July, 2003

Playful Pigs, Sensitive Cows, Curious Chickens -- New Animal Place film explores the emotional lives of farmed animals

As the new documentary, The Emotional World of Farm Animals, begins, we watch a pig cool off in a pool of water, a tom turkey "dance" sideways. Images of peace and joy. The film is a companion piece to Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson's latest book, The Pig Who Sang to the Moon. Masson is author of When Elephants Weep and Dogs Never Lie About Love; his latest project offers an in-depth look at the emotional lives of those sentient, feeling beings who today exist primarily to become someone's dinner.

Most farmed animals are born, live, and die in conditions that deny them their most basic natural behaviors. What does this mean for how we understand these animals? How does their harsh reality shape their emotions?

Masson starts his quest at Animal Place. Here he meets Venus, a beautiful, 13-year-old pig who arrived at the sanctuary so traumatized by her earlier life that it took her literally years to learn how to trust. He meets Valerie and Susie, a pair of young piglets who, born in a research lab, never had the freedom to root around or bask in the sun until they came home to Animal Place. And then there's Jessie, a gentle cow who literally saved her own life when she jumped from the truck carrying her to the slaughterhouse.

Most if not all sanctuary animals are finally at peace following a very tough beginning. At Farm Sanctuary (Watkin's Glen, New York) we find Queenie, a brave cow whose escape from a New York City slaughterhouse touched the hearts of millions. At United Poultry Concern (Nachitango, Virginia), founder Karen Davis describes chickens' zest for life, their extensive communication systems, their extended family flocks. At Colorado's Wilderness Ranch, the plight of abused turkeys puts a troubled teen in touch with her own feelings. And in San Jose, California, Misty Viņa describes the emotional pain and disillusionment she experienced as a member of Future Farmers of America.

Wherever the film takes us, we are constantly learning from the animals. Those humans who are lucky enough know farmed animals in the freedom of a sanctuary are witness to a world of emotions, behaviors, and fulfillment that few of us experience.

Animal behavior expert Marc Beckoff explains that one of the best ways to "prove" that farmed animals have emotions is to watch the changes that gradually come over an animal who makes it from a factory farm to the safety of a sanctuary. As they slowly develop trust, they begin to vocalize, their faces become more expressive, their whole posture changes from one of fear to one of confidence and pure joy.

To show just how far the majority of farmed animals have been forced from their natural origins, the film intersperses footage of animals in the wild or at sanctuaries with the harsher, emptier lives of those on the factory farm. Battery cages, breeding crates, the "dead pile" -- these continue to shock anyone who cares about these animals.

The film is intended for a general audience. "We want to expose people to these animals as individuals," explains Animal Place cofounder Kim Sturla, the film's executive producer. "For most of the general public, the notion that farmed animals are actually thinking, feeling beings is a radical concept."

The Emotional World of Farm Animals was made possible by generous grants from the Glaser Progress Foundation and the Bosack & Kruger Foundation. The film, a coproduction of Animal Place and EarthView Productions, will be released this fall; watch for screenings and book signings in your area. And to learn more about farmed animals, visit www.sanctuaries.org.