Rescue Stories

These are just a few of our beloved residents at Wildwood Farm Sanctuary, each with a name, a unique personality of their own, and an unfortunate past but blissful, peaceful future as part of our Wildwood Sanctuary family!

If you would like to take any of these wonderful friends under your wing by making a donation, please click the “Donate” button at the top of the page. You will have the option to click the box that says, “I would like to designate this donation to a specific fund” and select the fund you are interested in.

We rescued roosters Tom and Jerry alongside a country road one night, injured, hungry, and afraid. One of these boys had been attacked by an animal and had a sore rear end and some missing some tail feathers. Today they’re healthy and well fed and enjoying a peaceful life at Wildwood Farm Sanctuary where we LOVE to hear the glorious calls of our rooster boys!

Born on an organic dairy farm here in Oregon, Valentino and Blitzen were taken from their mothers at birth—as all dairy calves are—so farmers could collect their mothers’ milk and sell it for human consumption. Male calves are mere byproducts on dairy farms. When we picked up these boys the morning after they were born, they were already waiting for the bull buyer to make his normal scheduled stop, taking all the male calves to be killed and sold as veal. Our founder Shauna bottle-fed these boys around the clock until they were big enough to eat on their own. These bottle babies have grown into beautiful, gentle souls who touch the hearts of all who visit our sanctuary.

Pete was a 4-H project and intended to become Thanksgiving dinner. Thankfully, the boy who raised him had a change of heart and wanted to see Pete live the rest of his life peacefully and naturally. Today, Pete is one of our self-appointed Welcome Committee members. When you visit, you’re likely to get his signature greeting: strutting around the barnyard, puffing out his impressive plumage, and showing off his beautiful feathers for all to admire.

Misty was rescued from a battery cage egg-laying operation in California. At just a few days old, she was debeaked with no anesthetic or pain medication, forced to live her life in a tiny cage along with 5-6 other hens with each hen only allowed space the size of a sheet of paper. Never seeing sunlight. Never touching the earth. Her sole purpose was to produce eggs for around two years, and then be disposed of. Today, she can peck the soft dirt, lie under a tree, or perch in the sun atop our chicken swing-set and play structure. Like our dozens of other rescued battery hens here on the sanctuary, her mutilated beak serves as a heartbreaking reminder of the cruelty these laides endured, but we think Misty is absolutely beautiful.

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BlackBeard and Ziggy came to Wildwood, starved, sick, scared, in January 2016. They were two of nine rescues that came here from a large seizure conducted by Animal Control. They had lived in nightmare conditions, among other dying and deceased animals, and at Wildwood they were introduced to a life of medical treatment, food and an abundance of love. Ziggy was quick to forgive humans and he follows visitors and volunteers around like a big puppy. Blackbeard has been slower to learn to trust, but both are healthy now and neither boy will know suffering ever again.

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A kind woman rescued Moose from a dairy farm. Being born male on a dairy farm is a sad fate, as boys are discarded at birth and slaughtered for veal. His rescuer bottled fed and nurtured him until he was grown and healthy, and when she had to move she found a place where he would be loved as she had loved him. Giant, gentle, sweet Moose is a favorite among our caregivers.

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Belle came to Wildwood after a mysterious misadventure. All we truly know is that it was traumatic. We got an urgent call about some turkeys abandoned behind an old building. All but one of had been slaughtered, as if someone planned to cook them for dinner and then left. Belle was the only turkey still alive, and she was terrified of humans. Once she arrived at Wildwood, she seemed to relax and understand that she was finally safe. Her white feathers and broad chest tell us she’s a genetically modified bird of the type generally raised for food, but now we can promise she’ll never be someone’s dinner or know the terror of watching her companions die. We’re grateful to have our lovely Belle as a lifelong companion and friend here at the sanctuary.

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Toby and Melrose started their lives as tiny, helpless mail-order chicks. A mother called us after learning that her young son had ordered the chicks without permission. It’s quite challenging to keep chicks alive when they’re that young. All of Toby and Melrose’s companions died off one by one, and we took in these two survivors in the hope that we’d be able to nurse them back to health. It was a challenge, but they fought hard to get better. Thanks to loving care and a perfect chicken environment, these two best friends enjoy a healthy and peaceful life at Wildwood.