We’ve seen an increase in the number of requests for rescues/taking animals in the last few months. Spring is especially a busy time with many schools still participating in the irrisponsible practice of chicken hatching projects leaving many chickens looking for a home and if one isn’t found, they are sent back to the farmer and typically culled. We’ve managed to help people find private homes as we are currently full for cockerels. Those with pet chickens and ducks etc often struggle at this time of year when spring hormones are kicking in and there can be some fighting between males, sadly they often immediately look to rehome and this puts a strain on rescues.
It’s been a difficult couple of months at the sanctuary, we sadly lost Fergus, the blind cow we rescued 6 months ago. He went down and couldn’t get back up. Despite the vets doing a range of tests and treatments and us rolling him by hand every 3hrs to prevent muscle/nerve damage from sitting on one side too long, he wasn’t improving and there was nothing we could do. He passed away peacefully in my lap with a full belly and surrounded by love. We also lost Francis, one of our gorgeous geese. He was a magnificent age of 25 years old! This left his friend Goose Willis on his own and very lonely. It seemed like fate when we were asked to take in another male goose, Luca, they immediately became the best of friends and at their first introduction they walked about mirroring each other 🙂
It doesn’t matter how many times we go through this, it never gets any easier. But the fact we feel that pain is a testament to the full life they lived, no matter how long they got to experience sanctuary life for, it shows the bonds they made, how loved they were and the impact they had on this planet. They are never forgotten!
