photograph from Heaven on Earth Animal Retirement Sanctuary, San Juan Island WA https://www.heavenonearthanimalsanctuary.org
BY KIMBERLY MAYER
In a perfect world, where animals live life to the full, cows are devoted mothers and have best friends for life. Their lifespan may be 20 years. Donkeys will defend their herd at their own risk and may live for 50 years. Sheep live for 12-15 years, with the ability to read people’s facial expressions and recognize up to 50 faces. Chickens too. With better vision than humans, ducks remember faces and voices. Goats choose to interact more with happy faces in people and live for 14 years.
Mama pigs hum to their babies. Chickens put themselves to bed exactly at dusk and need eight hours of sleep much like us. Ducks synchronize their hatching by communicating with each other in the eggs. Geese mate for life, and if one goose is injured another goose stays with him.
But our world is far from perfect, particularly for animals. In production dairy facilities cows live most of their lives standing in their own waste in stalls hooked up to industrial milking equipment, only to be killed after four years when they can’t produce enough milk. Cows raised for beef are killed before they are three years old, sooner if designated for veal. Lamb meat is procured from sheep under a year old, and goats are killed by 5 months for their meat.
No federal laws at all protect ducks or geese from inhumane slaughter, and according to World Animal Protection chickens are one of the most abused animals on earth. Production laying hens spend their lives in cages so small there is no room to turn around. Chickens raised for meat are killed at 6-8 weeks old after being fed unnatural diets to gain weight quickly. Often they cannot stand. There are more chickens than people in the world, and these are their conditions. The facts speak for themselves. This is not a loving planet for factory farm animals.
Then along comes an individual with a vision for a nonprofit animal retirement sanctuary, a final stop for retired farm animals and rescued animals, many from Pasado’s Safe Haven in Washington. Karen Clark Cole set aside five idyllic acres of woods, ponds, and pastures, barns, coops, sties, and stables on San Juan Island for Heaven on Earth. Where the climate is temperate and veterinarians make house calls. All the comfort and freedom they need to live their best lives at last.
Walking the grounds with Karen, she pointed out chairs placed about where she likes to sit with the animals and learn their language. Visitors are invited to be with the animals as well. I make note to return when visiting hours open in May, and in the meantime eat less meat.
Originally published January 14, 2026 in The Journal of The San Juan Islands
a little elbow room
a little elbow room 