Support the Animals from Big Sky Ranch
Following the passing of Big Sky Ranch Founder, Andy Parent, and after many years of dedicated and inspiring service, local animal shelter Big Sky Ranch is closing their doors. When we heard that many of their animals were in need of a new forever home, we committed to helping, wholeheartedly. Their organization has helped over 3,500 animals over the past 22 years, and now we are able to carry on their legacy of kindness and compassion. We are honoured to provide a new home for their resident animals.
We’ve now welcomed all of our new friends from Big Sky Ranch; including sheep, donkeys, goats, a llama and a pony. If you’ve donated to Big Sky Ranch previously, the animals would love your continued support here.
Now that our shelter expansion #fortheanimals is complete, we need to expand our monthly donor base!
Our monthly donors cover operating costs for the current residents and together we ensure they live their best lives possible. Now that we have almost doubled in number of residents, we need to grow our monthly donor base too.
Please consider becoming a monthly donor – every dollar helps support our mission in a very big way.
If you supported Big Sky Ranch in the past, please consider allocating your contributions to the Sweet Sanctuary, and continue supporting the animals in their new permanent home.
Please use the buttons below to share this need with others that may be interested in supporting our work for the animals:
Dogs barking, chickens clucking, horses neighing… you hear a lot of different animals at the sanctuary, but up until now we haven’t had any braying at our sanctuary. That’s all about to change as we welcome two donkeys from Big Sky to our family today! They’ll be competing with Caramilk for the morning alarm clock job!
Introducing… Don-K (left) and YoYo (right)! Formal introductions as we get to know them will follow, but for now… 🥰🥰🥹🥹❤️❤️
#farmsanctuary #fortheanimals #animalrescue #donkeysofinstagram
Welcome to our new friends! 🦙🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐
Last week we had our next group of Big Sky residents join the Sweet Sanctuary family. We have welcomed Lena the Llama, Sophia, Dorothy, Rose, and Blanche (affectionately known as “The Golden Girls”), Leo, Buckley, Cookie, and Leon.
All our new friends are slowly adapting to their new routine and home. We are giving them lots of time and space to adjust to this big change. Lena and 6 of the goats are currently exploring “Goat Mountain” during their quarantine and have taken over the goat barn. Cookie and Leon have settled in to their own upgraded condo to relax and play in.
While our new friends get settled, we are starting to get to know their personalities. We are so excited to get to know them well. Stay tuned for individual introductions once they are all comfortable with being part of the Sweet Sanctuary Fam!
Our new arrivals have required new fencing, housing upgrades, and will also be assessed by our vet this week. If you would like to help with their arrival costs and future feed and care requirements, please consider becoming a monthly donor or supporting our Big Sky Campaign! We couldn’t do this without your support. #Thankyou #Fortheanimals #Farmsanctuary #SanctuaryLife #Newarrivals #Newfriends
Last month we introduced you to our first group of arrivals from Big Sky Ranch. Now let’s get up close and personal!
First up is Don-K (pronounced Don-Kay 🥰🥰)! Don-K is a Sicilian Donkey, otherwise known as a miniature donkey. Don-K is 28 years old and is a very cool customer. Since arriving at the sanctuary, he has settled in and relaxed as if he’s been here for months.
Don-K and YoYo share everything–they even wanted to eat out of the same feed tub! Don-K, like all donkeys, doesn't need to eat as much as a horse and we need to carefully manage his weight and diet as it is very easy for donkeys to put on too much weight from eating rich feed and grains.
Don-K had a busy first month at the sanctuary getting used to his new routine. He also had his dental appointment, a health check up from the vet to make sure he’s in tip top shape and doesn’t need any additional medical care, and his hooves trimmed with the farrier to keep him comfy.
Don-K handled his quarantine time like a pro and we’re very happy that it has gone so smoothly. He always likes to say hello with a loud bray when it’s time for his grain! We’re eager for him to start meeting more sanctuary friends soon. ♥️
#farmsanctuary #fortheanimals #sanctuarylife
Um, are we best friends now?! Mini Wheat and Punkin have been so excited to meet each other! They have been sizing each other up from a distance and looking excited whenever they catch a glimpse of each other. It’s been a long wait to complete the quarantine, but the wait is over!
Mini Wheat and Punkin will eventually join the donkeys in their brand new paddock which we are building just for our small, round friends. Ponies and donkeys both put on weight very easily and that can spell trouble for their health and wellbeing, so our small equines will be enjoying a carefully planned area that should suit their waistlines and give them room to have fun exercise!
The first of our summer expansion projects has begun! We started working on our new isolated quarantine area last month - and what a transformation this space is 🤩
It was important to create a dry-lot (no grazing 😢) area for a couple of our new residents arriving with special dietary and health needs.
This is stage one of several steps to make sure we are ready to welcome our new animal friends from Big Sky Ranch. We will be welcoming our first group of animals… 🥁 TOMORROW!
All animals will start with a quarantine to ensure that we can keep all residents, old and new, healthy. Other than a tree stump and a little more sand to spread, we are ready and can’t wait to meet them ❤️
Thank you for your support so far, Sweet Fam!
Please continue to share our current donor matching campaign or sign up as a monthly donor if you are able! https://sweetsanctuary.ca/support-the-animals-from-big-sky-ranch-animal-sanctuary/
Do you count sheep to fall asleep? We have some new inspiration for you! Welcome to the sweet sheep 💓 our final group of animals from Big Sky Ranch. As soon as we opened the trailer to their new space, they jumped with joy as they happily explored their new setting. The sheep are shy of us people but already love their newly built barn. It’s a real Ewe-topia for them! We are so happy to be able to offer a new forever home to these cute little puff balls. Should we call them the Sweet Dreams Flock!?
Welcome to the Fam! #sheepofinstagram #farmsanctuary #SweetDreamsFlock
Go Punkin, go! It is wonderful to see our old man Punkin feeling so good and playing with his BFF Mini Wheat 😇❤️
Next up in our meet and greets is Punkin!
Punkin is an adorable little chestnut Shetland pony, with the cutest little ears, the fluffiest of forelocks, and teeny tiny hooves! He is as sweet and gentle as can be, and loves taking long walks around the sanctuary grounds. Punkin’s arrival makes him the oldest animal of our growing herd: he is an impressive 32 years young!
Punkin has several special health requirements so we have been learning all about him and how best to care for him during his time with us. Horses’ teeth constantly erupt out of their gums during their lifetime, but at a certain age they run out of teeth. Punkin is at that age! When this happens, horses are no longer able to eat the usual hay or grass diet that all our younger horses thrive on. Punkin’s teeth are so smooth and small now that even soaked hay cubes are too fibrous for him. He is now on soaked extruded food and some vitamins to keep him healthy and happy. He gets soaked feed 4 times a day to try and maintain the normal “grazing” routine of a horse. He is also on some medications as he has Cushing’s disease and is prone to ulcers. We are also working on getting some extra padding off of him–a never ending battle with ponies! Mini Wheat and Punkin are both very round and will hopefully be diet buddies now that quarantine is finished. They can count their calories together!
We really love our senior special care friends! It is truly rewarding to take care of an animal in their senior years, keeping them happy, comfortable, and healthy. Thank you to our monthly donors who make providing this specialized care of our seniors, like Mr. Punkin, possible! If you are interested in becoming a monthly donor, check out our link: https://sweetsanctuary.ca/donate/monthly/
You’ve met Punkin and Don-K, now it’s YoYo’s turn!
YoYo is incredibly gentle and sweet. She takes everything within stride and watches the world around her with a sense of calm. She likes to watch the other horses and Don-K play, but prefers to stay out of these shenanigans herself. She is like the grandmother of the equid crew! We recently discovered that YoYo had a baby in her younger years, so now her motherly, calm demeanour makes sense!
Since her arrival, YoYo has stayed bonded with Don-K. They follow the same careful feed regimen and routine. YoYo, however, is far more patient around feeding time than Don-K! This is despite the fact that YoYo is younger than Don-K-–she is 20 years old.
YoYo is a little more timid around new people compared to our horses and Don-K, but is quickly getting used to us putting on her halter, fly mask, or handing over some tasty treats and enjoying brushes and scratches. She is definitely not timid when she brays though! YoYo is louder than Caramilk at breakfast and dinner!
We are looking forward to getting to know YoYo more as she opens up and feels at home with us ♥️
Now that quarantine is complete, YoYo is having so much fun exploring new parts of the sanctuary. She seems to especially love the forested sections of land with little hills to climb. And this fun will only continue! We are very excited for her to get to explore and enjoy the new paddock and shelter we are making for her and her friends this summer!
Our new arrivals, Don-K, YoYo, and Punkin are settling in just great! The big move in day didn’t seem to phase them one bit, they’re sleeping well, eating well, and soaking up lots of love and attention (and treats!) from our animal care team 🥰 We are all in love.
Today was a really amazing day for this little crew, because a very special volunteer they know and love, Rose, was here!!
Rose has volunteered for many years at Big Sky Ranch, as well as being on their board, and when we started collaborating together for the remaining animals to move to the Sweet Sanctuary after Big Sky closed, Rose started to volunteer her time here two days per week. Not only is she helping us out a great deal with all the work she does each week, she is supporting the animals as they transition. I can only imagine the joy they felt when they saw her here for the first time today.
We are soooo grateful for our volunteers, and that these 3 got to spend time with the wonderful Rose here, at their new forever home.
Thank you Rose for helping Don-K, YoYo, and Punkin feel even more relaxed and at home today, and for all you do! ❤️❤️❤️ #fortheanimals #sanctuarylife #farmsanctuary #animalrescue #community
🤍🤎 To all our Run for the Herd participants & supporters… a special note from Leo.
I may be new around here, but I already know that my nickname should be Lucky Leo. I had an amazing life at Big Sky Ranch, and my transition to Sweet Sanctuary has been even better than I expected. The Sweet Sanctuary has ensured that my transition to my new life-long home has been as stress free as possible. Each night, I’m tucked into a freshly bedded stall with my bestie, Buckley. I get my dinner, my hay snack, my salt block, and my minerals to keep me healthy. During the day, I get to explore Goat Mountain with the rest of my Big Sky Crew. It really is perfect!
Even though I’ve only been at the Sanctuary for a few months, I’ve seen some big changes since my arrival. I have watched while they planned, built, and updated all of the spaces around me. New fences, new buildings, new spaces! It’s a lot! On top of our daily feed and bedding, I think it must be a lot of work for everyone. So when I heard about the run I thought it was a great idea (and not just because I love running!). I think it’s so amazing that you have agreed to run for me and my friends, new and old. With every step and effort, it makes my life better. That’s pretty amazing! Thank you so much for your support. Trust me when I say that all of my goat pals are cheering you on and saying a great big thank you. You are the G.O.A.T for helping all of us goats!
Love from, Leo
Only 4 more days until our virtual Run for the Herd! The Golden Girls want to know, who are you running for this year?
Sign up by Nov. 3 🍂