Farm Sanctuary's 4th of July "Pignic"

The Farm Sanctuary is less than an hour's drive from Ithaca. On July 4th, we went to the annual Pignic. Of course, the best part was the tour. We were able to spend time with all the animals except the sheep and goats, though we did see the new sheep from last Fall's rescue effort as well as Zoop, the goat after which last summer's amazing Mountain Goats benefit was named. It's always so wonderful to be around the animals--the lucky ones who are saved from a trip to someone's stomach. I'm amazed that people can visit the Farm Sanctuary and still eat meat, but I guess the industry has done an incredibly effective job separating "meat" from the animals.

After the tour, we had vegan picnic food--though I had a veggie burger from the last batch. So many people attended, they ran out of food and had to make a trip into Watkins Glen to replenish supplies! While George and I were eating, Gene Bauer (co-founder) arrived, and he was swarmed by fans. We watched the spectacle, and I wanted to get my photo taken with him, but George put his foot down. I did console myself with the irrelevant coincidence that Bauer and I had the same camera case. Swoon. My "Chicks Dig Vegans" t-shirt was very popular...I even got a thumbs up from the pig mascot!

View the slideshow of photos.