Most years, the Sanctuary is quiet in the wintertime, almost in hibernation. This is particularly true when there is a lot of snow. Snow muffles sounds and there is a sense of deep calm. In January, we have had plenty of cold, but little snow, so our people and our rescues can move about pretty much normally.
Another change is the pandemic. The desire to get outside in a safe way, and to get "outside yourself" by helping others brings a lot of folks here to Unity. More volunteers than ever are part of Sanctuary life. The other unexpected affect is that no one wants the public tours to end! Cold wind and icy ground does not usually make for a safe tour situation, so we stop public group tours for winter. The requests for private tours have been nonstop however. We will do our best to provide those tours as weather permits.
The rescues here change in the winter as well. Ducks get frustrated by the ponds' frozen surfaces. Pigs stay cuddled in warm hay nests for much of the day. Elderly horses have winter blankets to help them not lose too much weight beating the cold. The goats are smart and linger behind the new vinyl panels. The chickens seek sunny spots to soak up a little extra warmth. And you can see the thick fur on the sheep, the alpaca and of course Dudley, Wallace and Pal McTrouble, the Scots!
We thank the staff here at Unity Farm Sanctuary who come out and work in the cold: Tyla Doolin, Wellington DaSilva, Josh Minard, and Tyler Greenberg. Bless all the volunteers who come and help our team. Without these dedicated people, what we do would not be possible -
I thank you!