We recently connected with Tanya Griffin and have shared our conversation below.
Tanya, thank you so much for joining us and offering your lessons and wisdom for our readers. One of the things we most admire about you is your generosity and so we’d love if you could talk to us about where you think your generosity comes from.
I have always been the person (friends called me the hub) that likes to help and encourage others, I network well and refer business to others. I also help others with their websites, social media, donations, etc. I believe there is enough for all, it’s not a competition. We can all help each other. I constantly share other pig or animal rescue content, and support other farm animal sanctuaries. I have worked out donations of food and supplies from local food pantries and the SPCA of Texas, and share these items with other pet, farm and wildlife non-profits.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
When my husband and I married nearly 28 years ago, we lived in upscale Dallas. We would come up to the ‘farm’ he grew up on milking cows (an only child) it was a dairy farm and there were no vacation days! His parents were getting up in years and I suggested we move to the farm, as he traveled constantly for business, and my kids and I could be here to care for them. He didn’t think I’d last 6 months, but here we are. We have a beautiful 300 acre ranch that mostly had just beef cattle roaming, grazing and breeding. Of course my kids (8 & 10) wanted goats, chickens, rabbits, etc. When the pandemic hit, so many people that always wanted a pet pig finally got one since they were stuck at home. As we came out of that period, many were dumping their pigs to shelters and animal control as they had gotten so large, destructive and unable to care for them while also working. I noticed many of the pig rescues I followed were full and no longer accepting animals. As a permitted wildlife rehabber, I reached out to one Texas pig rescue, they were raising funds to purchase more land, and I offered to be a satellite location for them, they turned me down flat but said I was welcome to donate to their cause. I got online and set up my own non-profit because they were too greedy to accept my help. It took about a year for the final IRS status to go through, but I got it done, and we started off just rescuing pigs, by the time the IRS approved us we had rescued two mini longhorns and a mini mule from the slaughter pen (shipping animals, especially horses to Mexico for slaughter). I took in two large male peacocks, then the word spread via my wildlife and other rescue contacts and now I get calls for hoarding situations, roosters, ducks, rabbits, sheep, goats and more. They all get to live their lives free roaming the farm with warm safe shelters, five ponds and love.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
Social media skills, building up our local community’s awareness, educating followers on what they really should expect if getting a pet pig, Spreading information on medical care and how quickly pigs can re-produce, always spay and neuter immediately. Don’t give up, keep your content flowing, make it engaging, entertaining, heart tugging and sincere. Engage with your followers, let them know you see them and appreciate their interaction with your content. Be consistent.
To close, maybe we can chat about your parents and what they did that was particularly impactful for you?
They built me up and told me I could do anything, and I have always believed it.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://piggysuerescue.org
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/piggysuerescue
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/piggysuerescue
- Twitter: https://x.com/piggysuerescue
Image Credits
Piggy Sue Rescue
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
