Thanksgiving Victory: Pardoned Turkeys Won't Be Destined for Disneyland

Today, over 46 million turkeys will be served as Thanksgiving dinner, but two of those birds can count their lucky stars. At the annual Thanksgiving turkey pardoning ceremony yesterday morning, President Obama spared the lives of a pair of 21-week-old turkeys named Apple and Cider. Apple was named the official national Thanksgiving turkey, with Cider as the alternate. Both turkeys will escape with their necks this holiday, and Obama said, "it feels pretty good to stop at least one shellacking this November."

It is an annual tradition to pardon a turkey, but it isn't one that has gone without criticism from animal lovers. For the past five years, the turkeys have been sent to Disneyland to participate in a Thanksgiving Day parade and then spend the rest of their days at Disney's Big Thunder Mountain Ranch. While the pardoned birds may escape the dinner table, the turkeys often die within a year of living at Disneyland.

Over 1,000 Change.org readers signed a petition urging President Obama to re-think sending the pardoned turkeys to Disneyland. And this year, our president made new arrangements, choosing instead to send the turkeys to George Washington’s Mount Vernon Estate and Gardens in Virginia.

Mount Vernon isn't quite a farm sanctuary, but it's likely that the birds will receive better care at the estate than they would at the amusement park. The staff at the estate already care for other turkeys, as well as pigs, horses, and sheep. The turkeys will enjoy daily care, shelter and veterinary care.

The turkeys will be viewable to the public until January 6th. But because the estate prides itself on historical accuracy, and white turkeys like Apple and Cider were not around during President Washington's time, they will be cared for behind the scenes at an offsite facility after that date. This will definitely make for a much more peaceful existence than the turkeys would have endured at Disneyland.

Apple and Cider were chosen as the pardoned turkeys from among 20,000 born at a Modesto farm last summer. Obama joked: "It's like a turkey version of Dancing with the Stars, except the stakes for the contestants were much higher. Only one pair win the prize: life, and an all-expenses trip to Washington."

There's always tasteless jokes at the turkey pardoning ceremony, and, admittedly, pardoning two turkeys on the day before 46 million are slaughtered is a laughable gesture. At the same ceremony yesterday, two dead turkeys were donated to a homeless shelter. But I'm still in favor of the pardoning tradition, as it recognizes that saving the life of an animal does indeed "feel pretty good."

Apple and Cider might be the most famous turkeys of the year, but they won't be the only turkeys pardoned today. Many families will celebrate a turkey-less Thanksgiving holiday, choosing to bliss out on compassion instead of tryptophan. Certainly the only Apple and Cider I'll be enjoying this holiday season is the kind that comes in a glass.

Photo Credit: Harshlight