Posted on May 27, 2016
By Ellie Laks, Founder of The Gentle Barn
We are celebrating our first year anniversary in Tennessee and we are very excited. At the same time, Dudley and Destiny will be getting married! There are many people all over the world who are so excited about this, who understand how much the two cows love each other, and who will be attending or sending gifts. There are also some people who are skeptical or bothered by us having a cow wedding. They think we are making fun of the sanctity of marriage or anthropomorphizing our animals. I want to make sure we are all on the same page as to why we are doing this.
First of all we are doing this because we thought it would be fun. We wanted to do something special for our anniversary and thought this would be an enjoyable way to bring people out for a fundraiser.
Secondly, Dudley was alone his whole life. He was taken away from his mom when he was very young. He was then living with a group of cows who were later sent to slaughter while he was left behind because of his injury. Dudley was never allowed to bond or fall in love with anyone without them being taken away. When Dudley left the hospital and was brought home to the Gentle Barn, we knew his story was not complete until he found someone he could spend the rest of his life with, who would never be taken away from him. When we brought Destiny home, Dudley’s eyes light up, he started calling to her, and he has not left her side ever since. It was literally love at first moo. We want to celebrate the both of them, how much they have overcome, and the love that they have finally found.
Finally, there is a deeper reason why we wanted to do this We live in a world where killing animals, eating animals, wearing animals, and treating animals as objects is acceptable. Our society does not yet fully recognize the intelligence and the affections of animals. Our society does not believe in all humans having the right to marry and love each other, let alone all animals. So we want to offer a different way of seeing and treating animals. We believe that Dudley loves Destiny as deeply and as loyally as any human couple. We also believe that if he were to lose her, he would suffer as any human would for a lost love. We believe that animals are just as observant, intelligent, and astute as we are, so we will celebrate Dudley and Destiny’s love with a ceremony and a party. We will celebrate our hope for a gentle world in which, one day, animals can love each other, raise their families, have happy lives, and be our sentient neighbors who share this planet with us in peace, dignity, and mutual respect.
Come be a part of Dudley and Destiny’s love affair by purchasing your ticket today!