Chickens are among the most underestimated animals on the planet. Often viewed through the narrow lens of agriculture, they are rarely acknowledged for what they truly are: intelligent, emotionally aware individuals capable of forming bonds, expressing preferences, and responding deeply to the world around them.
In this episode of Better Life for Animals, Cheryl Moss speaks with Liz Wheeler, co-founder of Secondhand Stories Chicken Sanctuary, about what changes when people move beyond assumptions and begin to see chickens as sentient beings worthy of dignity and care.
The Moment That Changed Everything
For Liz Wheeler, advocacy was not a sudden decision. It was the natural extension of a lifelong connection to animals. But one encounter shifted her perspective permanently.
When Liz visited another sanctuary and held a rescued chicken named Ellen, her understanding transformed. What she expected to be a distant, somewhat indifferent bird turned out to be soft, aware, and deeply engaging. That experience challenged the stereotype that chickens lack personality.
Ellen had been rescued from a university setting and given the rare opportunity to live out her life in safety. She celebrated birthdays, enjoyed treats, and formed relationships with her caregivers. For Liz and her partner, sponsoring Ellen and spending time with her made one thing undeniable: every living being is capable of emotion and deserving of compassion.
That realization eventually led to the creation of Secondhand Stories Chicken Sanctuary.
Chickens Are Not All the Same
Spend even a short amount of time around rescued chickens, and the myth that they are interchangeable quickly falls apart.
Today, the sanctuary cares for more than twenty rescued chickens, and no two are alike. Some are curious and bold, eagerly approaching visitors in hopes of attention. Others are cautious, preferring distance until trust is earned.
One rooster, Ezra, confidently signals when he wants to be picked up by placing a foot onto a visitor’s leg. Another, Hershey, is gentle and observant, often stepping aside to allow the hens to eat first.
Liz often explains it this way: imagine combining the best qualities of dogs with the unpredictability of toddlers. What emerges is an animal full of personality, nuance, and charm.
Recognizing these differences is the first step toward understanding chickens as individuals rather than a category.
Compassion Should Never Be Conditional
A powerful theme throughout the conversation is the tendency for humans to misinterpret animal behavior.
When a rooster keeps his distance or a chicken reacts defensively, the behavior is frequently labeled as aggression. Liz invites people to reconsider that framing by asking a simple question: if you were a prey animal and a towering potential predator approached you, how would you respond?
Fear is a rational survival response. Protectiveness is not a character flaw.
Animals do not need to be friendly, cuddly, or entertaining to deserve respect. Their worth is inherent, not dependent on how comfortable they make humans feel.
This shift in perspective moves compassion from something conditional to something principled.
From Bookshop to Sanctuary
Interestingly, Secondhand Stories began not as a sanctuary but as a secondhand bookstore. After meeting Ellen, Liz and her team started selling used books and donating the proceeds to a farm sanctuary. Their efforts raised more than $25,000 Canadian.
What started as a fundraising initiative soon evolved into something larger. The desire to do more led to the founding of their own sanctuary, built on three pillars: rescue, education, and advocacy.
Operating under a capacity-for-care model, the sanctuary prioritizes quality of life over expansion. The goal is not simply to rescue as many animals as possible, but to ensure that every chicken receives attentive, lifelong care.
Visitors are welcomed through scheduled tours, where many meet a chicken for the very first time. These encounters often spark reflection and, in some cases, lasting change.
Because when abstraction becomes personal, empathy grows.
Meeting People Where They Are
In addition to her sanctuary work, Liz serves as Philanthropy Manager for Faunalytics, an organization that provides research to help animal advocates communicate more effectively.
One of the most valuable lessons she has learned is that advocacy is not one-size-fits-all. Messaging must reflect the audience.
Supporters who originally followed Secondhand Stories for books did not necessarily arrive with an interest in rescued chickens. Yet through thoughtful communication and storytelling, many have become more open to conversations about compassion and dietary choices.
The goal is not coercion. It is awareness.
Research-backed strategies have also helped Liz engage policymakers. By understanding political processes and presenting well-informed recommendations, she and her colleagues have successfully advocated for stronger municipal protections for backyard chickens.
Strategic communication, grounded in evidence, can influence real-world outcomes.
The “Small Body Problem”
One of the most sobering insights Liz shares is what advocates sometimes call the “small body problem.” As some consumers reduce their intake of larger animals, chicken consumption often increases.
Because chickens are smaller and less expensive, they are frequently perceived as replaceable commodities rather than sentient beings.
Living in a rural area has exposed Liz to this mindset firsthand. It is not uncommon for people to question why anyone would invest in veterinary care when a chicken can be purchased for a few dollars.
Assigning such a minimal value to a living creature reveals how deeply normalized this perception has become.
Changing that narrative requires helping people see the intrinsic value of each individual animal.
The Reality for Sanctuaries in Canada
Despite growing public concern about animal welfare, farm animal sanctuaries in Canada face significant challenges. Fewer than seventy exist across the country, and less than half have obtained charitable status.
Strict regulatory requirements make qualification difficult, particularly for organizations whose missions include advocacy related to food systems.
Without charitable designation, securing grants and major donations becomes far more challenging. As a result, many sanctuaries rely heavily on individual donors to sustain their work.
Yet Liz emphasizes that a sanctuary’s effectiveness cannot be measured solely by the number of animals rescued. Its influence extends to every visitor educated, every perception shifted, and every choice reconsidered.
Cultural transformation is cumulative.
A Vision Rooted in Recognition
If Liz could change one widespread belief overnight, it would be the idea that chickens are easily replaceable.
Instead, she hopes for a future in which their sentience is widely recognized and their lives are treated with the seriousness they deserve.
She also envisions stronger support systems for sanctuaries, allowing them to expand their educational reach and demonstrate that alternatives to industrial farming are possible.
Sanctuaries offer something powerful: the opportunity to see animals as they truly are rather than as products.
That visibility matters.
How Compassion Takes Shape
Creating a more compassionate world does not require grand gestures. Often, it begins with small, intentional actions.
● Visit a sanctuary.
● Support organizations doing rescue work.
● Stay open to learning.
● Allow new information to challenge old assumptions.
Every step contributes to a broader cultural shift.
As Liz Wheeler reminds us, animals do not need to earn our kindness. They do not need to entertain us or mirror human expectations. Their lives carry value simply because they are living beings.
When we begin to recognize that truth, compassion stops being theoretical and becomes part of how we move through the world.
And that is where meaningful change begins.
Episode Highlights
[00:00] Introduction
[03:00] The inspiration for Secondhand Stories Chicken Sanctuary
[06:00] Each chicken has a unique personality.
[10:45] Visitors are welcome to tour the facility.
[16:50] Liz’s role as Philanthropy Manager for Faunalytics
[19:50] From the love of books to the love of chickens for visitors.
[25:00] Tightening up the animal protection laws.
[28:00] The need for more support is never-ending.
About Liz Wheeler
Liz Wheeler is a passionate animal advocate who is dedicated to inspiring compassion for animals. She has completed a certificate in Animal Welfare from Thompson Rivers University and a certification in Anthrozoology at the University of Windsor. In the past five years, her enthusiasm for connecting people and animals has led her to a career as a fundraiser in the not-for-profit animal protection sector. She has worked at the Ottawa Humane Society, Humane Canada (Canadian Federation of Humane Societies), and is currently the Philanthropy Manager at Faunalytics. Liz is the co-founder of Secondhand Stories Chicken Sanctuary which aims to inspire compassion for chickens through rescue, education and advocacy. Liz dedicates her life to animals, and when she’s not working or focused on the chickens, she finds new ways to advocate for animal rights to various levels of government.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/lizmwheeler/
https://www.instagram.com/secondhandstories_/
https://www.youtube.com/@secondhandstories_
https://www.facebook.com/secondhandstoriesmicrosanctuary
www.tiktok.com/@secondhandstories
https://www.secondhandstories.ca/
About Cheryl Moss
Cheryl Moss is the host of the Better Life for Animals podcast, where she shares uplifting stories from sanctuaries and highlights the work of vegan activists, ethical consumers, and animal welfare leaders. She is also the founder of the Funding Blueprint for Sanctuaries summit designed to empower those involved with sanctuaries sustainable funding streams.
A passionate advocate for animal welfare, she is dedicated to ending factory farming and is working to raise $100,000 for Mercy For Animals to support underrepresented sanctuaries.
Beyond podcasting, Cheryl is a banking professional and an accomplished children’s author. A graduate of Main Street Vegan Academy, she promotes plant-based living through her books, Gabriel, Cluck, and Pickle the Pig, which inspire young readers to embrace kindness, sustainability, and compassion for animals.
When not advocating, she enjoys Pilates, and spending time with her rescue dogs and grandchildren. Through her work, writing, and activism, Cheryl continues to inspire positive change for animals and the planet.
https://www.facebook.com/BLFAnimals/
https://x.com/betterlife4anim
https://www.instagram.com/betterlife4animals/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/cherylmossabetterlifeforanimals/
