Barbara Walters, bovine savior

May 11, 11:50 PMAnimal Welfare ExaminerShalin Gala

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Photo: Rupert and Robin / Laura Yanne

By now you’ve likely heard of Molly, the calf who escaped from the Musa Hala, Inc. slaughterhouse in Queens, New York, and who is now bathing in the sun and eating organic hay at a 60-acre sanctuary in Suffolk County, New York. After seeing undercover video footage at slaughterhouses taken by the Humane Society for the United States (HSUS) and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) that shows cows being kicked in the face, pushed over with a forklift, and having their throats cut open while still conscious, it’s little wonder that Molly took her chances on the streets of 50 Cent’s old stomping grounds in South Jamaica, Queens. 

Talk show host Barbara Walters was so inspired by Molly’s heroic sprint for freedom that she declared on ABC’s The View that she is now considering vegetarianism and plans to bring vegetarian burgers to a scheduled White House dinner.

Walters’ new-found sympathy for animals killed in slaughterhouses has raised the hopes of bovine rescuers across the country, such as Vermont’s Laura Yanne, who has penned an urgent letter to Walters’ agent asking for financial assistance in boarding two bulls, Rupert and Robin, whom Yanne rescued from a slaughterhouse one year ago, until she finds a few fenced acres in Vermont for them all to live together.

In the latest issue of the journal Applied Animal Behavior Science, scientists describe how animals have the capacity to experience joy, much like humans. Thus, it seems we humans haven’t cornered the market on life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, and indeed we ought to follow Walters’ footsteps in considering who is on our plate the next time we sit down to eat. 

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