Animal Rights
Renee and Tommy Sonnen of Rowdy Girl Sanctuary on Converting Cattle Ranchers to Plant-Based Farming
Renee King-Sonnen and her husband Tommy, a multi-generational Texas cattle rancher, share how a rescued calf named Rowdy Girl sparked a family transformation from cattle ranching to founding Rowdy Girl Sanctuary and the Rancher Advocacy Program, helping ranchers nationwide transition to plant-based farming.
Topics Covered
- How bottle-feeding a rescued calf, Rowdy Girl, began Renee's emotional awakening to the individuality and suffering of cattle
- The dramatic standoff over Tommy's herd that led Renee to buy her husband's cattle rather than see them sent to auction
- Tommy's path from lifelong rancher to full-time vegan, including the influence of Cowspiracy's Kip Andersen
- The founding and mission of the Rancher Advocacy Program (RAP), which helps cattle and poultry farmers transition to sustainable, plant-based businesses like mushroom farming
- Case studies: a former Arkansas chicken and cattle farm converting to a mushroom farm, and a sixth-generation Texas cattle ranch pivoting to vegan weddings and holistic land use
- The urgent need for a 'new sanctuary model' as mass numbers of farm animals exit the system, including land grants and rewilding
- Plans for the 2020 RAP Summit in Austin, Texas, and Rowdy Girl's veganic farm and education center
About the Guest
Renee King-Sonnen is the founder of Rowdy Girl Sanctuary and the Rancher Advocacy Program (RAP), which helps cattle ranchers and poultry farmers transition from animal agriculture to sustainable plant-based businesses. Her husband, Tommy Sonnen, is a multi-generational Texas cattle rancher turned vegan co-founder of the sanctuary, located in Angleton, Texas.