Meet the Retreat animals!
At The Retreat Animal Rescue we have all different types of animals that have been rescued from almost certain death. Below are short introductions to our residents.
Cows
As at April, 2008 we have a family of thirteen bovines living at the Retreat, including a beautiful blind Highland cow named Emma. See Emma's story here.
Pigs
We have a large family of pigs of various breeds. The majority live in our main pig field but a few, who are older and have walking difficulties, reside in our hospital wing. It is very hard to find good homes for pigs.
Chickens
Hens are constantly coming in to the Retreat. We have a large family living happily and safely in a large secure area and the eggs that they lay are sold as 'Happy eggs' to raise funds.
Cockerels
There is also a steady flow of male birds coming to us. Same old stories, breeders telling people the chicks they are selling are girls when in fact they are boys, then neighbours complain when the boys are noisy. The lucky ones make it to the Retreat. Click here for information on integrating cockerels.
Turkeys
Lots of turkeys live with us and one lucky Resident, Lofty, was featured in a BBC news story at Christmas 2005. To see this click here. He was also in our latest newsletter when the Retreat was visited by actress Jenny Seagrove at Christmas 2006. See latest news page for the article.
Dogs - It's just a matter of time before all dogs heal!
At the Retreat live a number of dogs who have failed in almost all other environments. The Retreat offers dogs the time to recover from the malice of man. No dog is ever rushed, or given up on, during their journey to rediscover a friendly and loving hand of help...read more. The picture shows some of our canine residents enjoying a dog walk.
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Cats
We have lots of feral cats come to the Retreat. Ferals are constantly having to be trapped and neutered to avoid even more babies who would struggle to survive. Volunteers from the Retreat also participate in overseas projects where street cats are trapped, vet checked, sterilised and released back to their colonies.
Horses
A lot of our horses are older and have health issues (this is a common reason why people give up their once loved horse - it costs too much in vets bills and they are unrideable ). Many of them live at our second site which is leased and some of them, that require intensive care, are at a smaller third site.
Sheep
One member of our sheep family is Madeline who went through a terrible time but is now fully recovered. Not only that but she adopted some lambs who arrived at the Retreat. (you can see Madeline's story on the latest rescues page)
Doves
Our family of Doves were brought to us by their owner who told us that they were being systematically shot at by an unknown person! They wanted to ensure these beautiful birds safety and so chose to bring them to the Retreat. The Doves now live in one of our aviaries (pictured).
Ducks and Geese
Small groups of ducks come to us; not wanted for one reason or another. There are also big old geese that are too noisy or scary so again they are given up. All these birds need runs, ponds, houses etc. This all costs money which never arrives with the birds!
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Ferrets
Ferrets are cheap so when they are being used for hunting and don't return from down a hole, or if they wander off, they are simply left behind. We get our fair share of these wonderful creatures. They are neutered and then released into our large group.