Meet the Cows

A former dairy cow seen as nothing more than a milk producing machine, Mamma was rescued in 2019 from the now defunct Big Island Dairy. She had lived her entire five years of life being artificially impregnated and then having her babies taken away at birth just so that humans could drink her milk.

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Today Mamma is the matriarch of our cow herd and spends her days munching on grass and soaking in the sun.

Once the now defunct BIg Island Dairy was ordered to cease operations, they weren't allowed to intervene with any of the pregnant cows in the field. This meant Mia was born in a pasture and allowed to stay with her mom.

At just 4 weeks old, Mia was brought to BIFS along with her mom, Mamma. Luckily, she never knew anything about what it's like to be a diary cow and, today she spends her freedom with her other cow friends.

Mia is very sociable and loves to interact with the humans.

When we visited the now defunct Big Island Dairy back in 2019 to meet the cows we'd be rescuing, Lucy was a 6-month-old calf being treated for pink eye. We knew that this would make her less likely to be taken in by someone else, so we immediately agreed to take her.

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Today, Lucy is our only cow who still has her ear tags from the dairy. The reason being- Lucy doesn't like her face or ears touched and the tags don't bother Lucy. They bother rescuers because we see these animals as so much more than a number. Taking Lucy's tags off would only stress her out, which isn't something we want to do for purely cosmetic reasons, so until Lucy is ready, the tags stay.

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Lucy typically keeps her distance from humans but, occasionally, will be down for a few back scritches.

Renee is the last of the four we originally rescued from the now defunt Big Island Dairy. She, like Lucy, was just 6 months old- young enough that she didn't experience of the artificial insemination or having her babies taken away, but old enough to be at the beginning stages of becoming another statistic.

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Renee immediately bonded with our founder, Paula, prompting her to name her in honor of her daughter, Shailee Renee.

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Today, Renee spends her days with her herd being completely free to just be.

Malcolm was born in sanctuary to Betty, who was rescued from a cattle ranch. Had Malcolm been born there, he would likely fallen victim to the meat industry. He now roams the sanctuary with his family and loves to get scritches.

Charlie Boy was born in sanctuary to Renee, who was rescued from the now defunct Big Island Dairy. He was friendly from the moment he was born and loves to snuggle.

Betty lived on an adjacent property on a cattle ranch. When we moved to our South Point location, she was on our property and we fell in love with her sweetness. The rancher was needing to "thin his herd" but had a soft spot for Betty, and asked if she could spend the rest of her days at the sanctuary. Of course, we agreed, and Betty has been with us ever since.

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Betty is one of our cuddle cows and loves getting hugs from humans.

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Tex is a steer that came from the now defunct Big Island Dairy. Because there is no need for male cows in the dairy industry, he would have been discarded.

Did you know that Holsteins (dairy cows) have horns? One of the first things that happens to dairy cows after they are born is they are dehorned so they don't injure other animals or humans.

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Tex is a gentle giant that likes to play and now lives his best life in sanctuary.

Russell was born in sanctuary to Lucy, who was one of our first 4 rescues from Big Island Dairy. He loves receiving cuddles from guests.

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Russell is very special as he was named in honour of Regan Russell. Regan was a Canadian animal activist who dedicated decades of her life fighting to be the voice for animals in the farming industry. It was during a pig vigil that Regan was struck and killed by the driver transporting the pigs to be slaughtered. Hundreds of sanctuaries named animals after Regan, and we are so honoured to be able to continue spreading her message and telling her story through our sweet boy Russell. 

Miggy was rescued from the dairy as a one-month-old baby. She had been taken from her mama right after birth. Miggy was living with a family in Mountain View when she was viciously attacked by a pack of dogs. Her family felt they couldn't keep her safe and asked if she could come to live with us.

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It took months to heal Miggy of all her wounds, including a broken nose, shredded ears, and countless body wounds, but today Miggy is happy and healthy.

Finn lived on a cattle ranch adjacent to a rental house where a little boy bonded with him. It was this bond that convinced the mom that she had to get Finn into sanctuary. Today he is one of our most personable cows and loves to give big, wet kisses.