Though the art of proper animal care has not been completely disenfranchised, it most certainly has been replaced for the entertainment of the population. Through zoos and other forms of unethical animal care, the stigma behind animal care has become something else entirely. Though one man begs to differ. Regardless of any financial situation he’s been in, Ben Christie, or “Uncle Ben” as dubbed by his fans was able to completely reshape the minds of individuals interested in urban animal care.

On January 8th, 2020, Christie began his YouTube channel in the comfort of his own home, originally starting with a small menagerie of animals including a Kangaroo, a Rhea, and a flock of pigeons. He began posting things not only on YouTube but on TikTok as well. He quickly gained a social media presence and became famous for being a non-traditional farmer. Christie had always had an interest in animals, and since he was younger he loved fishing and used to catch geese and pigeons. Christie attended Baylor University in Waco Texas to study Psychology and Neuroscience, but after his freshmen year, he realized that this field wasn’t for him and switched to Business and majored in sails. After a lot of hard work and internships, he secured a sales job at Oracle in March 2020.

He began to lose interest in his school, and out of the blue picked up farming. Christie had become the “Chicken Guy” and would raise them himself, and sell eggs on campus. Ben had begun his rescue journey after saving a pigeon, and realized how much he loved rehabbing animals and developed a passion for taking care of them. In 2021, he quit his job to become a full-time ranching YouTuber and his internet fame was able to support him financially. Christie has formed the “Urban Rescue Ranch”, which is a non-profit organization homing all sorts of animals now, including capybaras, goats, turtles, prairie dogs, and his farm is forever growing.

He’s currently sitting at 2.05 Million subscribers and is working on expanding his farm for a more diverse selection of animals. In the future, his future plan is to move to Indonesia, he says because animals are mistreated there a lot more than that in the United States. Ben Christie is an incredible influence on the farming community and an extremely informed educator.