was saved from being slaughtered. She was pregnant. She and her kids have sanctuary, but most nonhumans don't. To liberate them from suffering means changing how we consume. Going vegan is the single greatest act of compassion and justice one can take to help nonhumans.

For two years, these hens have desperately wanted to dust-bathe and sun-bathe. During those years, they were thwarted by human greed and wire metal cages. Now liberated, they do not need to re-learn so much as re-connect to what it means to be a chicken. 

These hens suffered deprived lives because of the egg industry. To help them, go vegan.

-Marji Beach, Education Director, Animal Place