This Thanksgiving episode of The Hen Report serves up a hearty helping of gratitude alongside meaningful animal advocacy discussions. Jasmin and Mariann reflect on the growth of Our Hen House, which now reaches thousands of listeners weekly through multiple podcast formats. The episode features producer Vicki Beechler’s thoughtful review of Kendra Coulter’s new novel “The Tortoise’s Tale,” a beautifully crafted story told from a captive tortoise’s perspective that subtly weaves animal rights themes into a century-spanning narrative. Between moments of holiday reflection, the hosts share exciting developments in the alternative protein space and celebrate recent legal victories for animal activists in the UK.

This episode explores:

• How to navigate the emotional challenges of Thanksgiving as animal advocates while finding community and gratitude
• Producer Vicki Beechler’s review of “The Tortoise’s Tale” by Kendra Coulter, a new Simon & Schuster novel that skillfully portrays an animal’s perspective on captivity
• Recent breakthroughs in alternative protein technology, including cost parity achievements for cultivated chicken and fermented egg proteins
• Legal victories for Animal Rising activists in the UK, where juries refused to convict protestors who disrupted horse racing events
• The importance of finding authentic joy in animal advocacy while balancing the heaviness of awareness with moments of hope

RESOURCES

• • • BREAKING: CPS drops Grand National Crown Court case after juries refused to convict horse protectors.
    • Starting in December, 20 beagle rescuers face trial accused of burglary from MBR Acres.
    • The EVERY Co raises $55m to scale egg proteins via fermentation, crosses line ‘from promise to proof’
    • SuperMeat secures US$3.5 million to accelerate European launch after hitting cost parity on cultivated chicken
    • This Vegan Microbial Protein Made From Air And Electricity Could Go To Space
    • Tis the season to be thankful…for wild turkeys
    • Name That Meat, a poem on Andrea Gibson’s Tumblr
    • The Tortoise’s Tale on Bookshop.org
    • Defending Animals with Kendra Coulter

We are thrilled to expand the accessibility of our podcast by offering written transcripts of the interviews! Click here to read this episode's interview.

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Between now and December 31, every donation up to $20,000 will be tripled! Contributions of any amount will go towards our fundraising goal and are hugely appreciated. Our Hen House is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, so it’s tax-deductible. Thank you for helping us create quality content!

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Check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series.

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