Double D Bar Ranch in Manorville was purchased in September 1997 to act as a home for abandoned and neglected farm animals. Since then, the purported refuge has taken in an array of farm animals, including horses, goats, sheep, a pig, rabbits, chickens, turkeys, assorted waterfowl, several deer, and even a pig.
The facility is now subject to investigation of animal rights abuse and neglect at the hands of the proprietors.
The latest investigation by District Attorney Ray Tierney (R) into the Double D Bar Ranch animal “sanctuary” in Manorville is just the latest installment of how much some people are lacking in compassion and empathy.
Double D Bar Ranch, Inc., now faces 112 counts of Animal Neglect.
Firstly, we’ll add the disclaimer that these are merely allegations that will pan out in court in due time.
But it shouldn’t discourage the opportunity to levy the opinion that while animals are not “human,” they’re also not “subhuman.” And just because they’re not quite human doesn’t mean they’re required to be treated as significantly less.
Animals are unequivocally not human; this is obvious. But does that mean we are permitted to treat them as something less than an inanimate object?
We understand the great range of products that animals can provide us, making them somewhat dispensable, but not prohibitively so.
Animals not only look to humans for care and safety in many circumstances, but countless videos have documented their uncanny ability to silently communicate with people, often asking for help for rescuing young or for freedom from thick brush, a fence, etc.
Our pets are even more equipped to not only communicate with us in similar situations, but they can detect our energy, mood, and emotions and feed off of them or offer their own forms of care and safety to us.
It’s our mandate to care for animals and treat them humanely, even in light of the variety of animal products that benefit us regularly. To abuse and neglect them, assuming they have no emotions, don’t experience stress, fear, or loneliness, and to cast them aside completely is completely selfish and cruel behavior.
The issue, we find, has reached a new height in 2025, as “pet culture” has truly taken off due to social media. Pets are regarded now more than ever, perhaps, as official family members, which, in turn, strengthens the human-animal relationship and understanding.
So, if your pet dog isn’t on the chopping block for abuse or neglect, what makes a duck, a goat, or a sheep any more deserving?
The people of Double D Bar Ranch, the Holtsville Ecology Site, and other similar sites of alleged abuse – again, if allegations are proven true – are in serious need of soul-searching. The investigations are completely warranted based on the allegations and that further reform might be necessary where applicable. Legal reform might prove tricky in some circumstances, as an animal can’t exactly testify against an abuser in court, but sting operations and undercover “shelter volunteers” could be a creative workaround, if the law permits.
We commend Suffolk County, D.A. Tierney, the Town of Brookhaven, and the several other animal welfare organizations who were crucial in opening this investigation.
Allegations are just those and we recognize the unproven nature of the case(s) so far, but the concept of the title stands:
Animals might not be human, but does that mean they deserve to be treated as significantly less?
