Rescue

A year ago, I got a call that there was an opportunity to rescue this calf and her mother from a slaughterhouse just outside of Los Angeles. And I had never-- it's a strange thing about this, but I'd never been close to livestock before. So I went down to the slaughterhouse. And the owner decided that he wanted to allow us to rescue this animal.


In addition to not-- having never been around livestock, I'd never been in a slaughterhouse either before. So one of the first things that I noticed when we drove up was the hides of animals hanging on this fence. And there were hundreds upon hundreds, probably thousands, of hides, which is-- obviously made me very uncomfortable.


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And just the smell and the energy, there is something about it that makes you very uneasy. And there was an area where there were several cattle that were cordoned off. And they were basically there in preparation to be taken inside of the slaughterhouse.


And then off to the side was another enclosure in which I saw a cow and the baby. And the baby, the calf, seemed understandably almost frozen in fear and almost sickly, to be honest. It first was kneeling down and away from its mom off into the corner and imagine it was frightened and exhausted and dehydrated. Who knows what?


And so to see this calf so vulnerable, and then in order to transport the cows, I learned that they had to be transported separately in separate compartments. So we had to get the mom first. And so as we walk into the enclosure, the mom just immediately just urinates clearly out of just fear, an uncontrollable fear.


So you really get a sense of what they must be feeling and how terrifying their lives have been thus far and the transportation from I imagine the feedlots or wherever they were raised and being trucked over to the slaughterhouse. And, of course, hearing the sounds of the slaughter that happening inside and seeing the cows that they knew being pulled away and brought inside, clearly, the smells, they have to understand what's happening.


The best way to help assure that the calf would be just to actually pick her up, which I was afraid that it would frighten her more, you can only imagine, being picked up and separated from her mother. So I was nervous. And I had to tell myself don't-- try not to make her any more nervous. Try to calm your nerves, your anxiety. Just try to be neutral and as much kindness as possible. And I managed to pick her up.


And thankfully, Farm Sanctuary and Gene Baur had offered to take them in where they have several other cows that have been rescued. And so they had a place that they could go, a forever home. Farm Sanctuary offered me the opportunity to name the cows. And I asked my sister Liberty if it was OK if I named them after her and her son Indigo, who passed away several years ago. She said yes, and so I named them Liberty and Indigo.


We drove up there, and I went with my mom. They had to be quarantined for several weeks or a month. So I thought that I would see them in the field immediately with the other cows but then learned, oh, no, that they have to go through this quarantine process, which, of course, you understand.


So there was this great relief in knowing that they had been rescued from this factory of death, that they'd be rescued from imminent slaughter. And yet, I felt a little bit unresolved because I wanted to see them completely liberated. I wanted to see them as free as possible and with other cows.


When I dropped off Liberty and Indigo, they were, of course, nervous and skittish. Totally understandable. But after we put them in quarantine, I had the opportunity to go into the field where the other rescued cows were.


And again, my only interaction with cows in the past has been seeing them on the side of the road when you're driving. When I was a teenager, and I lived in Mexico, there were cows in the fields and stuff. But I'd never been close to any. And so I went in the enclosure. And I was so surprised at how at ease they were with us and how welcoming.


I mean, it was almost like being with somebody's dog or a horse. Really, I couldn't believe it. I imagined they would be skittish and be scarred by the experiences they had and resentful towards humans. But I was surprised that they weren't. And there was a real-- a warmth and an intelligence in their eyes.


I don't even know if it's intelligence. But I dislike that, the whole idea of my standard of intelligence that I put on them. I don't know what they have. All I know is that there was clearly a unique soul in there.


So it had been nearly a year. And I wanted to see what Liberty and Indigo, how their lives were, whether they had assimilated into this group with the other cows, what that was like. So we went back out to Farm Sanctuary and worked with all the amazing volunteers and just to get a little update on where they're at. And it was pretty remarkable again.


My expectation was that they would be standoffish. And I was surprised that once they'd fed and felt more comfortable, I was hanging with Saffron, who's like this massive ton of kindness. And Indigo the calf just kind of walked up towards me.


And I was so surprised. There was no way that she would have come up to me when we first met her. And yet here now feeling the safety of this place, knowing that these humans had been there to care for her and the other cows, she came up with curiosity. I don't know if she trusted me or what, but she didn't feel scared of me.


It was incredible to see them. And Indigo was nursing off of her mom, which was just incredible to see and just their natural behavior and how so often we interrupt that. These are unique lives and that they deserve autonomy and freedom to live whatever lives they wish. And I hope that people get the opportunity to see that. I hope they can feel what I feel when I see them and recognize the intrinsic value that they have. My sister Liberty came and my sister Rain. And it was so nice to introduce Liberty to her namesake.


Just thinking about the billions of lives annually of animals that we kill for our own consumption or for our hats or wristbands or shoes or belts. We spend one day each year paying homage to our planet, Earth Day. But the other 364 days, we consume with impunity. It's really undeniable the detrimental impact that animal agriculture has on the environment.


And so this simple act of rescuing Liberty and Indigo, these two cows, some ways are as simple as just sparing the lives of these creatures. But it's also an acknowledgment of not only the destruction that they experience at our hands, but the environment as a whole, and that by our actions, we either have the choice to continue to destroy other beings and the environment, or we begin the process of reversing the damage that we've done.


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