Renee King-Sonnen, the empress of all things Rowdy Girl—
including founding the Sanctuary with that name, writing the memoir “Rowdy Girl: Confessions of a Vegan Cattle Rancher,” and being profiled in the documentary “Rowdy Girl”—discusses her approach to writing the book, receiving input from various folks, and fervent cheerleading from Jane Velez-Mitchell. I explain why I described her book as “hair raising.” And why it’s arguably two books—a recovery memoir, with a number of anecdotes and details that aren’t for the faint of heart. AND a gripping account of what happened when her husband, Tommy, bought a working cattle ranch as an investment toward retirement. She addresses the extent to which being someone in recovery for many moons played a role in shaping her decisions about how open to be in 
sharing her stories. And, boy, is she candid in recounting a wide array of tough times, serious challenges, and multiple instances of sexual assault. Some of those challenges involved going vegan. Indeed, a central theme that courses through the Rowdy Girl saga is transformation,
including a longtime omnivore converting to veganism…Renee and Tommy get divorced, then remarried…the cattle ranch Tommy bought evolved into a facility providing sanctuary to farm animals at risk of being slaughtered, while promoting an ethical vegan lifestyle. Renee speaks of her beloved Rowdy Girl, whom she cared for as a calf, and with whom she has had a profound connection. Renee King-Sonnen is slated to be a speaker at the Tampa Bay VegFest, taking place on Nov 14, at Perry Harvey Sr. Park, in Tampa. Her talk is entitled “Confessions of a Vegan Cattle Rancher”—she provides a sneak preview of the talk in this interview. (https://www.tampabayvegfest.com/tampa-bay-vegfest-speakers/)
ALSO: I spoke with Myriam Parham, the co-founder of Florida Voices For Animals, which produces the annual Tampa Bay VegFest, happening this year on Nov 14, at Perry Harvey Sr. Park, in Tampa, from 11am to 5pm. We asked Myriam to outline some of the elements of this year’s VegFest, the 14th annual, including the speakers—among them, of course, Renee King-Sonnen (“Confessions of a Vegan Cattle Rancher”), and an environmental panel, hosted by Tampa Bay Times environment reporter, and periodic “Talking Animals” guest, Max Chesnes—over 30 vegan food vendors, cooking demos, a variety of yoga offerings and the always-popular, truly family-friendly Kids Fun Zone. While Veg Fest will continue to offer adoptable animals through local rescues, Myriam explains that this component will be limited this year, having become concerned about the critters becoming too hot, stressed, or otherwise uncomfortable over the course of the day on the VegFest grounds. (https://www.tampabayvegfest.com/)
COMEDY CORNER: Billy Prinsell’s “Dating After Hunka Bunkas” (https://www.instagram.com/billyprinsell/?hl=en)
MUSIC: Rebekah Pulley’s “Talking Animals Theme,” instrumentals
NAME THAT ANIMAL TUNE: We didn’t play “Name That Animal Tune” today.
AUDIO ARCHIVE:
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