Benjy the gay bull to arrive at sanctuary, after being saved from slaughter
A gay bull who was rescued from slaughter by the co-creator of the Simpsons will arrive at an animal sanctuary this weekend.
A farmer in Ireland said earlier this month that he would send Benjy – who he had purchased as a breeding bull – to the slaughterhouse for showing more interest in other bulls than with cows.
A campaign to rescue him from the fate attracted some support online – though some were critical of spending money rehoming a bull instead of putting it towards human LGBT issues.
However, Simpsons co-creator Sam Simon – a renowned philanthropist who has given away “most” of his money after being diagnosed with a terminal illness – stumped up the full £5,000 cost of the fee to move Benjy to the Hillside Animal Sanctuary in Norwich.
The bull is set to finally arrive at his new home this weekend, after being shipped over from Ireland.
Graham Davies, who led the campaign to save the bull, said: “We would like to say a huge thank you to all 321 supporters who donated what they could afford to help save Benjy and have him transported here to the UK.
“A recent survey showed 44% of young LGBT people had considered suicide, which is just sickening. No one, man or beast, should feel unwanted, ashamed, threatened or bullied because of their sexuality.”
Benjy might not be so keen to arrive at his new home though – the first order of business is his castration.
Farmer John Watson said previously: “He’ll be castrated. I know they say Benjy’s gay, but we won’t be taking any chances.
“Any animals that come here are neutered because we want to rescue animals in need, not breed them and fill up the sanctuary.”
