For the second year in a row, Ellen Degeneres and Farm Sanctuary have teamed up for the Adopt-A-Turkey Project. The Adopt-a-Turkey project has been going on for 25 years now, and I’ll bet you can’t guess what it’s about… it’s a project encouraging people to save a turkey at Thanksgiving! So far, the project has helped to save the lives of over 1,000 turkeys, and numerous people have found the peace and joy of living a more compassionate life.
Seriously, though, it seems we could do much better than that.
How does the project work? You donate $30 and you or someone you designate will receive a certificate with a photo of one of the turkeys living safely and happily on one of Farm Sanctuary’s farms.
Join Ellen, Farm Sanctuary, me, and more his Thanksgiving and adopt a bloody (British bloody, not American bloody) turkey!
–> Separate Cause: You can offer free vegan meals this Thanksgiving and perhaps get a grant from VegFund for doing so!
More from Ellen: “Did you know that every year between 250 and 300 million turkeys are bred for slaughter in the United States? More than 46 million for Thanksgiving alone. So, this Thanksgiving instead of eating a turkey, please join me in adopting one from Farm Sanctuary’s Adopt-A-Turkey Project and you can give a turkey something to be thankful for.”
And from Farm Sanctuary President and Co-Founder Gene Baur: “We’re thrilled to have Ellen’s support again this year. Here at Farm Sanctuary, we live with turkeys, so we know they are interesting and intelligent and have complex emotional lives like dogs, cats and other animals. Sadly, the meat industry subjects turkeys to intolerable cruelty and treats them like inanimate objects with no feelings or personalities. Fortunately, each one of us can choose not to support this cruelty by adopting a turkey at Thanksgiving instead of eating one.”
Not pleasant to think about, in my opinion.
Some of the turkeys available to adopt (photos here) this year include:
Skip, who advises prospective adopters “When preparing Thanksgiving dinner, skip the turkey!;” Antoinette, who declares ”Let them eat squash!;” Elizabeth, who demurs “This Thanksgiving, give a turkey the royal treatment;” Victoria, who proclaims ”A holiday feast that’s cruelty-free is one fit for a queen;” Payton, who counsels “In a ton of ways, compassion pays;” Amelinda, who reveals “I’ll be having a happy Thanksgiving, thanks to kind people like you;” and Raphael, who pleads “Picture a more compassionate world. Start with Thanksgiving.”
Let us know if you have adopted a turkey or plan to do so. I’m heading over to the site to adopt one right now.
Of course, beyond adopting a turkey, you can also avoid eating one this Thanksgiving (and forever after)….
Turkey Photo Credit: Connie Pugh via Adopt a Turkey
