Oh Quito. There’s not much going on upstairs, but he sure is cute. 🤣
Quack is figuring out all the fun duck things, like going fishing for peas! Howard has been showing Quack the ropes and they are getting along swimmingly! #besties #bff #quack #howardtheduck
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Guess who else loves her new lick mat? Turn up your sound for tasty peanut butter ASMR!
Our miniature rooster enclosure houses 4 itty-bitties: Scout, Squiggy, Mayhem, and Murray. These 1 lb boys are full-grown and are only about the size of a pigeon. They spend their days trying to out crow each other to prove who is the fiercest, most impressive fellow. In their spare time, they enjoy snacking on peas, corn, blueberries and their favorite treat, mealworms. The mini-bro’s are full off sass and are the chattiest of all our birds. They are constantly busy doing important rooster things, like trying to accomplish world domination.
Currently, only 3 of our mini-roosters have sponsors. We are looking for someone to sponsor the 4th little lad, Squiggy, who is the orange and white rooster crowing at the beginning of the video. If you would like to be Squiggy’s personal monthly sponsor, please reach out to us! His sponsorship is only $10/month, and helps to pay for his food and veterinary expenses. Squiggy’s sponsor will receive a beautiful canvas photo of him, a sponsorship certificate, and a tote bag.
It’s our pleasure to introduce you to our newest (and littlest rescue), Quack!
Quack was found at a local pond, having been dumped and left to fend for him/herself. Quack is just a baby, he/she doesn’t even have real feathers yet, there’s no way this wee one would have survived alone in the big world. Given Quack’s age and the proximity to the Easter Holiday, there’s a very good chance that he/she was someone’s Easter present, that was abandoned once the “newness” wore off. Unfortunately, this is a very common occurrence around the Easter holiday with ducklings, chicks, and bunnies. Thankfully, Quack was found in time and can now grow up surrounded by love and protection. Quack is in quarantine now, but will be introduced to sweet Howard soon. Howard recently lost his duck partner, Steve, and has been lonely and needing a friend. We hope Quack will grow up with Howard as his best friend. Howard is a quiet, gentle duck who, I think, will be a good fit for Quack.
We don’t know if Quack is a girl or boy yet, it’s still a little too early to tell for sure, luckily Quack is a gender neutral name 😂 (thank you to Heather, our long time supporter and Patreon member, for choosing Quacks’ name).
We look forward to sharing Quack’s journey and pending friendship with Howard with you all!
Welcome home, Quack!
May you find something that makes you as happy as blueberries make Jack. Also, doesn’t he have the most precious voice? Those happy little trills always put a smile on my face.
#blueberriesallday #rescueturkey #lifeisgood #turkeysarefriendsnotfood
When your pond is frozen solid, any bowl of water will suffice for a quick bath! Dr. Drake Ramoray isn’t picky when it comes to bath time. If he fits, he sits (swims?).
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Snug as a bug in a rug! Turn up your volume to hear piggy snoozing (ASMR anyone? 😂)!
After brekkie, the piggos snuggled up for a morning siesta to get out of the cold. They are no strangers to cold weather, they cuddle up together so tight to keep each other warm. Little Simon in the middle has the best seat in the house!
These two are completely unfazed by the cold weather. I wish I enjoyed the snow as much as Lucy and Eleanor do!
Stanley gives today a big NOPE.
🚨 New Rescue! 🚨
Meet our newest and last rescues of 2023! These little ladies were found in a storm drain by my very sweet coworker, Cyndi. They were just babies and already had ringworm. Cyndi kindly looked after and cared for them and treated their ringworm. Their mom died and they were in need of a home to call their own. We think they are just over 4 months old. These cuties will be the newest edition to our big barn and will help to keep mice away. We’ve had a big issue with the increasing mice population in the barn, and they pose a risk to the other animals. We’re hoping the presence and scent of the new kittens in the barn will be enough to discourage the mice from coming in. The girls are in a quarantine stall now, and acclimating to their new environment. We will keep them contained in the quarantine stall for at least a month (and until after they are spayed), to reinforce that the barn is their home, and they’ll be less likely to wander off. We’ve already posted about the new kittens on Patreon, and we picked 2 of our Patreon supporters, Vicky and Andy, to have the honor of naming the girls. The little grey tabby girl is named Taylor and the solid grey girl is Cassadee! They are so playful, curious, affectionate, inquisitive, and very social already. Welcome to your new forever home, sweeties!
Fun goat enrichment day! Big thank you to Moscow Building Supply for donating 10 leftover Christmas trees to our goat and sheep friends to munch on and play with!! Thank you also to Paige from Happy Pastures Livestock Rescue for having MBS reach out to us about the trees, and to our live-in animal caretaker, Trinity, for picking up the 10 trees! It takes a village to keep all the animals happy! 🎄❤️
Santa brought Tank and Mortimer a new fancy feeder this year and so far it’s a success! I was a little worried that they wouldn’t use it because it’s big and different from what they are used to. We picked this feeder because it will eliminate food waste from the turkeys standing in their bowls and kicking out food. It is also rodent proof, so the mice can’t het into it (cleaner and healthier) and weather proof, so the rain and snow won’t ruin their food. While it was an investment to purchase, it will save us money (donor dollars) in the long run, because we won’t have any turkey food waste. This feeder will hold 80 lbs of food too! I’ve been on this kick lately of trying to find better ways to feed our animals that won’t produce as much food waste, and will be easier and cleaner for our animals to access. As an added bonus, it will also save time for the humans as we don’t need to fill this feeder as often, and we won’t need to wash out bowls that have rain soaked food in them. The work smarter, not harder model for the win!
Running a sanctuary of 70+ animals produces A LOT of poop and used bedding. We scoop the manure in the enclosures daily, and change out the straw bedding in all the barns weekly. We bring the waste to a pile in the front of the property where it’s easy to get to and on flat ground where our volunteers can easily access it with wheelbarrows. Then, every couple months, we have to rent a skid-steer tractor and move the giant pile of manure and spent bedding to the back 40, where our garden area and large compost pile, is located. We compost all the waste and use it to grow our vegetables for the animals to eat! We have a volunteer, Sloan, who has dedicated his time to cultivating our garden, setting up irrigation, and providing lots of yummy produce for our animals. I love that we have a full-circle system where the animal waste, eventually provides the soil and nutrients to turn around and grow produce for those same animals to eat! Today was pile moving day, so I got to play with the Bobcat (which is secretly kind of fun), and move a couple months of manure up the hill. A decade ago, living in San Diego, I never would have thought this big city girl would have ever taught herself to work a tractor 😂. Oh how things have changed.
Epic Christmas present FAIL…..
The donkeys gave the rubber chicken a big ol’ NOPE. Cheyanne loves to carry things around in her mouth, and she’s enjoyed squeaky dog toys in the past, but rubber chicken was just a little too much for these sensitive souls. 😂
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Mud mitigation is serious business here. Not only is the mud unpleasant and difficult to work in, but standing mud creates a dangerous environment for bacteria and fungal growth to build up in, which is harmful to the animals. Pigs are particularly susceptible to Erysipelas, a bacteria found in mud, that attaches itself to pigs’ tonsils, and can be fatal. Because, by nature, pigs root in the ground with their nose, they are highly susceptible to this particular bacteria. We vaccinate our pigs for Erysipelas, but it’s not a 100% guarantee of protection, as with any vaccine. This truck load of bark will be laid out in the pig yard, to help soak up the mud.
Throwback video of these bozos who do everything together!
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Turkeys are emotional, complex creatures who become extremely bonded to their family and friends. Tank and Mortimer were rescued after they were found wandering around a busy street in downtown Seattle. It was unclear how they got there, and they were never claimed. The boys needed to be on a farm, not wandering the streets of a big city. Tank and Morty are very bonded and they are never far apart. They eat, sleep, bask, forage, and travel together. If they become separated, even for a moment, they begin vocalizing and showing signs of stress and worry. I love the bond that these two have, and they love each other so much.
New bedding day is the best day! Just like we enjoy clean, fresh sheets, the pigs appreciate getting new, fresh bedding in their stalls regularly. Pigs also like to make their own beds. Tootsie is fluffing up her bedding, to her liking, so she can get snuggled in for her post breakfast nappy.
Oates takes his sweet time and savors each and every bite of his pumpkin, while the others can’t get the pumpkins into their bellies fast enough!
