Anyone who has ever visited Luvin Arms knows Tito the rescued cow. His bubbly, affectionate personality touches everyone who meets him. This month, we are highlighting Tito’s story, and hope you will consider sponsoring this very special cow resident.
Tito came to call Luvin Arms his home back in 2017, along with his two friends, Murphy and Gideon. As a male calf born into the dairy industry, Tito was destined for death at his birth. Male calves are considered worthless in the dairy industry. Males are taken from their mothers shortly after birth, and many are then put onto veal trucks. Without their mother’s milk to sustain them, many calves die in transit, too weak and malnourished to survive the journey. Because of this high death rate, extra babies are added to transit trucks in order to make up for the “deficit.”
When Tito and his friends arrived at the veal farm, they were at death’s door already. They were almost too weak to stand. They would have been thrown away like trash at the veal farm. A seed of compassion was planted in the transit truck driver’s heart that day, and he decided to drive those three babies towards life – he brought them to Luvin Arms Animal Sanctuary. Sadly, Tito’s two friends were too sick and passed away shortly after their arrival. Most likely, Tito was the one calf who was able to ingest some of his mother’s milk before being taken from her. Tito was now the lone survivor of his small group of innocent friends.
The Luvin Arms’ team doted on Tito, urgently helping him to fight for his life. From bottle feeding to spending nights with him in the barn, the team cared for Tito around the clock. While Tito was in quarantine during this early phase at the Sanctuary, he was never alone.
Each day, he grew stronger and stronger, both emotionally and physically.
“Tito would wind between my legs just like a puppy would. Each Tuesday when I came to my care shift, it seemed that he grew several inches, finally becoming too big to wind between my legs!”
Kathleen Jefferies, Luvin Arms’ Volunteer and Administrative Director
As Tito got healthier and more curious about his new home, his trust in humans grew along with his naturally playful personality. Because he was so young when he came to Luvin Arms, Tito imprinted upon humans. Although we loved this, we knew he would eventually need to integrate into the existing cow herd in order to have whole social and emotional health.
Tito needed a cow mentor. That’s where Leroy Brown came in! Tito learned how to be a cow from Leroy and the entire cow herd. And in turn, Tito taught his new cow family how to trust humans.
Tragically, we watched Tito grieve deeply when our sweet Leroy Brown passed away suddenly in early 2021. We were all heartbroken, but none more than Tito. Their connection was so profound. Tito didn’t leave the barn for months after Leroy’s death. Like us, it took Tito time to heal the incredible loss of his friend.
At the end of 2021, a young rescued cow entered all of our lives. The first time Tito saw Lucky up close, Tito literally broke the fence trying to get to him. These kindred spirits connected immediately, and are now forever friends. Tito’s need for deep connection and belonging was once again answered by another beautiful sentient being.
Today, Tito still loves hanging out with his human family just as much as his cow family. He is a Superstar Animal Ambassador for his species, participating in Sanctuary tours, sharing his story about surviving the dairy industry, giving the best cow hugs in town, and gladly accepting butt scratches.
Recently, we noticed some lumps on Tito’s underbelly. We are deeply concerned about Tito’s health and well being. He is our family! Would you consider sponsoring Tito right now? Your sponsorship will help us biopsy these lumps, and keep Tito safe and healthy. Click here for more information about sponsoring our Sanctuary Superstar, Tito, and don’t forget to schedule a tour to meet him in person!
