A rough week for poorly Paul, but doing well now
Paul the calf is doing much better
You may have seen on our Instagram account that little Paul - one of two ex-dairy calves who along with his pal Roo joined us recently - has been feeling very poorly with bloat.
The Friday before last, Paul wouldn’t drink his milk, which has never happened, so we examined him and found he had the symptoms of bloat. This is most frequently seen in the first one to two weeks of life. We rushed him to the vets immediately and had his stomach intubated - to release the gas - several times.
We stayed with him that night in the stables to monitor for further bloating and were extremely concerned, but we are pleased to report that he is doing much better now. There have been no more signs of bloat for a few days and we have been slowly increasing his milk intake to where it needs to be. He’s been eating lots of hay with is great and he will be on creep feed shortly (first solid food calves have).
He really is such a sweet soul, he knows the drill when we have been checking on him during the night and gets up for us to feel his tummy. It’s been a complete emotional rollercoaster for us, we really did think we were going to lose him at one point and we are so, so thankful that he seems to be on the mend.
Thank you so much for all of the messages and support. Little Roo is doing so well and he is such a great comfort to Paul.
Paul is only 22 days old today and has gone through so much already, we know he’s going to grow into a healthy and happy bull, who won’t be able to sit on our laps for much longer.
Mummy and Baby goat will be staying with us now due to mum's poorly leg
Mummy goat arrived in late January along with her daughter and since then has been struggling with a very poorly front left leg which has caused her to limp.
The plan was to rehabilitate her and re-home both mother and daughter together, but unfortunately, her leg has not improved with treatment. The initial diagnosis was a hoof infection, but an x-ray has revealed that the condition is most likely due to previous trauma - fractures and dislocations - healing abnormally leading to osteoarthritic pain and lameness.
One possible option we have would be to construct a form of wheeled support, so if anyone out there has any experience with this then please get in touch via our contact page.
The vet has mentioned amputation, but this is of course not something we wish to do unless completely necessary, she is a fairly old lady and would be a lot for her to go through. If anyone knows of any goat specialists please do let us know.
Regarding their forever home, we have totally fallen in love with them and we were not naming them as the plan was to rehome. So they have been known as Mummy & Baby around the sanctuary. However, they’ll now be staying with us here at the sanctuary so we can do everything we can for Mummy and Baby to have the best possible lives that they truly deserve.
Despite her pain, Mummy is so full of life. Please do get in touch if you can help construct a form of wheeled support and if you would like to help us with the vets bills please visit our Donate page - thank you so much.
First time ever on grass for Moksha and Ella?!
Take a look at these amazing videos of Moksha and Ella the cows out on one of our fields for the first time.
Running and playing and living their best lives in freedom, it is a reminder that cows are no different to dogs and other companion animals who we don’t see as food.
Moksha and Ella have lived on three different dairy farms throughout their lives, so it’s possible that they’ve never in fact been out on grass before. Sadly, many dairy cows spend their lives never having seen a field, eating only what is provided to them by humans rather than grazing naturally.
Our new volunteer cabin is looking great
We’ve built a cabin for volunteers complete with a kitchen and animal prep area, and it’s looking superb next to our mushroom container. We can’t wait to put it to good use!
Sneak peek: new logo sign for our main stables
Our Eric the sheep logo is going up on our main stable’s doors, and it’s going to look fantastic.
Here’s a snap of the sign before it’s been painted. We’ll be sure to post a picture of the finished sign on our Instagram, so be sure to follow us there.
New image of our planned barn
Our big barn planning application has changed slightly. Here’s an updated rendering of the barn. When it’s completed it will really expand what we’re able to accomplish here at the sanctuary.
Broilers doing well
Here are a few more pictures of the broilers who arrived with us just as the last blog update went up. In the two weeks since they got here, they’ve been doing really well. Broilers are very special chickens who need lots of TLC and good nutrition as their bodies go through so much.
Goat paddock being built this weekend in time for five new arrivals
Mummy and Baby goat are going to have some company very soon with the arrival of five new goat residents.
Thankfully we have a new paddock being built this weekend for them, so they’ll have lots of room and a wonderful new home.
Other new arrivals include four sheep coming to us very soon - as always, keep an eye on our Instagram for updates!
Much room for mushrooms and microgreens?
Yes, lots, thanks to Jacks Patch who helped us set up a shipping container as a fully-functioning mushroom growing room.
As you can see from the pictures, the mycelia are colonising the substrates wonderfully - the white mould-like stuff in the bags - and when ready we’ll change the conditions to encourage “fruiting” when we’ll see the actual oyster and lion’s mane mushrooms.
The mushrooms we grow will be going to Unity Diner, but we may also make them available to buy online - watch this space!
We’re also growing microgreens for the diner - so things like watercress, radish and rocket to add an extra special touch to the dishes served there.
