Young Rachel, see her grown up here

KATE

Kate came to us little more than a day old and her first 24 hours of life had nearly proved to be her last. As the weakling of triplets Kate couldn’t stand unaided let alone feed and would have died of dehydration and cold had someone not taken pity on her.
Kate was floppy and had no interest in the bottle and it was looking doubtful that she would make the night but, with intensive nursing, she did.
She is now a strappingly healthy adult.

See Kate grown up here

ROSIE

Rosie was bought at a market for £10, outbidding the slaughter man. The tiny, 8 day old, doe-eyed calf was little bigger than a medium sized dog and completely lost and defenceless without her mother.
Rosie, like so many calves that are slaughtered within days of birth, was a by-product of the dairy industry and considered no more than a method of facilitating milk production.
She is now a beautiful, fully grown cow and will spend the rest of her life in the safety of the sanctuary.

GURT

Gurt came to F.R.I.E.N.D. as an older St. Bernard puppy that had lost its appeal. Kept on a staircase, she was never exercised and only allowed into the garden to go to the toilet. Gurt was deeply depressed, never having enjoyed the normal stimulation that a puppy requires, and had lost most of her muscle tone leaving her only capable of a slow, shuffling walk.
It took a remarkably short length of time before we saw the beginnings of a transformation and soon she was running and playing with the other dogs for the first time in her life.
Gurt is now something of a sanctuary mascot and certainly our number one fundraiser.

BUCK

Buck literally bears the scars of his former abuse having been slashed along his side some years back. He now carries the evidence of this in the form of a groove, about eight inches long and a centimetre deep across his belly. For all of this he is a cheeky pony that will steal packed lunches and run off with peoples bags. He is quite the comedian and will pester everyone, be their best friend and follow them to the ends of the earth - until he’s got their snack and then he’s off! He’s highly intelligent and very, very amusing.
Buck will stay with us till the end of his days and live as free a life as we can provide. He will never, again, be ridden and we will ensure that this great character will enjoy the rest of his life as the free spirit that he is.

BRUNO

Bruno came to F.R.I.E.N.D. in the late summer of 2004 having been abandoned at an inner London vets for destruction. His ears were so severely infected that his eardrums had rotted away and examination was impossible without a general anaesthetic. His coat was matted and his ears were too painful to hold erect. It was doubtful, given his condition, that he was ever exercised and his back legs were failing him.
We are proud of his wonderful progress, as you will, no doubt, see!!!

TREFOR

Trefor is a male pygmy goat that was attacked and almost killed by a small stallion. Innocently, he climbed a fence and wandered into a paddock with the isolated, young colt. The little, brown and white goat was savagely set upon by the colt who knocked him to the ground and trampled him.
Trefor was lucky to escape with his life after the attack that left him with a fractured leg so severe as to require amputation.
Trefor has made a remarkable recovery and is now running around with the other goats - and his spirit of adventure is as great as ever!

THE NOT VERY MAGNIFICENT SEVEN

These 7 little piglets came to the sanctuary covered in bleeding sores all over their bodies.
Their mother, who was severely emaciated also joined them at the sanctuary where they have all lived together in peace and good health for the last 3 years.
They are now the magnificent seven - and mum!!

BUNNY

Bunny is a German Shepherd. She came to us as a deeply traumatised and severely abused older puppy. In her short life she had been kicked up and down flights of stairs, beaten to the point of total mental breakdown and starved. Her body was covered in mange, naked of hair and running with fleas and still they bred from
Her.
Bunny is not homable. Even after 4yrs she still is nervous around food, which we can only put down to an association with beatings at mealtimes in her past. It’s a problem to keep weight on her and she is anxious in any situation that isn’t familiar.
We have invested a lot of love, time and patience in Bunny and she has reached a point where, within her own parameters, she is a happy, contented and devoted friend.

This group of calves came to us about 4yrs ago as newborn babies. They were a by-product of the dairy industry and, like so many others of their kind, were due to slaughtered soon after birth and fed to the foxhounds.
Their mothers were no more than milk machines and the babies were, quite simply, facilitators for that process. Like humans, cows only lactate to feed their offspring but if those babies were allowed to drink their mothers milk then the dairy industry would come to a grinding halt. It’s a horrible, yet very simple equation. If the calves suckle as nature intended then what would man put in his tea?
Cows are very careful, loving mothers. The bond between mother and baby is clear to see and the trauma of separation is evident to all that encounter it.
We hope that we have provided enough love and security to our ‘calves’ to allow them to heal.
I’m pleased to say that they look well and happy and have now grown big and strong and will never, again, experience such trauma.

KITTY

Kitty is a black greyhound that was discovered, about 4yrs, running down a road with a length of chain hanging from her collar. We suspect that she had broken free from her own obvious hell.
Kitty, on arrival, weighed about 16kg, was skeletal and covered in wounds and scars.
Still, to this day, she is nervous of strangers, particularly men and it’s hard to imagine what pain can have been inflicted on, what is basically a very friendly dog, to make her feel such terror.
Kitty is a very gentle dog and we fondly refer to her as the ballerina as she is so very elegant in everything that she does.
It is such a pleasure to watch her run and play, wagging her tail and leaping for joy.

THE NOT VERY JOLLY, GREEN PARROT

Billy came to us some months back as an unwanted, caged bird. He is mitred conure, a beautiful, vivid green parrot with a scarlet head. The species originated in the South American jungle and that’s where they belong.
On his arrival Billy was terrified of anyone that approached his cage, retreating to the back in total panic. We took advice from specialists and, it was concluded, Billy was almost certainly wild caught. His squawking was deafening and he was totally miserable.
The first thing we did was to open the cage door and, bless him, he was too afraid to come out for a few days. Slowly he began to gain confidence and would come out only to dart back for security. Billy soon discovered it was safe to stand on top of the cage and then he remembered how to fly. Since that moment Billy’s life has been transformed and so have ours!
That frightened little bird has now expanded his horizons, liberated the mantelpiece as his own and just about every other surface in the room - including our heads!
He will now land on a hand or lap, pinch the dinner off your plate and is even beginning to show signs of enjoying a careful stroke.
But the question remains - Why do people want to buy these beautiful, wild animals? Shouldn’t they be free, in the jungle and not in cages or even aviaries?

LEE-ROY - (Sadly he died a year later)

Lee-Roy came to us at little more than days old. A new-born baby trapped in fencing. His injuries so severe as to snap his frail, tiny leg. The prognosis for this fawn was poor and almost everybody said that life for him was not a viable option. We were advised that he would be so nervous as to never accept sudden movements, loud noises and certainly not dogs. There are cases of female, 3 legged deer in this country but, being a male, he would need to be killed. But nobody here could bring themselves to do it. This beautiful baby didn't want to die and so his broken limb was amputated.
How glad we are that we took a chance with our wonderful, little friend as now he runs and jumps with a simple joy for life. Lee-Roy is happy, accepts people as new friends, takes little more notice of loud noises and absolutely loves dogs!! Just goes to show, doesn't it, don't believe everything that you're told!

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