Animal Welfare United States Project #40170

Feed the Change for Farmed Animals

by VINE

Project Report | Apr 19, 2023
Springtime at VINE

By pattrice jones | Coordinator, VINE Sanctuary

Springtime is zing-time at the sanctuary, as spirits rise along with the sap in the maple trees. Ice and snow recede from the pastures, leaving behind the first green growth of grasses. Sheep and goats go nibbling in the front pasture, looking for tasty tidbits. In the wooded back pastures, cows enjoy the luxury of napping in the forest.

Meantime, sanctuary staff are hard at work on seasonal chores, repairing any fences damaged by winter storms, chopping up fallen branches, and making preparations for the warm weather to come. Others are arranging rescues and planning upcoming events.

If you're in our region, save the date for Rainbow-Palooza, the first-of-its-kind combined Pride and VegFest that we will be sponsoring here in Springfield, VT on June 24! Inclusivity and kindness will be the themes of an event that will showcase the joys of plant-based eating while also making our town a more friendly place for LGBTQ+ people.

If you're not nearby, never fear! As always, we’ll be sponsoring an array of virtual events during our Pride Month Vegan Challenge and throughout the year! If you like to read, check out the VINE Book Club, which meets monthly. If you like podcasts, subscribe to our show, In Context. If you want to feel more connected to the goings-on among animals at the sanctuary, follow us onFacebook orTwitter!

Before I go, let me introduce two of our newest residents, Frosty and Frida, both of whom are elder survivor of a small-scale dairy farm. Both love the great outdoors and prefer the woods to wide open spaces. Neither has any particular interest in humans but both have made friends with other cows since moving in a couple of months ago. Frida seems to be the more introverted of the two. Frosty involves herself more in the goings-on of the herd, including helping to teach the youngsters how to be polite. We’re so glad that they’ve settled in so easily and look forward to getting to know them better.

Without you, we would not be able to offer refuge to cows in need or to work toward the day when all cows are safe from exploitation. Thank you again for making it possible for us to provide Frida, Frosty, and so many others everything they need to live out their lives in dignity.

Frida

Frosty

Links:

VINE website

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Dec 25, 2022
2022 and You

By pattrice jones | Coordinator, VINE Sanctuary

Sep 19, 2022
Barnyard Buddies

By pattrice jones | Coordinator, VINE Sanctuary

Greetings, and thank you again for supporting VINE on GlobalGiving!

By helping to feed the animals here at the sanctuary, you also contribute to our education and advocacy efforts, all of which are rooted in our relationships with our nonhuman community members.

One of the most important of these is Barnyard Buddies, a free virtual humane education program available to teachers everywhere. Classes that sign up for Barnyard Buddies "adopt" an animal at the sanctuary for a full school year, receiving monthly updates along with humane education lessons on topics such as empathy, communication, and respect for differences. Virtual "field trips" allow students to "meet" their buddy and their buddy's buddies here at the sanctuary. In between updates, additional resources, such as worksheets and fun activities, are available for teachers to incorporate into their own teaching.

Because Barnyard Buddies stretches over an entire school year, children learn so much more than they could during a single sanctuary visit. Usually, classes become deeply devoted to their buddy and come to care about other animals at the sanctuary as well.

Barnyard Buddies is the brainchild of our humane education coordinator, Anna, who also works shifts caring for animals and is training to be a veterinary technician. The program began as a series for preschool students at one school and has expanded each year.

This school year, we have more classrooms signed up than ever before! Twenty-five classes, ranging from preschool to 5th grade, will be participating. Hundreds of students will be tuning in to the happenings at the sanctuary every month, learning valuable lessons along the way!

It all starts with breakfast, every day. Without a sanctuary to virtually visit, a program like this couldn't exist. Thank you again for your contributions to this vital educational effort!

Sincerely,

pattrice

PS. It's not too late for classrooms to sign up for this year's program! If you know a teacher who might be interested, encourage them to contact us!

student map of the sanctuary

student drawing of the sanctuary

virtual field trip

Anna (with Ruby)

Links:

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