Lawrence sanctuary farm, assisted by scores of rescued critters, advocates for humane education, another way of seeing animals

photo by: Austin Hornbostel/Journal-World photo

The 180 animals that live on the sanctuary farm are all rescues. Miniature horses Stella and Mary were rescued from a shuttered roadside petting zoo in Iowa.

Drive a little less than 10 miles north of downtown Lawrence, and with some careful navigation of rural roads you’ll arrive at a unique piece of farmland.

It’s hard to tell whether you’re in the right place, until you see the line of chickens marching across the gravel drive, followed closely by a friendly dog named Moose who’s eager to greet visitors.

This is Shy 38, a vegan sanctuary farm that is home to nearly 200 rescued farm animals. Founder Kris Taylor established the nonprofit organization in 2015, and it has since become a flourishing opportunity for promoting humane education.

The farm is home to 180 animals, all of them rescues, Taylor said. They live out the rest of their days on the farm, each one getting a name and a recognition of its own personality. Taylor said her best guess is that this is the only vegan sanctuary farm of its size in the state.

photo by: Austin Hornbostel/Journal-World photo

Ducks are just one type of a host of animal residents that have a home at Shy 38, a sanctuary farm in rural Lawrence.

Among those living on the farm: More than 100 chickens, 10 cows, five horses — two of them miniature — and 36 pigs, plus an assortment of goats, sheep, ducks and turkeys.

Those residents come from a variety of places. Gilbert the pig, for example, was raised on a hog farm out of state and was purchased as a gift to raise for food. Eventually, Gilbert was rescued and ended up at the farm. Others, like miniature horses Stella and Mary, came to Shy 38 from a shuttered roadside petting zoo in Iowa. Some pigs might end up at the farm after slipping out of the exhaust hole in the back of a semi-trailer en route to a finishing facility. Then there are goats — like Shy 38’s goat ambassador, Darren — that were displaced by tornadoes a few years ago and ended up somewhere far away and in need of rescue.

It all started, Taylor said, with a love for cows. There was pasture near the family’s rental home years ago, and Taylor’s family began to build relationships with the cows who lived there for part of each year on a plot rented out to a local farmer. The family watched them and fed them apples from their apple trees, and they slowly began to notice each cow had its own personality. They even named their bovine neighbors.

“It wasn’t until those cows that I decided that this is how animals are,” Taylor said. “If (a cow) can feel pain and love her babies and grieve them when they’re gone, then should I be the reason that happens to her? I decided not to be that reason anymore.”

That herd was the inspiration for the sanctuary farm and for its name, Taylor said.

“Almost everyone asks why we are called “Shy 38,” she said. One of the cows in that neighboring herd was shy with her human neighbors. “She would just stand back and watch us from a distance. … She had an ear tag with the number 38. And that is where our name came from.”

photo by: Austin Hornbostel/Journal-World

Visitors at Shy 38 will quickly be greeted by a host of friendly animal residents, such as the pigs pictured here.

Though Shy 38 was founded seven years ago, it took a few years for the family to find its current land, where the farm been located for about three years now.

In the early years, before Shy 38 was able to do any animal rescuing, Taylor said she spent much of her time establishing it as a 501(c)3 nonprofit and learning about how animals are treated at some types of farm operations.

Now, the farm is home to a bustling crew of animals, a good portion of which have their own special needs. Lady the cow, named after a cow in the herd that inspired Shy 38’s founding, serves as a “seeing eye cow” for the farm’s two blind cattle. Another resident, Hope the sheep, lost both her back hooves to extreme cold and will eventually get her own pair of prosthetics.

Each animal’s past circumstances aside, many of them are perfectly happy to wander up to guests for a pat.

“A lot of them are here to heal from whatever their past was,” Taylor said. “(But) we have lots that will happily come up for attention; we encourage that.”

Typically, that sort of firsthand interaction with the animals changes some folks’ minds about their own lifestyles, Taylor said, and that’s part of the nonprofit’s goals.

photo by: Austin Hornbostel/Journal-World photo

Shy 38 founder Kris Taylor showed the Journal-World around the property of her sanctuary farm in rural Lawrence Friday, taking time to introduce each of the farm’s nearly 200 animals.

“I get people that come out and when they hug Helen (the cow), or when she comes up and licks you and just is genuinely interested in you, then I get told later on that because of Helen” their mindset has changed, Taylor said.

Another one of the organization’s goals is providing a “compassionate public humane education program,” and Taylor said they’re poised to proceed with that in earnest this year. She said Shy 38 has established “Barney’s Kids,” a program named after Shy 38’s first cow, as an alternative to 4-H. “Barney’s Kids” aims to teach youth ages 5 to 19 solely about humane education. At the very least, Taylor said she thinks children should have another option.

Taylor hopes to invite families and groups out to the farm to learn about and interact with the animals. They’re aiming to start this spring.

“I firmly believe that humane education is what’s going to make the changes for the future,” Taylor said. “I mean, the kids are the future.”

Other goals for this year will include boosting Shy 38’s volunteer base, which took a hit last year, and making up for lost time due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Shy 38 intern Alex Atkin, who currently lives on the property while helping to work the farm, offered a positive review of the volunteer experience.

Atkin’s work with the organization dates back about two years, and now he spends his time assisting Taylor around the farm. He used to participate in more direct, public activism but described working at Shy 38 as more “peaceful” and “better for the soul.”

“I think some people go into the activism thing thinking it’s going to be all peaches and cream, and yeah, you do have to kind of butt heads with people (sometimes),” Atkin said. “And use your words a lot. I’m kind of more of a ‘do-er.'”

Those interested in learning more about volunteering with Shy 38 or donating to the nonprofit can email info@shy38.com. More information about the organization is also available on Shy 38’s Facebook, Instagram and Twitter pages.

photo by: Austin Hornbostel/Journal-World photo

Shy 38 founder Kris Taylor said the farm’s goats have quite vibrant personalities, just like many of the other animals on the property.

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