Animal Stories
Here are just a few of the stories of our sanctuary residents. As you can see, some of them have had some pretty incredible adventures. Browse and enjoy!
| Violet's Story |
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Violet was found by a caring family who lived in the south Tampa area. One of the family dogs had gotten a hold of the tiny pig, and she had several serious injuries as a result of the encounter. |
The Coberly family speculated that Violet must have escaped from one of the pens on the property behind theirs, as that property belonged to a hog farmer. The Coberlys decided that Violet was not going to meet the fate that was intended for her, so they nursed her injuries and made her completely healthy once again.
While the Coberly family loved Violet and gave her every comfort, they knew that when she got older (and bigger!) their home would no longer be suitable. So they called Kindred Spirits Sanctuary, and Violet was transported to a place where (like her home with the Coberlys), she would never have to want for or fear anything again.
Violet is quite the redhead and tries hard to live up to the fiery temperament normally associated with that hair color! Still tiny when she arrived at Kindred Spirits, she became the barn mascot and slept in the sun all day, getting up only to follow sanctuary caretakers and volunteers on their walks or feeding rounds. As she got a bit bigger (and a lot craftier), it became impossible to keep her out of the feed room. Whatever way was devised for keeping her out, the smart girl would catch every trick. In order to keep Violet at a healthy weight, sanctuary staff moved her to a separate yard where she now keeps Mario and Poppy in line!
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| Kevin’s Story (In Loving Memory) |
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Kevin’s story is now told in loving memory. Kevin passed away in June of 2005 as a result of complications arising from surgery. Kindred Spirits Sanctuary wanted to fix Kevin’s injured leg in order to give her a life that she could fully enjoy, and decided that proceeding with surgery would give her the best chance at that life. It looked like a fairly low-risk option, and some of the other options that we had explored for Kevin were just not working. |
The veterinarian who operated on Kevin was extremely skilled and initially it looked as if Kevin was going to handle the surgery just fine. However, she did not make it out of the woods all the way, and quietly took her last breath while she was in recovery. Kevin is sorely missed, and we will always remember her for the quiet bravery and strength that she always showed in the face of adversity.One bird can touch many lives!
Kevin's Story
Kevin is a young turkey, and despite the masculine name, is actually a hen! She was part of a school hatching project, and luckily ended up with a wonderful guardian named Jessica. Eleven-year-old Jessica treasured Kevin’s unique personality, and raised Kevin in her home as long as she could. Kevin grew larger, and Jessica’s parents enlisted the help of some friends who owned a ranch to watch over Kevin. While there, Kevin had a tussle with a goose, which resulted in a permanent injury to her right leg. The leg was not set properly or in a timely manner, and as the leg healed it became all but useless to her.
Kevin went back home to Jessica, but is soon became apparent that Kevin needed a farm-friendly environment where she could eventually have turkey friends of her own. Beth Nathanson, (Jessica’s mom), contacted Kindred Spirits, and the sanctuary welcomed Kevin with open arms. Kevin is making wonderful progress despite her handicap. She gets around quite well on one good leg, and is becoming stronger all the time. She nests in the straw and lays eggs on a regular basis! Her current roommate is a rabbit named Dickens, with whom she lives in perfect harmony. Kevin loves to be sung to, and her original family, (especially Jessica!) is still very involved in her life. |
| Mario’s Story |
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Mario was a pig on a mission. This amazing pig was on the run through upscale Tampa neighborhoods for two weeks before Florida Voices for Animals intervened and brought him safely to Kindred Spirits Sanctuary! Nobody is really sure where Mario came from originally, but once he was out, he was on the run! |
There were many sightings of the black-and-white male pig as he sprinted across busy roads and rooted through backyards. While suburbanites in Tampa didn’t want their landscaping ruined, they also didn’t want anything to happen to a pig so tenacious. Florida Voices for Animals took action, and tried to persuade the trapper who had been dispatched to catch the pig to let him go to a sanctuary. Initially the trapper refused. The community responded, and after many phone calls and threats from concerned animal-loving citizens, the trapper not only decided to give Mario over to FVA, but another pig that he had recently trapped as well. Both pigs were assured a happy ending when FVA found Kindred Spirits Sanctuary.
John Moyer and Jim Gisondi of FVA personally escorted the two pigs to their new home at Kindred Spirits. The black-and-white pig had already been dubbed Mario (as in Andretti, based on his speed!), and the smaller female pig was named Poppy by Kindred Spirits’ staff. Mario and Poppy now spend their days eating, rooting, bathing in their mud hole and enjoying the warm Florida weather in style! |
| Nomar's Story |
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In February of 2005, Kindred Spirits Sanctuary received a call from PETA about a young piglet that needed placement. That piglet was Nomar, who turned out to be quite the celebrity! |
Right before Nomar came to live at Kindred Spirits and right after he was rescued from a fate worse than death, he was in a photo shoot with an Australian pop singer named Missy Higgins. Ms. Higgins is an enormously popular celebrity and is also a vegetarian!
While Nomar was a child celebrity himself, he hasn’t let it go to his head. He is one of our sweetest and most outgoing pigs, and is always one of the first to come up and say hello! (Of course, it helps if you are toting treats then Nomar is first in line!) |
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| Jubilee's Story |
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Jubilee’s mother died shortly after giving birth to her. In fact, Jubilee was left alone, lying by her dead mother for quite awhile before she was found. In many cases where there is an orphaned calf on a large cattle farm, the baby is usually “disposed of”. Many farms do not want to put the time, effort, or expense into saving one calf. The farmer who found Jubilee, however, took pity on her. |
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He called a local woman that he knew took in strays and homeless animals of all kinds. The woman contacted Kindred Spirits, who welcomed the small calf and finished bottle-raising her. Jubilee was, from then on, assured a loving environment in which to grow!
A couple months later, Calvin arrived, and now Jubilee and Calvin are best friends. They romp in the sun together, looking forward to the day when they can rub hooves with the bigger cows at Kindred Spirits Sanctuary! (That day is coming soon!) Jubilee still thinks that everyone she meets is toting a bottle for her.
Although she has been weaned for months, she will try to nurse on your hands, your arms, your pants, just about anywhere! While her kisses are slobbery you can’t help but find them endearing. She also looks to people for security and will follow them everywhere, never further away than an inch or two from their heels! |
| Calvin’s Story |
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Calvin came from the same farm as Jubilee, although he had a different mother. Calvin’s mother was much too old to be having another calf and was not nursing him successfully. As a result, Calvin ended up being a bottle-fed baby too! The wonderful woman that stepped in for Jubilee also stepped in for Calvin, and the rest is history! |
The timing of Calvin’s arrival couldn’t have been better. He provided much-needed bovine companionship for our other orphaned calf, Jubilee. Calvin is shyer than Jubilee and serious beyond his years. Cautious when meeting new people, he will conduct quite a study until he decides what he thinks of you. When people are in the yard with him he keeps a slight distance, but actually loves to follow people around almost as much as Jubilee does. Maybe he just wants to make sure that he doesn’t miss anything exciting! |
| Michele’s Story |
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Michele had been raised from a piglet with only one thing planned for him - to be sold and slaughtered when he was large enough. He belonged to a veterinarian, who planned to sell Michele in time for him to be part of a summer barbecue. Two compassionate employees of the clinic got to know Michele as he grew up in the kennel area of the clinic. All his young life, Michele had only known a dark, chain-link kennel that was slightly larger than a gestation crate. He had never been around other pigs, rooted in the dirt, or rolled in the mud. One of the employees offered to buy Michele from the vet, who eventually agreed, but told her that if she didn't get him out of the clinic soon, Michele would meet the fate that was originally intended for him. |
The vet tech began a desperate search for a permanent home for Michele, and found Kindred Spirits Sanctuary. KSS staff and volunteers went to the clinic to pick up Michele, who at first did not want to leave his kennel. Even though he was living on wire in an environment that was completely unnatural for him, that environment was all he had ever known. With just a little bit of coaxing however, Michele trooped out to the trailer that awaited him and climbed into it. In fact, once he actually worked up the courage to step out of the kennel he was in the trailer in less than 3 minutes! He was taken directly to the Sanctuary, and within the first fifteen minutes of life in his new home, was rolling happily in a large, luxurious mud hole while the vet tech joyously documented it on video. Michele continues to heal emotionally at the sanctuary, and is still getting used to the idea of having companion porcines around, but he seems to be warming to the idea quickly. He has recently befriended a couple of our potbellied pigs and continually demonstrates remarkable perceptivity and compassion. He is truly a remarkable and special pig! |
| Maddie, Matilda, Gertie, and Lola’s Story |
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These four beautiful sows all came to Kindred Spirits Sanctuary from the same abusive situation in Olean, (located in upstate New York). To read the details of their rescue, click here! |
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| Rinaldo’s Story |
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Rinaldo, along with nine other goats that now reside peacefully at Kindred Spirits Sanctuary, came from a nightmarish situation in Maine. To read the details of their rescue, click here!
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| Lancelot’s Story |
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Lancelot was found like so many pigs are – running loose on a major road, trying to stay clear of dogs and people with malicious intent. It is not a friendly world out there for a small potbelly pig on the loose! Fortunately, a local resident managed to catch the pig and held him in a temporary pen in his backyard until a rescue could be contacted.
Kindred Spirits found out about Lancelot through a volunteer, and brought him to the sanctuary where he is now thoroughly spoiled. He was a little unsure of people at first, but within a couple months decided that he liked it here and started showing the curious and incredibly sweet side of his personality. The best part is that he will never have to be on the run again! |
| Sammy and Stevie’s Story |
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This dynamic duo once lived with a man who kept them in a pen that was nothing but concrete with no shade to speak of. Their water source was a metal container that was rusty, had holes, and was rarely filled because, as he said, “they just lay in it.” The pigs’ diet consisted of leftovers that were tossed in on a semi-regular basis. |
A kind woman who lived near the pigs’ residence had been keeping an eye on the situation for some time and finally decided to make the farmer an offer and try to rescue the pigs. At first the farmer agreed to her terms, but then suddenly (and without explanation) changed his mind. The rescuer saw that it would not be easy to convince this man to give up the pigs, so she tried another tactic. She had a friend go over and offer to buy the pigs, under the guise of wanting them for a summer barbecue. That worked, and the pigs were delivered to the woman who brought them directly to Kindred Spirits Sanctuary for their own happy ending.
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| Mike’s Story |
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This handsome guy was, believe it or not, bought as a gag gift for a wedding! He was brought to the event with a sign around his neck bearing the name of a member of the wedding party. Nobody had a clue what was going to be done with the poor goat once the wedding was over. (It is just another example of how farm animals are frequently seen as objects to be used for our amusement or at our convenience). |
The good news is that Mike will never, ever be exploited again! A compassionate wedding guest called two friends that he knew would drop everything to stick up for Mike. They did, and fostered Mike in their backyard until a permanent goat-friendly place could be found. Kindred Spirits Sanctuary welcomed Mike into the fold, and Mike now has lots of friends and plays all day long (sans collar!). He gets along with everyone, and we think he is a truly special boy! |
| Pistolero’s Story |
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Pistolero, a three-year-old Paso Fino, was going to be euthanized by his former “owners” because he could not be ridden. It happens all too often – when a horse is no longer “useful” and/or cannot do what was originally expected of them anymore, they are considered an unnecessary expense and their life becomes worthless. Well you can ask anyone who has met Pistolero what he is like, and they will tell you that he is the sweetest, most sensitive soul they have ever had the pleasure to know! He is an absolutely wonderful boy and lives quietly in a large, grassy paddock with Pog, Mackenzie, and Francesca. |
In fact, when Francesca first arrived at KSS, Pistolero was the first one to go over and keep her company. He barely left her side for the first few days while she relaxed and got adjusted. The gentleness that Pistolero exhibits on a daily basis is humbling. He will undoubtedly touch many more people throughout the remainder of his life – and the staff at Kindred Spirits Sanctuary will do everything they can to make sure it is a long and happy one! |
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