I took a trip to Woodstock Farm Sanctuary this weekend!
(And had a chance to eat at the Commissary, which was amazing.)
A lot of the animals at Woodstock are from factory farm conditions, but a fair share of them are from “humane”, “grass-fed”, “backyard butcher”, “cage-free”, etc facilities.. The industry truly profits off of these terms by placating our consciences, but the animals are still abused. One of the staff told me that a pig was rescued from a “farm to table” operation where the owner was slaughtering the animals with a chainsaw and leaving animal limbs strew across the property, so the pigs were surrounded by the limbs of their children.
This is just one of MANY harrowing stories you can hear when you visit these places- it’s nice to see the animals living out their lives in peace, but we have to remember where they came from and what they have endured. And do not let the industry persuade you otherwise from what is really happening.