Photo: AFP
Tony Iommi might still be close friends with Ozzy Osbourne, but the two Black Sabbath cofounders have radically different histories when it comes to their treatment of birds.
While Ozzy is infamous for biting the heads off several doves during a record label meeting in 1981, Iommi shocked the staff of a local animal hospital in Tewkesbury, United Kingdom, earlier this year when he and his wife Maria Sjoholm showed up for help with an injured dove.
Vale Wildlife Hospital admin manager Natalie Gould recalled the story in a recent statement announcing Iommi and Sjoholm's new commitment as patrons of the facility.
"We are absolutely thrilled to have Tony Iommi join us as Vale Wildlife Hospital's newest patron," Gould said. "Tony and his wife, Maria, brought an injured collared dove to us earlier in the year. Everyone was pretty starstruck, and it was so lovely knowing they would both care enough and take the time to bring an injured patient to us."
The wildlife charity is staffed 24/7 and costs around £50,000 per month to run. The facility is funded through donations, fundraisers and membership packages.
Gould told Gloucestershire Live that Vale Wildlife treated nearly 8,000 patients in 2021, which marked a "huge increase" from just over 7,100 the previous year. The influx of patients and increases in costs of operation make the Iommis' patronage that much more significant. The hospital has treated 6,898 patients so far in 2022, with 170 animals currently in its care.
Iommi is also a patron of the Wythall Animal Sanctuary near his hometown of Birmingham.
But he's not the only Black Sabbath co-founder to put his money where his mouth is when it comes to animals. Bassist Geezer Butler's wife Gloria was awarded Last Chance for Animals' Sam Simon Award in 2019 for her support of the "Adopt, Don't Shop" campaign against animal exploitation.
Gloria told Q104.3 New York's Maria Milito that she and Geezer got involved with Last Chance after rescuing a kitten whose head was stuck in a fence near their home in England many years ago. At one time the couple owned nine cats and five dogs, but they have fostered many more over the years.
And while we can poke fun at Ozzy for his past misdeeds when it comes to animals, he too has found his way into animal activism. The Prince of Darkness even lent his face to a PETA campaign against declawing housecats in early-2020.
Furthermore, Ozzy's longtime touring bassist Rob 'Blasko' Nicholson is an outspoken animal activist and supporter of several Southern California-based feline rescues.