As an antidote to the tragic examples highlighted in our recent video - When animals escape slaughter - we bring you a round-up of mainstream media and viral reports of escaped cows who made it to sanctuaries. But for all the happiness these stories bring us, is there a bittersweet epilogue?

First off, let’s start by acknowledging that there are thousands of stories of non-human animals escaping human exploitation to live out their lives in the freedom that all living beings deserve. Not just cows, but chickens, sheep, goats, turkeys, rabbits and many, many more. At sanctuaries around the world, most if not all their residents have a profound story to tell, finding their freedom from farms and laboratories without fanfare and the attention of the media.

If you really want to experience the happiness of true animal freedom, visit your local animal sanctuary or better still, sign up for regular donations or volunteer to help out. Here is a list of some sanctuaries around the world, but ask in your local vegan groups for nearby sanctuaries in need of the most support.

On to the more publicised examples. These are stories that captured the public’s attention and sparked huge appeals to have the animals successfully rehomed to sanctuaries. 

Note: All of these reports concern cows - perhaps because they are more likely to be able to not just escape, but survive in the wild and evade capture for long enough for public attention to build. Sadly, this could mean that while pigs, sheep and chickens also undoubtedly escape, they’re either recaptured quietly or simply don’t survive on their own.

The adventures of Finn the cow

Named after Mark Twain’s famous literary creation, in 2018 Finn the calf escaped auction and evaded authorities for weeks. He lived in the woodlands of New Britain, Connecticut, only being seen on the security cameras of local residents whose gardens he raided.

Finn now lives at Farm Sanctuary in New York State, and according to Vegan Life Magazine, “the woman who first saw him in her backyard in New Britain – upon realising Finn’s desire to live, she made the ethical connection, and has since transitioned to a meat-free diet.”

Yvonne “the cow that wants to be a deer” and her chart-topping hit single?

Of course we’re all pleased beyond words that Yvonne the cow lived the last eight years of her life happily at the Gut Aiderbichl sanctuary in Germany, but the story of her capture and the reaction from the public only further illustrates the cognitive dissonance prevalent in most of society when it comes to the way we treat non-human animals.

At the time of Yvonne’s escape in May 2011 into the Bavarian countryside, police granted hunters the authority to shoot and kill her as they said she posed a threat to the public. Animal rights activists were able to intervene, successfully, with a huge public outcry of support - a hit single was even released called You Wild Cow and she was dubbed "the cow that wants to be a deer" and "the heroine of the summer".

In 2018, Gut Aiderbichl announced Yvonne’s departure from this world, but we can be thankful that she experienced a life most other cows will never know. 

The Daily Show with Frank… and Jon Stewart

Frank the bull made headlines in the New York Times, Mashable and NPR not least of all because of the involvement of former The Daily Show host Jon Stewart, or rather of his wife Tracey who is a trustee of Farm Sanctuary where Finn from the first story also resides.

The Stewarts personally drove Frank - so named after Alcatraz escapee Frank Lee Morris - to sanctuary, after he escaped from a New York slaughterhouse to later be tranquilised and taken to safety - but not before running amok in the streets of Queens and a York College campus.

For all these happy endings, there will always be a bittersweet afterthought. So many animal escape stories ended in tragedy, but more saddening still is the reminder that the number of these reports - whether happy or sad - pales in comparison to how many of their fellow farm animals go to slaughter every day, across the world, without any hope of even a glimmer of freedom.

This may be us ending things on a downer, but as an animal rights campaign group, we cannot say that the picture is entirely rosy. However, what we can say on the side of optimism is that the non-vegan public clearly does care about animals on some level, and as advocates and activists, that compassion is our way in.

So the next time a friend of yours shares a story rooting for an animal who has escaped slaughter, take that chance to strike up a conversation. You never know what might get through to them.

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