Jasmine

Sponsored By
Lynn Gallagher,
Elizabeth Elder

Before her rescue, Jasmine (Jazzy) was living her life at a mini cattle breeding farm where she had mothered multiple calves by the age of four—each one taken from her and sold as a pet. After the birth of her sweet boy, Panda, everything changed. Panda was accidentally kicked in the face by another cow as a newborn, and his jaw was badly broken as a result. While Panda was expected to make a full recovery, he would no longer be profitable to sell as a pet since his jaw would always be crooked. The farmer didn’t want Panda to be sent to slaughter simply because he looked different, so they reached out to see if we could give him a forever home at our sanctuary instead.

In preparation for Panda’s rescue, the farmers tried to get him to take a bottle, but naturally, he only wanted to nurse from his mom. After a few unsuccessful attempts to get him on a bottle, the farmers made the incredibly compassionate decision to surrender Jazzy too. We couldn’t believe it! Rescuing a mother cow and her baby together is so rare that it’s nearly unheard of. We were overjoyed that this little family could be preserved—it’s a “happy ending” that so very few farmed animals are allowed to experience.

When we arrived at the farm to pick them up, Jazzy led her baby straight into our trailer as if sensing it held the promise of a better life. She would have done anything to protect her child. The trauma Jasmine experienced by having her previous calves taken from her is not erased by her newfound freedom—she’ll grieve for them all her life, as any mother would. We find so much comfort in the knowledge that Jazzy will never have to experience that kind of torment ever again. A mother is a mother no matter her species, and the sacred bond between mother and child is never ours to break.