Rescue Tails Animal Sanctuary

02/24/2025

As we settle back into some normalcy here at Rescue Tails Animal Sanctuary after the bitter cold and the loss of Cludy, we thought it would be good to share some photos of the day to day here at the sanctuary grounds.

Just a few shots of the animals enjoying their hay and the warming weather, and one shot of how destructive resident rescue cow Branwell is with all of his healthy, happy energy. His poor tent never stood a chance, and we are in the process of repairs/replacement for that.

Life continues apace in the animal rescue world - never slow down, and always keep your head up!

02/05/2025

Unfortunately we have heartbreaking news to share this morning. Despite rallying briefly from his bout of choke last month, Resident horse Cludy developed a series of complications associated with the condition. In tryin to clear the choke, food particles entered his lungs and caused a condition known as aspiration pneumonia. He spent two weeks on heavy doses of antibiotics, but his pneumonia did not respond to treatment and Cludy stopped eating entirely over the weekend.

Cludy unfortunately already had a compromised immune system, and it simply could not fight off the infection this time. He fought to the very last second, and never lost his quirky personality. Right up until the end, Cludy was loved, cared for, and allowed to simply be a horse the way he was never able to in his life before Rescue Tails.

Yesterday morning the decision was made by our care team and our veterinary team to put Cludy to rest and not prolong any suffering. This is an unfortunate, heartbreaking, but always present aspect of end of life animal rescue. Often the right decision for an animal is the hardest one imaginable. With our incredible vet team, Cludy was gently, chemically, allowed to rest at last.

This is the face of Cludy we will all remember. A spirit that wouldn't break no matter the hardship.

01/17/2025

Happy Friday all!

A quick update for the week. Resident giant horse friend Cludy had a rough week. While eating his breakfast Wednesday morning, a gunshot in the neighborhood startled him and he sucked unchewed food into his esophagus. This caused an esophageal blockage, known in horses as Choke, creating a situation where food and water could not pass down his throat properly.

Choke is a critical life-threatening condition on horses, and if not resolved quickly, it will eventually cause dehydration, starvation, and death. Often, in situations like Cludy faced, Choke will resolve itself in a couple of hours. Unfortunately, when that is not the case, the horse has to be sedated, and have a tube inserted into their esophagus, down their throat, and into their stomach to clear the blockage and resolve the condition.

Cludy could not clear the blockage on his own, and did not enjoy his encounter with the tube and stomach siphon. He is recovering wonderfully and will hopefully not have to experience all of this again. A huge thanks to the amazing veterinary team at Henry River Mobile Veterinary Services as always for coming out on short notice and taking care of this big dirty guy and all of our other sanctuary residents. We could not ask for a better team to help us care for these animals.

Cludy is once again as happy, and as dirty, as ever!

01/09/2025

As the winter storm bears down on us this weekend, we wanted to remind everyone to please stay safe and warm. Jasper and Prova have already got their cozy beds all sorted out for the coming cold, and Leela is sporting a gorgeous fur coat. Take a page from their book - cozy up, have blankets and warm coats ready in case of a power outage or furnace breakdown, and stay safe together everyone!

12/23/2024

Rescue Tails Animal Sanctuary is heartbroken today to announce the loss of one of our sanctuary family members. This past week, we were notified of the sudden death of our dear friend Rosy May Knapp - friend and family of both the sanctuary and a huge, heartbroken family of her own. Rosy lit up the life of anyone who met her, and her deep love for animals and her friends was evident instantly upon meeting her. While we may have lost Rosy, she will be carried in our hearts, and our work with the animals she loved, always.

In lieu of flowers or cards, her family is requesting donations to a GoFundMe set up to help offset the very high costs of funeral arrangements and service costs, which can average up to $25,000 at this time of year. Please, if you have the means, the warmth, and the love in your heart - donate to help her family through this incredibly hard time. Donations can be sent to her GoFundMe and will directly aid them with funeral costs this Christmas.

Rosanna (Rosy) May Knapp, June 16, 1988 – December 18, 2024 … Casey Farthing needs your support for In Loving Memory of Rosanna May Knapp: Funeral Support

12/23/2024

Happy Holidays from the whole gang here at Rescue Tails! It wouldn't be a the holiday season without a bad holiday photoshop, so we're sharing Jasper doing his best as resident Santa. This is a rehash form last season I'm afraid, as it has been a very busy month and we haven't had time to properly do any bad photoshopping for the year.

Be safe this holiday season, and remember - Jasper the holiday pig always has his eye on you, so be kind to one another, be generous, and have a wonderful holiday!

12/09/2024

There is always one thing you can guarantee here at the sanctuary.

When it rains, the animals are going to test out the quality of the mud when used as camouflage.

11/15/2024

A collective "hello" from some of the sanctuary rescues today. Each of these sweet faces was rescued from a terrible abuse situation, a cockfighting ring, or a backyard breeder/hoarding case. This giving season we wanted to remind everyone that every animal deserves better, be they cat, dog, livestock, pig, bird, fish or reptile.

It doesn't matter what the species is, they deserve to be taken care of, fed, given the proper medical care and love that they deserve, and be safe and happy. Here at Rescue Tails Animal Sanctuary, we have given these, and so many more animals, a chance at that happily ever after.

Please consider donating to us this holiday season, to help keep these animals fed, warm, and healthy. Every little bit helps us save lives just like theirs.

Donations can be made directly through this Facebook post, directly through the Paypal Giving Fund at paypal.com/us/fundraiser/charity/4838738
and we can be found on Venmo at

As an entirely volunteer run nonprofit organization, every penny donated goes directly into the care of the animals, and every penny is tax-deductible!

11/10/2024

Our friends at Foothills Animal Health Center are now offering grooming services for your furred friends - at least the cat and dog varieties! Their team is a fantastic group, and your pets could not be in better hands.

Exciting News!

We’re thrilled to announce the launch of our NEW Pet Grooming Services! 🐾🫧

Our grooming packages are designed to keep your furry friends looking and feeling their best:
1. Bath & Brush
2. Bath, Brush, & Sanitary Trim
3. Bath, Brush, & Full Haircut

Pricing:
Packages are based on your pet’s weight, with adjustments for coat length, thickness, matting, or temperament.

Availability:
Appointments are available on select Saturdays at our Hickory location. While you may request a preferred date, the time will be coordinated with our grooming specialists.

To book an appointment, email our grooming expert Madison at [email protected].

Spots are limited, so don’t wait—treat your pet to a spa day today!

Visit catawbahumane.org/services/grooming for more information! Link will be included in the comments below!👇🏼

10/29/2024

Animals need enrichment. This is a simple, fundamental fact. They grow bored, and this can cause a multitude of behavioral problems and destructive tendencies. Unfortunately, this is often doubly true for animals saved from abusive and neglectful situations. Because they largely spent their lives without any kind of enrichment or toys, it can be very hard to get an abused animal to trust anything new without simply ignoring or outright destroying it out of fear.

Luckily, with time, patience, and a lot of love - any animal can be taught that it's okay to let your guard down and play a little bit. It's okay to feel safe for once and enjoy life. These are just a couple of reasons why giving new enrichment opportunities and toys to any animal is so important. Bonus - not only is it good for them, it's good for you! Watching an animal play and enjoy itself is a fantastic mood booster!

With that in mind - enjoy these pictures of some resident goats playing with their seesaw enrichment. Tentatively, in the case of resident rescue Fry. He dipped his toes, lets say.

10/14/2024

This giving season, show your support for the best GOAT for everyone. Our wisest and most gentle resident, Ichigo, is running for Goat Of All Time!

Made to order in a wide selection of colors, pre-shrunk, with front and back printing featuring the adorable, all-knowing face of Ichigo, one of our oldest rescued sanctuary residents. This shirt is available for a limited time this end-of-year giving season! Support a great cause, help save animal lives, and get an awesome shirt while you do it!

https://www.rescuetailssanctuary.com/product-page/ichigo-goat-t-shirt

100% of proceeds go directly to the veterinary care, feed, and enrichment of animals at Rescue Tails Animal Sanctuary.

0% of proceeds benefit any human, electoral candidate, or political party. Ichigo for GOAT!

Represent our oldest and wisest resident goat, Ichigo, with this shirt specially made for all of the childless goat ladies (or goatless child ladies) in your life! 100% of proceeds go directly to the veterinary care, feed, and enrichment of animals at Rescue Tails Animal Sanctuary. 0% of proceeds be...

10/10/2024

As end of year giving begins, we are thrilled to announce that the Walmart Spark Good program has approved us for $1,500 in grants so far for the season. We are extremely grateful for the generosity of the program and the local stores that have helped out the animals at the sanctuary so far! The Spark Good program is an excellent resource for nonprofits to apply for grants each year, working with the stores in their local community to create change and save lives. Any shopping you do at Walmart or their associated stores can be rounded up to support your favorite charities very easily, and items can be purchased and donated directly to the nonprofit.

https://www.walmart.com/nonprofits/617c9117-7292-424d-b1a6-40fcc2e052ab/profile

https://www.walmart.org/content/walmart-org/en_us/what-we-do/strengthening-community/spark-good.html

Shop Walmart today for Every Day Low Prices. Join Walmart+ for unlimited free delivery from your store & free shipping with no order minimum. Start your free 30-day trial now!

10/07/2024

We are thrilled to announce that we have earned the Platinum Seal of Transparency from nonprofit watchdog organization Candid - an organization that is tasked with tracking and reporting on nonprofit missions, finances, and positive impact. We have always maintained that in the nonprofit charity world, transparency surrounding what is being done with donations and grants is of the utmost importance. With this seal, donors and grant foundations can see at a glance that we can be trusted to use their generous donations exactly as they are meant to be used, and exactly how they impacted the animals and programs they were used for.

Congratulations, Rescue Tails Animal Sanctuary team!

Our transparency and organizational information can be found at https://www.guidestar.org/profile/shared/ba839787-2a25-4018-af0a-49c3616d2795 - whenever donating to any charity, always check Guidestar and Candid for their profiles to see where funding is actually being used and find their transparency ratings. For your own safety and peace of mind.

10/03/2024

Sometimes there is no story behind a picture we post - or in this case a gif. Sometimes, a horse just wants to eat his brush and it's too funny not to share.

We're still going strong here at Rescue Tails Animal Sanctuary as we continue cleanup from Helene and help to place and care for animals displaced and left homeless and injured by storm damages. North Carolina is too strong, and too stubborn, to let this thing beat us.

09/30/2024

Just a quick update today as we get back up and running after Hurricane Helene has come and gone. The sanctuary weathered the storm well with minimal damage and no loss of power, thankfully. All of our resident animals are safe and doing well, and have all been safely returned to their pastures.

We are still assessing water damages and walking perimeter fences inspecting for damages, but so far we are very lucky and our storm preparation held up very well and protected most of the sanctuary from anything major. We will hopefully have some updates here soon, and will include some animal pictures for good measure!

Everyone here at Rescue Tails Animal Sanctuary hopes you and your families remained safe during the storm - we have begun reaching out to partner facilities and local contacts to see how we can assist in storm cleanup, repairs, and rescue work for any farms or sanctuaries who may not have fared as well as we did.

09/22/2024

Update: The rabbit has been adopted! We are very excited for him to have found a loving new home, and we could not be more happy to see him off on his next adventure with a new family! An extra special thanks to our friends and partners, the Humane Society of Catawba County, for sharing our adoption post and helping us bring attention to his need for a new home.

Off to your grand new family adventure, little furball!

09/12/2024

This week we are happy to announce that our recently rescued rabbit that was abandoned in a yard is all set and ready to find a home! He is litter box trained, has a clean bill of health, and is ready to find a family who will give him the love and care he deserves. He is happiest when he is out running around a room or the house, exploring, and hopping up to say hello and get a good head scratch.

Message us for more information and to arrange to come and meet him this weekend if you are interested. A small adoption fee will apply.

Stay tuned for news about some adoptable roosters - survivors of a broken up cock-fighting ring who are finally ready to find homes outside of the sanctuary after the last few months of recovery!

09/03/2024

Animal sanctuaries - and especially sanctuaries that take in livestock and poultry - most often operate more like a ranch than anything else. We are on site all day every day, rain or shine, to feed and care for the resident animals and make sure they are safe, comfortable, and not facing stress or injury. There are no holidays or vacation days - it is a full time 365 days out of the year job.

The main differences from a ranch is the animals themselves. They are not used for profitable purposes, work, or sale. The animals simply live, free to roam the pastures and simply exist. The animals here at Rescue Tails Animal Sanctuary in particular have been saved from lives of abuse, neglect, injury, and near death. They are with us for recovery, love, respect, and to live out their lives in the safety and comfort they never received.

We are often asked "what makes it worth it, when we can barely make ends meet and the work never stops?" and the answer is very simple.

It's the mornings like these pictures, when we get to see the animals that have recovered from their injuries and trauma simply enjoying the day, roaming free, eating, and playing. For the first time in their lives, they are safe and they know it. Moments like these are what keep animal sanctuary staff going, passionate, and ready to keep doing whatever it takes.

It's the same drive that keeps zookeepers, aquarists, humane society staff, and any other animal care professional going. Animals being safe and happy are the reasons. Hopefully that answers the many questions about "why" and gives some perspective on top!