The Farm Sanctuary team hitched up two trailers and drove north from our Watkins Glen sanctuary in Upstate New York. It was February, and snowflakes splashed against the trucks’ windshields as they made their way along an icy road surrounded by black, leafless trees. At one point, the caravan even trudged along behind a snow plow that paved the way in real-time.

When they arrived at the Vermont farm, the cows were waiting—eight in the barn, two feral cows outside in the snow. The team created a makeshift ramp and herded the cows into two trailers. The first trailer took four of the cows to VINE Sanctuary, part of our Farm Animal Adoption Network (FAAN). VINE is an LGBTQ-led sanctuary that works for social and environmental justice as well as for animal liberation. On their land in Springfield, VT, species intermingle, and half their acreage is reserved as a wildlife refuge.

The second trailer headed south to Farm Sanctuary, where two of the cows would find a permanent home among our herds. The remaining four would bunk at Watkins Glen temporarily before heading much farther south, all the way to Dominion Farm Sanctuary in Fairhope, Alabama.

Dominion is a new member of the FAAN, led by Amanda Upshaw, who visited her first bovine rescues during the three months that they were fostered at Watkins Glen. Amanda is a Farm Sanctuary supporter who was inspired to help these cows find a home at a sanctuary after seeing a Facebook post about FAAN. She started Dominion Farm Sanctuary with the mission to display another meaning of dominion by looking after animals and faithfully caring for them and says, “I want people to understand the reason behind the name Dominion and my faith behind it. I believe God gave us dominion and man has misused it for profit.”

Upon meeting the cows that would soon reside at Dominion, she reached a gloved hand through the wooden slats in the barn stall and gently offered an apple to one of the cows. When their new home was ready, the Farm Sanctuary team transported the four cows to Alabama. Daisy, Amelia, Beatrice, and Bessie (later renamed Amy) ecstatically bounded out of the trailer and joyfully roamed their lush new pasture. They’ve been settling in and gradually warming up to the Upshaw family.

The story of these ten cows, and more broadly of FAAN, is proof of what can happen when humans come together on behalf of animals. The cows, who might have been considered disposable nuisances by some, were instead treated as worthy of energy, resources, and dignity. These beautiful animals will now experience peace, agency, and sanctuary for the rest of their lives.

Watch their story below.

We’re always looking for new members to join our Farm Animal Adoption Network and accept applications year-round. Or, if you want to symbolically adopt, join our Adopt a Farm Animal Program and sponsor one of our rescued residents – including Reba, Willie, and Thatcher geese! Your support helps provide their ongoing care, allowing us to rescue more animals in need of a home.