The story of Lasst die Tiere Leben e.V. started in 2017 with finding a home for 9 rescued goats, and since then it has become a successful animal welfare association led by a board of three extraordinary women – Elisabeth Schön, Olga “Gina” Wanner & Katharina Larissa Fleischer ♡ Could you tell us a little more about how you all came to work together on this project?
Gina came to our very first assistance operation on the farm in spring 2018. At that time, the outdoor enclosures for the newly arrived laboratory pigs were being built. Gina saw our call-to-action on Instagram and followed her gut feeling of wanting to support this project. That’s also how we got to know Katharina Larissa. She came to us with another group of helpers organized by the Berlin Save Movement group. By the end of that assistance operation, a swimming pond was built for our first geese. So they each left a part of their big compassionate heart on the farm on their first visit. Gina accompanied me on the way to the cloven-hoofed animal clinic with a sheep named Sonne. In our conversation I felt a strong connection and love for the project and I asked if she would like to support me with a position on the board. She said “yes” – at the time she certainly didn’t know how it would change her life. Since then, Gina has always been there for the farm, the project, the animals and me.
Katharina also came back at some point, and you could see in her a growing love and enthusiasm for the animals, for the entire project. On one of her visits, I took her with me to look for a sick sheep that had jumped off the trailer. She was so present, with so much love and calming perseverance – qualities that are urgently needed for these types of missions. From that moment on, we could always count on her. She was always there when we needed her. It is precisely these kinds of people who are needed in this work, who see their purpose in life as advocates for animals, animal rights and in the fight for their equality in this world. Gina and I asked Katharina whether she would support us on the board and she also said “yes”.
With your organization, the name truly says it all – but what would you say are the specific goals of your ongoing programs?
With regard to the so-called farm animals that live with us, we see it as an important task to learn how they live, how they communicate, what their preferences and needs are in a stress-free environment. It is very important that we can convey this authentically and share it with people.
We have an educational concept and would like to educate people about factory farming by building a museum with this as the main subject. These messages can be conveyed even more thoroughly if one has the opportunity to meet and observe the animals in a former fattening stable before visiting them in an atmosphere in which they feel comfortable. We want to inspire the understanding that we have to work to give them an equal position in our society, and that everyone can make a contribution to this – even in very small steps.
There are also almost no veterinarians who know how to treat these animals. The knowledge of large animal vets is geared towards the fattening facilities and “dairy cattle” farms – only for the animals to survive in terms of profit. It is important to make sure that vets are knowledgeable about the treatment of e.g. old sheep, pigs, cows and also ducks and geese. It is important to have animal handlers who are familiar with how animals communicate their needs and habits. As a result, a lot of valuable knowledge is collected, which not only helps these animals but can also then be made available for future farms. We also consider this to be an important task.
Another goal is to establish a vegan community on the Lebenshof that jointly pursues the above-mentioned goals. In addition, we are starting the first construction phase for a tiny house project this summer.
How has Lasst die Tiere Leben e.V. grown over time? What are some of the biggest obstacles your organization has faced? And in contrast, what have been some of the greatest advances & achievements you are truly proud of?
Our growth is founded upon those people who have found their purpose in life in this project. At the moment, there are 3 people who live permanently on the farm and take care of almost 400 animals. And we are so much more than proud of them.
One of our biggest obstacles is that we actually would need 6 such people so that each can rest for a day or two. And it is not that easy to find these people. Therefore, the 3 people living with our animals are the most valuable assets that we have.
Another very important point and reason (also causing some sleepless nights) is finances. We are completely funded by donations. Our growing community and their financial support – for example, in the form of sponsorships – helps us a lot and is extremely important.
Since March 2021, a vegan company in Berlin has taken on full sponsorships – one animal for each of its employees. That really gives us a lot of courage to continue on; we are very happy about it and we are proud of the trust that they are expressing in our work.
Do you have any advice for those of us who want to incorporate more activism into our daily lives (especially with regard to animal welfare)? What can we focus on in order to further help these animals or to better protect the rights of all animals?
We think that it is very important to live vegan or at least to start making our way there. Ultimately, the consumer controls production. This also includes buying products that are free from animal suffering, be it cosmetics, detergents, etc. Sometimes you can’t even imagine where animal suffering might be hidden.
We can achieve a lot by gaining more mindfulness in our life and through the example we set in our circle of acquaintances. This is often difficult but very important, so that others will also pay attention. You can support organizations you trust, financially or with on-site help. This is activism that anyone can do.
How could the animals benefit from this donation at the moment?
Mostly for our pigs and their separate feeding places. We have built separate feeding stations in the outside area for our large pig herd (a group of 11). The pigs run in there every morning and evening to be fed and can eat in peace without disturbing each other, which would otherwise lead to injuries. This also has the advantage that we can examine the pigs stress-free if necessary, provide them with medication and treat them individually. Unfortunately, we noticed in winter that the frozen ground outside can be dangerous. One of our pigs, Piggeldy, tore off a claw and had to be treated at the FU animal clinic.
So that we can feed them all better next winter, we would like to rebuild their feeding boxes in the barn. In addition, we want to enable our other group of 6 to have boxes as well, so that all 17 pigs can eat safely in the barn in winter just as in summer. In the summer, the pigs would then also be better protected from stinging insects.
The building materials required for this (metal fences, doors and posts) cost around €8,000. Since we do everything in-house, the highest costs are the material costs. With your donations, you would help us to build those feeding boxes.
In conjunction with a sponsorship for one of the pigs, this results in an even better future for them. For us as a Lebenshof, which is only financed by donations and volunteer work, sponsorships are essential for our and the animals’ survival. It costs us an average of €100 per month to care for a pig properly. All pigs from this group of 11 come from a testing lab.
And one last question: what were your favorite animals when you were children? ♡
When she was 2 years old, Katharina saw a kitten on the way to kindergarten as it was running after her and her mother. It cried to her and she immediately let it into her heart. The little one’s home could not be found, and it became the first animal to enter her home and heart. During some holidays with her parents as a child, she came into contact with animals on a farm. Of course, there you don’t tell the children what happens to these beloved animals.
It was the same with Gina, who grew up in Kazakhstan. Her grandmother had a small farm with chickens, pigs and cows. As a child, she also didn’t know what would happen to these animals. She took care of them, of the cats and their babies and the dogs that were kept on leashes. She was very drawn to all of them.
I myself had my first relationships and great loves with little homeless baby cats that I would always take home with me but was never allowed to keep. I hid them under my bed, but they were always found, causing many tears.
Tags: Charity, Interview
J. R. Thesis Smith is a mixed-race millenial in the dawn of their 30s & a wordsmith of sorts. They've spent most of their waking life in the U.S. – in the urban sprawl of NYC that is New Jersey, in the depths of its suburban echoes – but always dreamed of making their way across a bigger pond, to a place where opportunity would knock a little more often. After completing their training at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts (effectively spending three poor years in NYC) as a dance major, they gifted themselves a semester of studying abroad in Berlin, and in doing so kept a vow made in early adolescence – thereby inciting a metamorphosis of promise into full-bodied intention: to eventually fully emigrate to Berlin, the first space that had ever allowed them the freedom to find their own breath, their pace of existence. Now that they finally live there, they're learning how to breathe again – striving to become a more active member of the Undercommons as they continue on the odyssey that is their self-realization as an artistic being. Their most resonant hope is that they will be able to say what is true & necessary & kind; that people will find the time to listen, to themselves and each other; and that their voice will inspire other voices to speak out in turn.
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