See What’s Happening at the Sanctuary

Newsletter November/December 2023

Animal Updates

New Intakes - Coco & Mildred (click above to watch their video)

Coco and Mildred are settling in nicely at MMFS, and finding their stride at a very new life. Coco was hand raised as a baby and loves to be petted. Mildred is a little shier. They both are older female sheep who have been used for breeding their entire lives. This has taken a toll on their bodies, and they get to rest now with us for their retirement. Their new life consists of walks on the farm, chewing their beautiful second cut hay (Mildred barely has teeth), lots of napping, and eating treats like pelleted alfalfa and sunflower seeds. Both have been brought up-to-date on vaccines and deworming. Mildred had her teeth done in hopes she would be able to eat easier. Both had partial sheering done to clean the mud off of them. So they look a little funny, but we love them all the same.

New Intakes - Three Mini Donkeys (click above to watch their video)

Recently we were asked to help with 3 older mini donkeys because their owner was also aging out of being able to care for them.  This is a story we are hearing more and more - aged caregivers unable to care for their loved animal anymore. We agreed to take them in. The sad part is these donkeys are in really bad shape. Two are severely overweight, and the third is actually underweight because teeth issues have caused her to struggled to eat. This is heartbreaking because neglect was happening even though the owners loved them. There is a need for EDUCATION— many donkey owners do not realize they need to do routine care of their donkeys just like horses. After a thorough review, all three have major challenges. Spanky has white line on his hooves which is dead, infected tissue that needs to be treated. Angel has Cushing’s disease and will need to start on medication, in addition to poor hoof health. Poor Stella has a deformation in the bones in her feet and will need to wear specialized boots. The good news is that with her teeth being better she is eating and eating. We are proud of you sweet girl!

Volunteer of the Month: Cindy

Want to Volunteer?

We have Openings for Animal Care/Farm Chore Volunteers Every Day of the Week

We are always seeking enthusiastic volunteers to help with the sanctuary. If you are up for animal care/farm chores, we have openings each day of the week. We need volunteers for lots of other sanctuary needs such as, construction and repair projects, assisting with children’s and after-school programs, fundraising or social media and marketing. In the new year, we will start smaller volunteer groups to work on these specialized projects.

How to get started?

We have a volunteer orientation coming up on January 9th at 11:00 am. You will be introduced to the sanctuary, meet our animal residents, talk about the main ways volunteers can help. Sign up here: https://signup.com/go/GTGqoGG

Volunteer Information for Animal Care/Farm Chores

• Age 15 or older

• Caring and compassionate attitude

• Ability to work around animals

• Commit to one shift per week

Shifts Available:

• Every day from 9 am - 12 pm

What to Wear/Bring:

• Dress to be outside. The sanctuary can be very windy in the winter, so dress warmer than you might elsewhere.

• Waterproof boots

• Bring a water bottle

• Work gloves are helpful

Visitors often inquire about our decision making process on how we decide to take in an animal. We take each decision with a pause and assess if we, as a sanctuary, can handle the capacity and needs that animal(s) might have. That could literally mean the square footage to house them, the veterinary staff to see them, and the money to support their forever care and vetting. It is not an easy task. Each day that more people find out we are here as a new nonprofit sanctuary, we get more asks to take in animals. Part of our mission is to always be working to educate and keep communication open with owners needing to surrender an animal, state authorities needing to place and animal, the general public who happens upon an animal in need and so on. Some sanctuaries have strong statements that they do not take owner surrenders; however, many times if these animals are never placed somewhere safe, they end up heading to auction and potentially slaughtered. At MMFS we do not draw a hard line— we can not take every animal of course, but we try our best to listen to the need and network to help that person place an animal somewhere safe if we do not have the capacity to take them in. We always say it “takes a village.”  This job will get harder as we get fuller.  This job will get harder as we get more demands. That is the life of saving animals and why our community of donors, sponsors and volunteers are so important.

Want to be Santa for our Rescues?

Items can be found on our wishlists. CLICK HERE

And finally, a big THANK YOU

We want to express our sincere gratitude to those who have supported the sanctuary this year.

• Thank you donors, sponsors, and volunteers

• Thank you for those who came to our events and brought your encouragement, enthusiasm, treats and feed for the animals.

• Thank you for all the blanket donations. The piggies are well set up for winter.

• Thank you for the pumpkin donations. Pigs, goats, sheep, ducks, chickens, and turkeys all enjoyed these immensely.

• Thank you to those who graciously sent us items off of our Tractor Supply, Chewy, and Amazon wishlists

The fact is, we simply can’t do what we do without you.  As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit charitable organization, Merrymac Farm Sanctuary does not have an owner and is not supported by a foundation or endowment. The animals here completely rely on volunteers and donations from supporters like you to continue to operate. Caring for our residents—our monthly animal feed, bedding, veterinary care, and farm staff—requires significant investment. These costs will continue, and they will continue to rise, as more animals in need find their way here. But you can make a huge difference: from $5 to $5000, every dollar you donate goes directly to providing the best animal care possible. Will you join in supporting Merrymac Farm Sanctuary as part of your year-end financial planning? 

Visit our website to learn more about us.