Turkey of the Year Winner Announced!

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After sifting through touching rescue stories and photos of rescued turkeys, we've selected the winner.

While we recognize that every turkey in our competition is worthy of this noble title, only one bird can win! The Turkey of the Year contest winner is … drumroll please … Jake from Oak Ridge, North Carolina!

Jake was rescued by Red Dog Farm from a roadside zoo. Severely neglected, he had nearly died. Jake was very sick when he arrived at the farm—he did not move or eat for almost two weeks. But with the rescue group's care, he made a full recovery. Jake is a wonderful, gentle soul with great presence. He is well loved and now has a forever home.

More than 45 million turkeys are killed each year for Thanksgiving and more than 22 million are slaughtered for Christmas so that they can be the centerpiece of a holiday meal.

These gentle, intelligent birds deserve to live out their lives in the wild or at sanctuaries, but most turkeys spend their lives in filthy conditions on factory farms before they're slaughtered. Only a lucky few like Jake are ever rescued from these horrific conditions.

If you've never rescued a turkey, you can still help give animals a reason to be thankful by going vegan. Be sure to share this with your loved ones to encourage them to spare a turkey, not eat one.

Congratulations, Jake!

See our runners-up below:

Name: Tomas
Location: Foster, Rhode Island
Brief Description: Tomas came to his guardian, Pam, while she was assisting local animal control. Unsure of Tomas' fate otherwise, Pam decided to take him in. Tomas had been moved from home to home at least three times before Pam intervened, but he has now found his forever home and is surrounded by new friends who love and care for him.

Name: Dale
Location: Mendon, Massachusetts
Brief Description: When Dale was just a chick, he was rescued by a turkey farm worker. He became a companion to another chick, Daphne, who had also been rescued by the worker because she had deformed feet. When the pair became too large for the worker to care for, they were given to Maple Farm Sanctuary. Dale and Daphne are now living happily together in a forever home.

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Recent Comments

Veggiehead commented:

12-7-2011 11:13 AM

Congrats to Jake for being named Turkey of the Year! You are a handsome fella! I've been vegetarian (99% vegan) for five months now - best, most humane thing I've ever done. I say "99% vegan" b/c I suspect that vegan food at restaurants probably is not 100% animal-product free. At Thanksgiving, some family members ate turkey, but I didn't even notice it. Thanksgiving (and Christmas, etc.) are really about family and friends, not what is on the table. Trust me, you won't miss the meat at holiday gatherings. And this is from a reformed meat-atarian! To kd92, the farmer, you don't say what you do with your male calves... I suppose you raise them as family pets? Doubtful. Admit that you sell them to the slaughterhouse, just like the industrial farms do. And to Commonsense (you have no common sense), we will not die w/o meat - in fact, people who don't eat meat are much less likely to get cancer or be obese. Do your research and get some common sense.
Johnny G commented:

12-6-2011 5:23 AM

William writes: "Where milk cows are aloud to roam free and cows are killed for there meat in a humane way." ---------------------------------------------- Even though it's DAYS after thanksgiving, i'll respond to this interesting comment. I have been vegetarian before, but unfortunately have switched back to eating meat. I hate it and i'm not naive in the least when it comes to what goes on behind the scenes, OR in the detriment that animal meat causes the body. I've studied nutrition for almost 10 years so I know the effects it has on the body despite what the majority of people in the fitness industry claim (by giving out facts recycled and republished from the same sources). William, I am replying to your comment because of how ridiculous it sounds. Again, I eat meat at the moment, but you cannot be so foolish as to say "cows are killed for there meat in a humane way." Note to anyone who reads this: What is a humane way to kill anything? How can humane and death even be used in the same sentence? Comparatively speaking in regards to slaughterhouses, there is definitely a difference in the quality of life and conditions but the bottom line is killing ANYTHING cannot be constituted as humane.
'Truth will out - Dr Rees Mangal commented:

12-1-2011 3:57 PM

"Commonsense" - your name belies the truth. PETA = ROCKING MINE AND THE ANIMALS WORLD
Boris commented:

12-1-2011 2:11 PM

so sad!
Ana Ulisses commented:

11-29-2011 10:00 PM

so sad!
Kaleigh commented:

11-29-2011 3:05 PM

I am a vegetarian! I've been one for over a year now and I love animals! Maybe too much! I didn't eat turkey this year for Thanksgiving, but unfortunately my family did. And pork. At least I'm supporting PETA! (Also everyone in my family says I'm going to grow up being a PETA girl!) Haha
Marcel-T. commented:

11-27-2011 12:35 AM

After reading all the comments and the article I must agree that there really are three hits that human race has suffered so far; -The planet where humans live is not the centre of the universe (Galileo), -Human being is actually an animal(Darwin), -Human being is seriously sick (Freud).
Iri commented:

11-26-2011 8:08 PM

Well luckily I don't celebrate Thanksgiving so i didnt contribute to all those dead turkeys.Oh also i went to a fair when i leaned down to take a picture with a turkey it bit my ear! That's my excuse for not eating Turkey! Vengeance is not good!lol The real reason i dot eat turkey is because it tastes TERRIBLE no offence to u turkey eaters.
kd92 commented:

11-26-2011 5:45 PM

As a dairy farmer I do not appreciate being made to sound like a monster. I LOVE my cows and have spent countless hours, many times sleeping in the barn with them when they are sick or if they are expected to be giving birth. If a farmer hates animals so much then why do they choose to dedicate their life to them? It's because they love what they do. To clear things up when our cows calve we raise the calves and do not "rip them apart and use them for calf meat". The calves are raised to grow up to be milk cows. Also breeding a cow DOES NOT hurt them. The cow NATURALLY comes into heat and it's natural to breed them when they do.
Anonymous commented:

11-24-2011 3:31 PM

I'm glad these turkeys were rescued, and I hope they continue to be rescued from factories like that. Good thing my family doesn't buy from factories. Only happy turkeys for us. :) But no matter if you eat meat or you don't, I hope everyone has a Happy Thanksgiving anyway.
William commented:

11-24-2011 1:41 AM

While I may not agree with everything peta preeches, the whole china fur thing is absolutely disgusting. The animal at the least deserves to have a quick death. Also, has anybody here been to a organic farm? Where milk cows are aloud to roam free and cows are killed for there meat in a humane way. While a majority of the industry forces there animals into horrible conditions, there still are a number that do it the right way.
Kym commented:

11-22-2011 1:05 PM

" It's not natural for humans to be vegans, you NEED meat to get nutrients" It isn't natural for my husband nor I to eat meat of any kind. After starting our plant based diet, I have went to 215 lbs. to 160 in 2 yrs. My husband is now 168 rather than 235. Blood sugar, cholesterol, high blood pressure is history. While eating meat & dairy we felt like slugs. No way could we have walked 1/4 mile a week. Now we can easily do 10 miles a day! If you NEED to eat it, by all means do so with my blessings and prayers
Arbor commented:

11-22-2011 11:32 AM

AmbarSixx. To produce that milk you drink, they continuously impregnate the cow over and over and over again with a tool filled with bull sperm, and once the cow has its baby, it is ripped apart and used for calf meat. Yes a cow will die if we don't milk it..but what we do is keep the cow in conditions where she is unable to even turn around, and forcefully cause the need for us to milk her. SOUND NATURAL?
bratnay commented:

11-22-2011 1:07 AM

A turkey so cute I'm glad that they say it hopefully they can save more and more and more!!!!
CommonSense commented:

11-19-2011 7:39 PM

"ABOUT THE MILKING COMMENT.....DO YOUR HOMEWORK..GO TO PETA AND FIND OUT THAT THEY HAVE TO BE PREGNANT IN ORDER TO GIVE MILK, AND THE STORY GOES DOWNHILL AFTER THAT." Going to Peta is the last place I would go to for information. It's not natural for humans to be vegans, you NEED meat to get nutrients and what not to have a healthy life style, so what's the point of fighting your own nature? There are so many dumb causes that Peta fights for yet those causes would create more problems than they would solve. "Let's stop skinning animals!" Ok, lets freeze in the winter. "Lets stop milking cows!" Ok, lets just starve and have frigid bones.
Debbie commented:

11-18-2011 7:46 PM

On the Milk subject. ...Did you know that women in some tribal villiages feed their very valuable 'stock' pigs their own breast milk...yes they actually suckle the little pigs...sounds so gross doesn't it...I mean...would YOU do it Amber??? Not me....no matter how valuable I thought of a little piglet...I mean this is not meant to be...human milk fed to a pig??? Thats discusting!! Human milk is meant for a little human baby..not a totally different animal...isn't it??? Well isn't it? Hmmmm.....that's weird? I hear you ask..what?...what is weird? For I know that you must agree with me....Feeding a piglet human breast milk is just so wrong in so many ways....What is weird... is that for some reason people like yourself see drinking a cows milk is so ok and normal...but if the reverse was true and humans were breed and then milked to feed pigs...or ??? Kittens...or maybe....puppies...the whole world would gross out. Each mammal's milk is produced for that mammals offspring...and when you find it acceptable to have a baby....watch your baby taken to be eaten after your milk has 'come in'...then line up to be milked twice a day...and watch as it is taken to be feed to a totally different animal for the greed and want of that other animal...well then...maybe you have a right to see nothing weird about drinking a substance from another breathing creature that is totally unrelated in every way to you. Drink water...it is good for you and what we grown-ups are meant to drink.
Hillary Danna commented:

11-18-2011 5:19 PM

Steven, I live no more than 30 minutes away from Oak Ridge. So that's really awesome!
Hillary commented:

11-18-2011 5:15 PM

@Janice; Sooo true. We grow out of nursing when we are young. For us to continue to drink milk (especially from another animal) is disgusting!
nat321 commented:

11-18-2011 11:00 AM

Dear AmbarSixx.... It is true, if the cow is not milked will die!!! but what if there were not human beings??(i trust you've already checked that cows have milk because they have just given birth)Do you still believe that cows have to be milked by humans(or machines in farms? soooo YOU THINK ABOUT IT AND BE REALISTIC SWEET HEART!!!
Janice Zdzieblowski commented:

11-17-2011 5:11 PM

to ambar six : the reason that cow produces milk is because she gave birth to a calf, the milk you're drinking is meant for her calf, not you.

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