Honest and Abe, turkeys Obama pardoned in 2015, are living their best lives in Virginia

Jessica Estepa | USA TODAY

Show Caption Hide Caption Pardoned turkeys live the good life in Virginia Abe and his understudy, Honest, were pardoned by President Obama in 2015 and now live on a beautiful farm in Virginia with their buddy, George.

LEESBURG, Va. — If it wasn't for former President Obama, Honest and Abe could have ended up on someone's Thanksgiving dinner table.

"I confess that Honest looks like good eating, but this is a democracy," Obama said at the 2015 annual Thanksgiving turkey pardoning. "Abe is now a free bird. He is TOTUS: the Turkey of the United States."

Back then, Honest and Abe were just a couple of 18-week-old, 40-pound turkeys from California — about the same age that other heritage turkeys are slaughtered and packaged for meals.

As President Trump pardoned two more turkeys on Tuesday, Honest and Abe are gobbling up their second chance at life and living out the remainder of their days in Morven Park, an idyllic 1,000-acre historic estate in Northern Virginia that was once home to the late Virginia Gov. Westmoreland Davis.

Life on the estate

Honest and Abe don't have anything to say about their lives in Morven Park. (They did not respond to questions about their lives as rehabilitated turkeys and their plans for Thanksgiving.)

Answering questions on their behalf: Jackie Wright Ly, Morven Park's museum engagement manager (and resident turkey wrangler).

Honest and Abe spend their days in an enclosure atop the estate's Turkey Hill, with one other poultry pal: George, who was raised in the same flock as Honest and Abe. But unlike his pardoned pals, he spent his 2015 Thanksgiving ringing the bell on the New York Stock Exchange before heading into retirement at Morven Park.

At first glance, it can be hard to tell the three birds apart. George has a large right foot, so he's a bit easier to identify. As for Abe and Honest, it all comes down to personality: Abe is at the top of the pecking order.

"He likes to show off his dominance," Wright Ly said. This usually happens at feeding times, she said.

More: Meet Wishbone and Drumstick, the turkeys President Trump plans to pardon

More: With turkey pardon, Trump spares Drumstick and Wishbone from Thanksgiving dinner

But overall, the lives of the three bird friends are not at all foul. Honest, Abe and George are nearly two-and-a-half years old, basically senior citizens in a world where turkeys bred for eating usually only make it to a few months old.

They are fed once a day, and then they're free to roam around their enclosure. In warmer days, school children come by and visit on field trips. During the winter, the turkeys stay cooped up, with heat lamps to keep them warm.

A tribute to years gone by

Their lives at Morven Park are an homage to the estate's past. Before he jumped into politics, former governor Westmoreland Davis turned part of his estate into one of the largest turkey-producing farms in the United States, even though he didn't have a background in agriculture.

The estate's poultry operations were shut down after Davis's death in 1942, and the estate itself is now run as a nonprofit. The pardoned birds' enclosure is located on the lands that were once a part of the turkey farm's operations.

According to Wright Ly, a former staffer at Morven Park campaigned the National Turkey Federation, which works with the White House on the annual pardoning, to have the pardoned turkeys sent to the estate.

Before 2013, pardoned birds were sent to live out their days at Frying Pan Farm Park in Herndon, Va., Disney's Circle D Ranch (after they served as the grand marshals of Disneyland's Thanksgiving parade, thanks to President George W. Bush) and George Washington's estate, Mount Vernon.

Morven Park's lobbying eventually worked, and the turkeys pardoned by President Obama from 2013 to 2015 ended up at the estate.

The good life isn't cheap

It is costly to keep the pardoned turkeys, though, since their annual care is estimated to range between $20,000 and $25,000, Wright Ly said. The estate won't have any new pairs of presidential pardoned pairs in the near future.

"We're not sure we're ready for more turkeys once these guys leave us," Wright Ly said, noting it was a resource decision.

So how long will Honest, Abe and George flock together before one of them flies to that coop in the sky?

It's unclear, since they're already much older than most heritage turkeys are ever meant to be. The 2013 pardoned turkeys, Caramel and Popcorn, and the 2014 turkeys, Mac and Cheese, all died of natural causes during their time on the estate.

For now, Abe and Honest get to hold on to their positions as the most senior pardoned turkeys in the United States.

The 2016 pair, Tater and Tot, are living their own best lives down in an enclosure at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Va. The 2017 pair, Wishbone and Drumstick, will join them there now that has Trump pardoned them.

Here's hoping everyone enjoys their gravy train.