Should you take the Cotton Branch Farm Sanctuary Tour?
In a word… Yes!
I'm not at all paid to write this article, I just really enjoyed our experience and highly recommend the tour!
Here’s a review of our tour of Cotton Branch Farm Sanctuary:
I love visiting animal sanctuaries as a fun family day. It’s the perfect way for my daughter to get up close and personal with some animals... without exploiting them. It allows her to feel more connected with the animals and learn about them. Sometimes visiting zoos and petting farms can feel a bit icky. Especially knowing that their main driving factor is the bottom line… not the animals.
At Cotton Branch Farm Sanctuary, every dollar donated goes toward the care of the animals, and saving even more animals. They use the money for food, upkeep of shelters, and veterinary care.
Animal rescues in South Carolina that actually allow visitors are pretty rare. I get it. They’re busy taking care of the animals. They want to protect the animals that they’re putting so much effort into saving. They don’t want to have to deal with any liabilities associated with visitors.
But I love being able to see where my money is going, and connect with the animals that my money is going to help. I’m much more likely to become a lifelong donor when I have a personal connection with the organization.
Would I love to volunteer at a sanctuary to connect with the animals? Absolutely. Unfortunately, due to location limitations and the fact that I probably can’t take my daughter along with me, that isn’t always an option.
So if you have the opportunity to visit Cotton Branch Farm Sanctuary, definitely make the trip out there! It’s worth the visit. Here are some details of Cotton Branch as well as a recap of our visit…
- Cotton Branch Farm Sanctuary - What Is It?
- Where is Cotton Branch Farm Sanctuary?
- How Do You Sign up for a Tour of Cotton Branch Farm Sanctuary?
- How Much Does a Tour of Cotton Branch Farm Sanctuary Cost?
- What to Expect on Your Tour of the Animal Sanctuary
- What We Learned on Our Tour of Cotton Branch
- How Else Can You Get Involved at Cotton Branch Farm Sanctuary?
Cotton Branch Farm Sanctuary - What Is It?
Cotton Branch Farm Sanctuary is a non-profit animal sanctuary in South Carolina. They mostly rescue pigs, but have other farm animals as well. In addition to pigs, we met cows, sheep, horses, and goats.
Their main goal at the sanctuary is to bring in animals from abusive, neglectful, or other harmful situations. They rehabilitate the animals, and hopefully adopt them out as appropriate.
Where is Cotton Branch Farm Sanctuary?
Cotton Branch Farm Sanctuary
328 Lightwood Knot Rd
Leesville, SC 29070
Cotton Branch Farm Sanctuary is located about 30 minutes outside of Columbia, SC.
We drove from Greenville, SC, and it took us about 2 hours to get there. The drive meanders its way through rural towns and country roads, so it made for a pretty peaceful journey. No need to deal with traffic on 85. And no winding mountain roads to get carsick on.
How Do You Sign up for a Tour of Cotton Branch Farm Sanctuary?
The tours of Cotton Branch Farm Sanctuary are held every Saturday at 11am. You can sign up on their website. That page also provides more information on what to bring, what to leave at home, and what else to expect.
How Much Does a Tour of Cotton Branch Farm Sanctuary Cost?
At the time this article was written, and during our visit, the cost was $30 per adult and $10 per child. You can check on their current prices here.
If that seems like a steep price to you, I encourage you to think about value over cost. Doing a bit of research, the average cost of a zoo visit is $12.39 for adults, and $8.87 for kids. So for a family with two kids, that equates to $42.52. For the same family, a visit to Cotton Branch would cost $80.
But what is the difference in your experience between a zoo and Cotton Branch?
At a zoo, you walk around with a million other families and admire the animals through the fences and enclosures.
At the animal sanctuary, you get a personalized experience. You learn about the individual animals that have come to the farm. Their backgrounds, their personalities, and the struggles they have overcome. You go into the enclosures and pet the animals. You feel connected.
And where is your money going?
The intricacies of the facades of conservation and education placed by zoos are beyond my explaining abilities. The truth is, most zoos operate for the sake of profit. I know, I know, everyone needs money. I just don’t think it needs to come at the expense of exploiting animals.
For a place to start for some more information about zoos, check out the articles Top 5 Misleading Claims Zoos Make and 4 Things We Need to Stop Telling Ourselves About Zoo Animals.
At Cotton Branch Farm Sanctuary, every dollar donated goes toward the care of their current animals, and toward rescuing more animals. Have any more questions? Ask them on your tour. They’re an open book, because they have nothing to hide 🙂
What to Expect on Your Tour of the Animal Sanctuary
A tour of Cotton Branch Farm Animal Sanctuary is a small-group, intimate experience. The website notes that the tour typically lasts about an hour and a half. And ours lasted nearly two hours.
Josh walked us around the farm at a leisurely pace. He showed us the different areas where the animals lived. Introduced us to many of the pigs by name, and explained some of their personalities and backgrounds. As we chatted, we were able to give the pigs some very welcomed TLC via pets and belly scratches.
Josh is an open book. He was extremely informative, both about the pigs as well as the industries that brought them here. He was able to answer any silly question we could think of, and even explained his story of how he ended up at Cotton Branch. His passion for what he does came through in all that he does.
Note: It is a farm. And these are not in-home pigs. You WILL get dirty! Dusty on a dry day, and muddy on a wet one. Come prepared.
They also have a “large animals” section at the farm, where there is the biggest dairy cow I have ever seen. Well, he was male, so I guess technically he’s a bull. But he certainly doesn’t fit the stereotype. Freckles is about 6’4” at the withers (or the shoulders), and spent most of his time munching on some hay and drooling all over visitors coming over for a pet. There were also some goats, horses, donkeys, and sheep.
If you’re hungry after your tour, Josh can recommend a few places to eat in Leesville that offer vegan options. The Mexican places, San Jose Mexican and Mi Rancho, don’t use animal products in their beans and rice. So just ask for your vegetarian meal sans cheese and sour cream, and it will be vegan.
According to Josh, San Jose Mexican has the best tacos and burritos, and Mi Rancho has the best Chimichurris and fajitas. We went with Mi Rancho, and were not disappointed. I went with the fajitas, Brent went with the Chimichurris, and Elsie had a meal of chips and salsa, ha!
Josh and Evan have recently opened a bar in town, called Homeland Craft Beer and Wine. So if you’re feeling like a liquid refreshment after your tour, be sure to check it out. They currently offer vegan snacks, but you won’t be able to get a meal there.
What We Learned on Our Tour of Cotton Branch
Many of the pigs arrive at the farm aggressive and fearful of humans. Josh and Evan put a lot of hard work ensuring that the animals feel safe and happy in their new homes. They work hard to get the animals to a point where they trust humans again and are gentle around people.
There are a lot of different types of pigs. We saw pot belly pigs, feral pigs, farm pigs, and a lot of crossbred pigs.
Josh with the giant farm pigs
Pigs can procreate at an incredibly young age. Like at just 8-12 weeks old depending on if they are male or female. In certain situations, this can lead to a lot of inbreeding and owners getting more pigs than they can handle. This inbreeding can cause a lot of dwarfism, hip dysplasia, and other health issues.
There’s no such thing as a “teacup pig”. Are they smaller than a regular potbelly pig? Sure. But they still grow to be an 85-100 pound animal! People are sold on having a “teacup pig”. But when the pigs outgrow their teacup size, their owners don’t want them anymore!
Pigs are incredibly intelligent. Many of the pigs they have at the farm had somehow escaped from their previous homes… on multiple occasions. At the sanctuary, they’ve never had any pigs escape. You know why? Because they’re happy there!
How Else Can You Get Involved at Cotton Branch Farm Sanctuary?
If you live in Columbia, SC and want to volunteer at Cotton Branch, they offer a number of volunteer positions… including “Pig Cuddlers”! You can find out more about their volunteer positions on their website.
If you live too far away to visit Cotton Branch Farm Sanctuary, you can make one time donations here. Or you can become a monthly contributor, and event sponsor a specific animal at the sanctuary.
If you want to know exactly what your money is buying for the animals, you can buy items off of their Amazon Wishlist. Buy it directly from Amazon, and it will be shipped to the farm!
And finally, if you feel a piggie-shaped void in your household, they are always looking to adopt out their animals to a good home. They also have fostering options as well. You can find their adoption application here.
Do you have any favorite farm sanctuaries to visit? I’d love to know where to go! Let me know in the comments below. (That was a lot of rhyming, ha!)
If you’re in Greenville and looking for coffee or a vegan ice cream, check out some of my Greenville recommendations here.