Happy Hooves

Animal Farm Sanctuary

Happy Hooves Farm Sanctuary

In 2012, my hubby (Ric) and I purchased an amazing property in the Perth Hills on 150 glorious acres of pasture and natural bushland. The property is called “Kookaburra” and it is magical.. full of tranquil dams brimming with bird-life, majestic gums and imposing jarrahs, rolling pasture and leaf-strewn woodlands. Rabbits have made a veritable “Watership Down” zone in amongst one of the Olive Tree groves, and kangaroos graze amongst the trees.

Native animal life is everywhere – the sense of peace is almost palpable on this earthly slice of paradise. The property was set up for farming, with some dodgy stables, a cattle crush, and mostly rickety fencing dividing the paddocks. A beautiful windmill pumps dam water up to the tank that goes on to fill various water troughs around the place. This place was once a working farm no doubt… most likely raising cattle and sheep for the sale-yards – along with crops of hay from the hayfield.

When we first laid eyes on the farm, we immediately saw an alternative use for it … we had a vision of a beautiful sanctuary that raised and cared.. healed, loved and protected. This was certainly going to be a farm with a difference. We envisioned animals that were neglected, lost, hurt, bound for slaughter or plain unwanted… finding their way home to us, where they could realise a life that all living creatures wish for. One of peace, and on it’s own terms, a free life – as free as it could be anyway. That was and is our dream.. we see this place as a Farmed Animal Sanctuary.

It has been our passion to help needy animals since 2008, and during this time, we have helped quite a few farm and domestic animals. One of our better known rescues is the much loved “Timmy The Lamb” from Facebook fame. You can read his story on the link to his page – it’s well worth a read and has touched the hearts and minds of over 3000 fans so far, not only here in Australia but all over the world.

This story of one man’s fateful encounter with an orphaned lamb and the resulting rescue and loving bond that developed has been very popular, and has been a catalyst for enabling us to reach more people with our message of hope for farm animals just like this adorable little guy. Timmy – the courageous and heart-meltingly cute orphaned lamb – is only one of many animals who have a story to tell. You can check out the tales of some more of our current rescues on this page, there are not many here at the moment but we will be uploading more resident profiles as soon as we can, so please bookmark our site or subscribe to updates if you would like to read more as we post them.

Our dream of establishing a sanctuary for the animals whom are most often overlooked due to their commodity status, is slowly but surely becoming a reality. For now, the project is a relatively small and private one – but happily we are now hosting visits by appointment, and we have volunteer days set up for those who wish to help us care for the animals and the property they live on. There is a link at the bottom of the page if you would like to find out more about volunteer opportunities or other ways to help us.

So for those of you who enjoy a happy ending, who love these gentle creatures and wish to see them live in a place of peace and safety – stay tuned and we hope to see you soon. In the meantime… please follow this blog and from time to time, you may wish to share a few of our stories with your friends – to help us spread the idea of compassion and love for all animals.

With love from Maree – the Animal Actionist

Where things all began

Happy Hooves Farm Sanctuary was founded by Maree and Ric Earnshaw in 2012 who saw a requirement in Western Australia to assist farmed animals in need. Already having rescued some sheep and goats, the right property was sourced and work began on building a hospital, shelters, improving fencing, new yards and a poultry enclosure. Since the beginning a lot more infrastructure has been setup with “Pig Paradise” created in 2015 and further expanded in early 2018 to house our ever growing population of pigs.

Further to this addition, new shelters have been installed in the paddocks and planned for future development is a new hospital, additional improvements to Pig Paradise and a new rooster enclosure to be called “Cock Corner”.

Why do farmed animals need rescuing?

In Australia so called “production” animals are excluded from the protection of animal welfare legislation. Sadly they are often forced to endure a life of total misery, be it in factory farms or utterly confined spaces; most of the time barely able to move. In addition to this, many are subjected to horrid acts of cruelty that for a domesticated animal such as a cat or dog would be illegal, and the perpetrators prosecuted. These animals live without sunshine, without freedom, without the ability to socialise, without hope.

As the so called “higher being”, humans have decided that some animals are our ‘friends’ and other animals are simply ‘food’. What we need to understand, is that ALL animals have exactly the same capacity to feel pain, to suffer, to feel fear, to feel joy and the same desire to live a full life. We hope to show at our sanctuary, that it can be different, the world can change. Compassion and kindness makes a huge difference to every living creature.

Happy Hooves Farm Sanctuary… “Where the good life begins.”

Donate

Visit our donation and sponsorship pack page

Volunteer

Volunteering is a wonderful way to give back to your community. Here at Happy Hooves we recruit new volunteers throughout the year to help with general duties and maintenance of the sanctuary. The scope of the chores vary each month (seasonal & need dependent) and there’s usually a bit of a variety of things to do.

Due to time constraints, these shifts do NOT include a tour of the sanctuary – but you are likely to meet some of the animals while you do a few chores to help us to keep them happy.

Please bring appropriate weather gear, protective shoes, food if you wish (must be vegan please), water & sunscreen.

NOTE: Volunteers must be 13 years or over, volunteers 13-15 years must be accompanied by an adult. Volunteers 16 – 17 years need written parental permission to attend. Forms will be emailed to you if you’re under 18.

Happy Hooves Tours

Book a tour of our beautiful property in the Perth hills! Happy Hooves is a safe haven for a variety of rescued and/or surrendered farm animals. Ours is a fully non-profit, charitable initiative, relying completely on public support and donations to enable us to continue our work long term.

Our mission is to give farm animals the same chance at full and happy lives that are afforded to domestic pets; to demonstrate their inherent worth as living and sentient beings; to promote compassion to ALL animals and to advocate mercy and love for farm animals.

You will be meeting some of the lucky ones who have found their way to us, and we hope to share with you the beautiful experience of engaging with them in a non threatening environment, so that you can see their true personalities shine through. We will also introduce you to (if you haven’t already discovered) some truly delicious animal-free plant derived (vegan) snacks that will nourish you – body and soul.