Perdita’s name means “lost,” and in her former life on a factory farm, she truly was lost in the crowd — not seen for the special individual she is.
At factory farms, Perdita and millions of other turkeys like her are seen as commodities, rather than as living beings who think and feel. At these facilities, they can be subjected to painful debeaking and have their sensitive snoods and even their toes removed — and this is just the beginning of the horrors these precious birds experience. Next, they suffer in large, overcrowded warehouses in which they are housed until they are sent to slaughter.
Perdita still has her toes and snood, but she has unfortunately been debeaked. A turkey’s beak is how they feel the world around them and is very sensitive. We can’t imagine how painful it must have been for her when she was debeaked
— a process done without any anesthesia or pain management.
Perdita truly was lost
— lost and hopeless
— that is, until she made her way to Farm Sanctuary’s Northern California Shelter.
It must have been with awe and surprise that she met her new world at sanctuary. Suddenly, she found herself with dirt underneath her feet, fresh water to drink, grass and healthy food to eat, dust to bathe in, and fresh straw bales to sleep on. She suddenly had room to run and a new enclosure to explore — and, of course, new friends to meet!
Perdita quickly established herself in the flock, and she’s become one of the most outgoing ladies in the gang. When it’s feeding time, it’s not uncommon for her to be the first girl to run up to the caregiver on feeding duty with excitement. Sometimes, she’ll even jump into the food bowl in anticipation!
Perdita demonstrating her food-bowl-jumping technique with caregiver Annika.
At our Northern California Celebration for the Turkeys event this past weekend, Perdita was, not surprisingly, the first girl to race from the barn to the feast that awaited!
Perdita follows Northern California Shelter Manager Kate Powell from the barn to the party!
And once she saw the tables filled with all of the foods she loves, nothing was going to hold her back!
Perdita was clearly very excited for her salad and pie!
For the next half hour, she and her friends feasted on this special meal prepared just for them.
The Celebration for the Turkeys was a big hit with Perdita and her pals!
This year, we’re thrilled to have Perdita as one of our incredible turkey ambassadors through our annual Adopt a Turkey Project. For the past 30 years, we’ve encouraged people to participate in a compassionate holiday tradition by sponsoring one of our resident turkeys, helping us rescue animals and provide care for them at our sanctuaries, as well as educate and advocate for turkeys and other farm animals everywhere.
Interested in making Adopt a Turkey one of your holiday traditions? For just $30, you can sponsor Perdita or one of her fellow turkey residents: Kristoff, Marshall,
Ruthie, Sandy, or Spunky. Learn more here!
We are so incredibly fortunate to be able to save turkeys like Perdita and give them the wonderful lives they so richly deserve. Every single turkey is unique, special, and a complete individual. We love them all so much, and are so happy to have helped Perdita find home at Farm Sanctuary!
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