There I go thinking like a human and making assumptions about animals.
I’d do better to think like a turkey than to impose my idea of, say, what makes an excellent feast for them.
Jimmy and Morrison reminded me of this when I arrived at their home at Laster Ranch, a farm sanctuary, to film a Friendsliving dinner and invite them as our guests of honor.
Maybe because of El Niño or global warming, the morning broke unseasonably springlike (read: almost hot) in the high desert.
Kerry, the ranch’s founder, thought the weather might explain why the boys were fighting. Until that day, they’d shared a space peaceably. For now they had to be separated.
Jimmy stayed at the barn and Morrie came to hang out with us, which he seemed to enjoy. The food, not so much. He was not interested in the grapes, pomegranate, fresh corn, carrots, cranberries, celery and rolled oats arranged on the sheet pan. Maybe he didn’t like it all served together. Maybe he just wasn’t hungry.
We brought the pan of goodies to Jimmy, but he walked away, too.
You know who did love it? The ducks! Kerry added water to the pan, and they feasted and danced in it.
Jimmy and Morrison reminded me that turkeys are individuals with their own lives. All animals are. In a sanctuary, where we work to serve them and not the other way around, it’s OK to offer the animals things like affection and treats – as long as we respect their choices.
In the video, we introduce the idea of Friendsliving. We demo how to make (and eat!) a festive sheet pan dish of tofu and veg, and I do a lot of talking with my mouth full. Watch for the tofu toast at the end.
If you missed it, my earlier column Meet Jimmy and Morrison shares the story of these two turkeys who escaped the Thanksgiving table and invites readers to rethink what’s on theirs.
