Feed the Change for Farmed Animals

Even though it's snowing as I type this, spring has arrived at VINE Sanctuary. Cows and sheep spread out to graze the new grass on pastures previously covered with snow. Turkeys stretch their wings and strut. Goats go gallivanting even more lawlessly than before.

Donors like you make it all possible. So, I thought you might to meet an exemplar of each of the many species represented in our multispecies community.

Patches the goat is "chaotic neutral" personified. The sole survivor of a dairy herd who lived on her own for years after evading capture for slaughter, Patches is smart, brave, and charismatic. Upon arrival, she installed herself as "co-chair" of the goat community, sharing leadership duties with elder (and sweeter and calmer) Rosie. She does exactly what she wants to do and expects everybody else to either follow along or get out of her way.

Like Patches, Tiki the emu goes his own way—so much so that he made local history by taking an extended tour of our rural community a few summers ago. He was spotted on country roads and grazing with wild turkeys, always slipping away just before we got there to pick him up, until he finally consented to come home four weeks into his sojourn. At 30, he is the oldest of the nonhuman sanctuary residents—and older than some sanctuary staff!

While we don't have exact birthdates for everyone, we believe Linus to be the eldest of the cows at present. He arrived at the sanctuary as a starving calf in 2011, grew up at the sanctuary, and is now an esteemed elder. An easy-going and placid guy, Linus is deeply loyal to his loved ones and friendly to everybody. Having enjoyed the care of older cows when he was young, he pays it forward by doting on youngsters.

One youngster to watch at the sanctuary is Daphne, who defies all of the stereotypes about sheep. Ever since she was a lamb, Daphne has considered herself the protector of her sister Echo. While understandably wary of humans, Daphne is otherwise bold, bouncing off to explore sights of interest. She's also loud, joining the chorus of baa-ing and maa-ing that greets anyone who arrives at the sanctuary who might be carrying treats.

While the sheep charge forward, Max the alpaca hangs back. Known for his propensity for "spying" by raising his head above a barrier as if he were a periscope, Max always knows what's going on. He tends to hang out with the sheep but gets along with everyone.

Duck brothers James and Bond share Max's fondness for spying—hence their names. Among their coop-mates is a goose called Roselyn, who likes to accompany staff member Rachel as she cleans coops and does other chores. 

Another coop-mate, for now, is the hen called Daffodil. So far as we know, she's the eldest chicken at the sanctuary, having lived her for more than ten years since her rescue from an egg factory. She's another who goes her own way, including swithching coops whenever she feels like it.

This is Buddy the turkey's first spring as an adult, and he is making the most of it. In addition to strutting, he has been doing a little jig accompanied by percussive clicking of his outstretched tail feathers. 

The guineafowl travel as a pack, raising a ruckus wherever they go. The pigeons in the aviary also tend to flock rather than stand out as individuals, but the bird that I call Tina Turner stands out. He courts humans as well as other pigeons, and the pattern of his cooing sounds like the intro to "What's Love Got to Do with It?"

Love has everything to do with it! The sanctuary is a labor of love sustained by the loving gifts of donors like you. Right now, we're in the midst of a "Spring Sprint" to fill the feeders, and we're counting on love for it to succeed.

While Patches, Tiki, Linus, Daphne, Max, James and Bond, Roselyn, Daffodil, Buddy, and "Tina Turner" all have different bodies, personalities, and histories, the one thing they have in common is needing breakfast every day. If you can spare even a few dollars this month, please consider making a small contribution to the collective effort to make sure that they and all of their friends have enough to eat this season.

Links:

• VINE website
• VINE on Facebook

I wish you could be here at sunrise on a bitterly frigid winter morning, not so that you would get frostbite, but so you could see the calm good humor with which every member of our on-site staff greets each day, no matter how dreary. I wish you could be here during the first, second, third, or fourth “mud season” of the year, to see the “socks” on goats, sheep, and cows who have ventured into muddy meadows to munch on tender spring greens. I wish you could be here in deep mid-summer, to visit with the cows in the back pasture as they beat the heat by lounging under the trees by a babbling brook. I wish you could be here in the fall, when the multicolored autumn leaves echo the colorful wings of roosters and hens.

So, in this year’s year-in-review, which I've attached to this message, we’re taking you behind the scenes at the sanctuary! You’ll meet staff and volunteers and gain an understanding of the day-to-day doings that your donations make possible. As always, you’ll also see highlights from our education and advocacy programs.

Michelle and her team of volunteers just sent out the December edition of our virtual humane education program to 66 elementary school classrooms — the most ever! The theme this month is Communication & Cooperation. This spring, VINE Press published its second book. This summer, a Vermont Public Morning Edition feature about roosters at the sanctuary helped spread the word about these misunderstood birds. NPR also shared the show on its social media platforms! This fall, we surveyed vegetarians to help us improve our Veg-to-Vegan Challenge in November.

In 2026, we will be launching a new Humane Education program for middle schools, similar in structure to our existing virtual program for elementary schools but designed to appeal to older children. We were motivated by new research showing that teens are more speciesist than adults, perhaps because they feel they must set aside their “childish” sympathy for animals as they grow up. We’re hoping that interventions in the middle school years can interrupt that trend.

These programs advocate for and are rooted in our relationships with the hundreds of animals—chickens, cows, ducks, sheep, geese, goats, turkeys, pigeons, emus, guinea fowl, and more!—who depend on the sanctuary for everything. Your gifts to our feed fund make it all possible. I thank you so much for that!

But I have to admit that I’m worried. National happenings have led to rising prices and decreased donations. In the past year, the cost of both hay and sunflower seeds has gone up more than 20%! As things stand now, I’m not sure how we’re going to make it through the winter months. We need our community now more than ever. Your year-end gift will go far.

Solstice to solstice, equinox to equinox, the seasons change, but some things remain the same. Birds need breakfast, and we deliver seeds and grains. Cows need lunch, and we deliver 500# bales of hay. Goats go gallivanting, and we patch the fence again.

None of them know about you and the others who make it all possible by sending gifts from afar, month after month, and year after year. But I see you, and Miriam sees you, and Cheryl and Rachel and Pomme and Alex and Michelle and Staci and Elijah all see you and feel so grateful, because your donations make our work possible.

Links:

• VINE website
• VINE on Facebook
• VINE on BlueSky

• 2025 Year-in-Review (PDF)