Pigs are communal and usually huddle together when they sleep.

Bagel, Jorja, Jamie, Wild Child and Petunia...crashed!

Each day, the average cow will drink about 30 gallons of water and eat about 100 pounds of food.

Cows possess 320-degree panoramic vision, which enables them to see in almost every direction—except directly behind them—without moving their heads. However, their depth perception, particularly when their heads are in an upright position, is poor. For this reason, cattle sometimes cringe at shadows on the ground.

Like humans, it takes cows nine months to have a baby.

Some sheep have horns, which are often curved and grow throughout their lives.

As herbivores, sheep graze on grasses, leaves, twigs, and young plants.

Much like cattle, sheep are ruminants, meaning that they digest their food in two steps. They chew their food once before regurgitating it in the form of "cud" and repeating the chewing process to thoroughly break down the food for digestion.

Sheep have highly developed social awareness and interactions. Researchers at the Babraham Institute in Cambridge, England found that sheep can be taught to remember the faces of 50 different sheep. After learning what the other sheep looked like from the front, they were also able to recognize one another in profile, with their visual recognition lasting for up to two years.

This is Mecca. She was one of the first animals
to come and live at Animal Acres.

The study's findings were reported in a 2001 issue of Nature and concluded that sheep, like humans, have the capacity to distinguish between faces that are very similar in appearance.

Unfortunately, Ramboy's old age and ailing body began to catch up with his warrior spirit. He had been through a hell of a lot in his life and, eventually, it was time for our main man to transcend this plane. We're happy to report that there was little suffering involved in Ramboy's last days. His decline was quick and easy for him, but a devastating surprise for many of us who didn't know the full extent of his age-related health problems. And let me tell you first-hand, his passing was no less painful to us than losing any other companion animal like a dog or cat.

No less painful...

Yes, we will all miss Ramboy terribly. But at least we can know that the last 10 or so months of his life when he lived at Animal Acres were joyous and blissful. And we can celebrate the fact that he touched hundreds of people's lives in the process.

Rest in peace, Ramboy.
We'll see you on "the other side."

Ramboy Video

Click on the link below to see a quick video clip of Ramboy having a bite to eat and checking me out with the video camera.

Ramboy

They are very social and like to spend their days together, scratching for food, cleaning themselves in dust baths, roosting in trees, and lying in the sun.

Chickens understand sophisticated intellectual concepts, learn from watching each other, demonstrate self-control, worry about the future, and even have cultural knowledge that is passed from generation to generation.

Chickens comprehend cause-and-effect relationships and understand that objects still exist even after they are hidden from view. This puts the cognitive abilities of chickens above those of small human children.

People who have spent time with chickens know that each bird has a different personality that often relates to his or her place in the pecking order—some are gregarious and fearless, while others are more shy and watchful; some chickens enjoy human company, while others are standoffish, shy, or even a bit aggressive. Just like dogs, cats, and humans, each chicken is an individual with a distinct personality.

In the wild, goats can live anywhere from 9 to 12 years.

Like sheep, goats are herbivores, grazing on grasses, herbs, tree leaves, and other plants. Goats are also ruminants, and chew cud to aid digestion.

Goats are very curious, intelligent, extroverted, flamboyant, and playful. For kids, play is very important because it helps them develop skills they will need later in life, including the mental and physical flexibility needed to respond to unexpected events such as pursuit by a predator. (Some of the activities enjoyed by kids include galloping, jumping vertically into the air, leaping on their mothers’ backs, tossing their heads, and whirling around.)

The reality is, this kind of abuse happens to animals by the millions, in one form or another, every day. And I think that, as a self-preservation mechanism, most of us animal rights advocates learn how to disconnect from the glare of this reality, at least a little bit.

But to see it all so up-close-and-personal in the innocent face of such sweetness and beauty...there is no disconnecting. It's like a fist in your face, and it's hard not to jump into a rage about who would abuse a little goat like this.

However, to truly honor our little partner, we must try to "disconnect" from any prolonged expressions of rage or anger that we may feel. For this kind of energy will only serve to perpetuate the very toxicity in our world that created the conditions for someone to do such a thing to begin with.

Let's be inspired by the anger, if we must, but let's raise its vibration to a level that's more useful to the cause. And let's each be even more committed to the cause in our daily lives than ever before, as we continue to take extra care in expressing peace and compassion to our fellow animals in all of our food, clothing, consumer goods and entertainment choices.

This is how we honor a life like Colin's.

We'll miss you, buddy...

Wild turkeys can fly at speeds of up to 55 miles per hour and run at speeds of up to 20 miles per hour. Farmed turkeys, however, have been genetically modified to gain weight rapidly and cannot fly at all.

Turkeys are social animals who prefer to live and feed together in flocks.

Turkeys are playful birds who enjoy the company of others and are as varied in personality as dogs and cats.

After feeding, turkeys often rest or dust bathe. This cleaning process involves wallowing in loose soil, fluffing their feathers, and letting the soil penetrate through to their skin. At night, turkeys look for a low branch in a forest tree to roost.

The emu is the largest bird in Australia, and the second largest in the world after the ostrich. Emus can grow to between 5 to 6.5 feet in height and weigh up to 130 pounds. Males are slightly smaller than females.

Emus are nomadic, and can travel up to 300 miles in less than nine months. When and if they do form a flock, they don’t do it for company – they all just gather where food is.

Emus are very nosy, and will swallow all kinds of strange things like keys, nails and bottle tops.

Emus have three toes, one of which has a sharp talon for fighting.

The Emu is a fast runner and can reach speeds of up to 40 mph for short bursts. A running bird can make a stride of nine feet.