Tonya Robinson began nurturing and collecting animals when she was 7 years old. She spent her childhood on a dairy farm, learning how to care for animals of all kinds. In college, she bought land from her father and established her own farm.
“It’s always been something that’s been part of our family tradition,” Tonya says.
Now 58, Tonya still lives on the 208 acres on Karn’s Grove Road that she bought from her father, in a home she built from stone and wood with her husband, Rex Robinson. Tonya shares the land with 47 cats, three dogs, two donkeys, two geese, three chickens, two potbelly pigs, six buffalo, 50 cows, two bulls and 21 calves. She begins her days when the sun rises, feeding and taking inventory of her animals.
“They choose to live here or they don’t,” Tonya says of the animals. If one runs away, Tonya won’t try to retrieve it. “I have chosen nothing on my farm except for my cattle and buffalo.”
Robinson acquires many of the animals through the Owensboro Humane Society, where she is a dedicated volunteer. Most of them have been declared unadoptable and have little chance of finding a home anywhere but on her farm.
Professionally, Tonya is campus nurse at Kentucky Wesleyan College. It’s another manifestation of her drive to improve lives.
“I’ve always been attracted to people who have challenges,” Tonya says. “Life to me is so awesome and unexplainable. Every living thing is a miracle.”
She works as a nurse in order to provide for her animals.
“I love my job off the farm because it has given me the opportunity to buy things I need on the farm,” Tonya says. “If I won a million dollars, I would farm until it was gone.”
Aside from caring for her own animals, Tonya frequently rescues strays and assists friends who have sick pets. She feels for animals because they can’t control their situations and are dependent on people care for them.
“Sometimes it’s more emotionally involved than human care, because humans put themselves in their own predicaments,” Robinson said. “That’s why I sometimes have more compassion for animals than people.”
