Alcheringa Sanctuary

01/12/2025

01/12/2025

Monday morning kiss from Riley. Riley is affectionate with us, but shy of strangers. Perhaps this is because the first humans he knew intended to leave him in a shed to die, because they wanted his mother's milk to be used elsewhere. Thankfully he was rescued by a vegan and brought to us. The stories we tell of the way our residents have been treated by their original guardians are not rare exceptions, they are typical of the way the flesh industry views and treats non-human animals. If you give money to animal agriculture industries, you are paying for these routine actions. Be one less person hurting animals, be vegan.

30/11/2025

Beautiful mother and daughter, Ingrid and Isabella 🥰

29/11/2025

Sanctuary Manager Charlie sometimes likes to micro-manage us, particularly when we clean out the barns. Here he has helped us by rolling in the used wood shavings. The house will be delightfully* fragrant when he comes in later.

*Actually very smelly.

28/11/2025

Ivy stimulates appetite in sheep - and they love it - so if someone is sick and off their food, giving them a small amount of ivy can help get them back to eating. However in large quantities it is toxic. Fortunately, by nature sheep are grazers - they pick a little bit of almost everything as they move along. This is part of the wisdom of sheep - eating a variety of foods in small amounts diversifies their nutrient intake, while avoiding toxic levels of any dubious plants. Here Lily has jumped up the bank to enjoy a little ivy, and then nose about underneath the ivy for other tasty morsels. Sheep are far smarter than humans expect. They understand what is going on, they have their own wisdom, they love their family and friends, they seek out affection and comfort. In other words, they are sentient. Sentient beings have innate rights, but most humans choose to ignore the rights of animals, in much the same way that they once ignored the rights of black people in the slave trade. Sometimes it is clear which is the right side of history, and you can choose to be on it. Be vegan.

27/11/2025

27/11/2025

I've been sick the past few days - I've picked up a bug - so J has had to do a lot of the chores on her own. It's interesting to me to see how the residents react to this. When we move them from field to field, it is common for someone to decide to be naughty and run up the road to grab some tasty morsels from the verge or hedgerow, and it takes the two of us humans to encourage them back to the place they're meant to be. But when one of us is out of action for whatever reason, and there is only one of us to move them, both the sheep and the donkeys invariably behave themselves. I would have expected them to exploit the opportunity of only one of us being present - certainly you would expect a human to do so in that situation. But they don't. They seem to know there is a vulnerability with us, and they choose to cooperate to reduce that vulnerability, rather than exploiting it to their immediate gain. Animals are not like us - they're better. They also have rights. We all should respect them. Be vegan.

25/11/2025

Handsome Fred, who loves having his nose kissed. Fred is sentient. He has the right to live his life. Be vegan.

23/11/2025

Lily, who will only ever call out to get the attention of her friends, not out of terror due to the horrors of the flesh or wool industries. Be vegan.

22/11/2025

It's that time of year again, when we have to supplement the sheep and donkey's grazing with hay and haylage. This is because over winter the grass grows at a far slower rate, and is less nutritious. Supplemental feeding is expensive. If you can assist us to cover the costs, any donation - no matter how small - would be very welcome.

https://donorbox.org/support-alcheringa-animal-sanctuary-2

21/11/2025

Ingrid has her coat on for the first time this season, as there is heavy rain and freezing temperatures forecast. Unlike horses, donkeys do not have water repellent coats. This is why it is vital in a cold and wet climate like Ireland to ensure they have shelter. Sadly, very few donkeys here do have shelter, as little concern is given to their well-being in this society. In a vegan world, the needs of all animals would be central to decision-making at every level. If you'd like to work towards such a world, you can start by considering the rights of other creatures. Be vegan.

20/11/2025

Very icy here this morning, all outside water buckets frozen over. Certain wild guests requesting breakfast. Chores will have to be done slowly today to avoid slips and falls.