Animal Resident Program
Our Animals
Join our Sponsor-a-Farm-Animal program
We have two ways for you to join our community:
- Sign up as a monthly donor through our Patreon page where you can sponsor one of our fabulous residents, or
- Get to know your favorite resident below, and if you like, comment on any of their Facebook or Instagram posts.
Providing our animals with fresh feed and hay to keep them healthy and strong, bedding to keep them warm and clean, and enrichment to keep them engaged and curious is part of our mission.
When you sponsor a Herd & Flock resident, you will receive a photograph of your sponsee listing their favorite food, age, and hobbies. Patreons are the first to know about big news of the sanctuary and the residents.
In addition, you will have the knowledge that you are supporting a rescued farm animal who is living out their life in safety and comfort at Herd & Flock. And you will be supporting our mission: to provide animals rescued from the meat and dairy industries with a safe haven, to raise awareness about the individual worth and dignity of all animals, and to educate about and promote a plant-based diet and lifestyle.
Scroll down to meet everyone, and when you fall in love, you can become a monthly Patreon for that friend.
Look below for the animals we have available for sponsorship.
Tony
Tony is a Jersey cow which means he was taken from his mother, who was a dairy cow, within the first week of his life. He was a drop calf, a male cow born at a dairy. Drop calves are considered a waste product. He was sold at auction to individuals who did not know how to care for him. The buyers advertised him for sale on Craigslist at one month old. By that time, he was very sick from pneumonia and near death. Tommy's Transport Team and Only Sunshine Sanctuary nursed him back to health. He then came to Herd & Flock to live out his life with Finn and Han. The three are deeply bonded with each other. Probably because he never knew his mother, Tony likes to suck on human fingers, arms, and hands. He is small for his size because of the poor health he experienced when he was very young. Tony enjoys head butting his friends and a loving lick from Han.
Olivia
This little gal does not know how fortunate she is! She was on a transport truck headed to slaughter but somehow fell or jumped off. Animal control services found her on the side of a highway and took her to the county shelter. Ultimately, she found her way here to Herd & Flock. Her ears were notched as a baby at the factory where she was born to indicate what litter she was part of and her position in the litter. It was done without painkiller so it must have really hurt! At Herd & Flock, Olivia immensely enjoys breakfast, dinner, and an afternoon snack, although she does not care for carrots.
Snowflake
Snowflake, a Nigerian Dwarf goat, like the rest of our goats, was rescued from a dairy farm in southern California. She is Hunnie’s daughter (see below). The farmer did not want her anymore because she has a cleft palate and the farmer believed she was susceptible to infections that she was spreading to the herd. Because of her cleft palate, which is a fissure running through the top of her mouth, she aspirates food into her nose and lungs, and she coughs a lot during and after eating. This can lead to pneumonia and similar infections that threaten her health. For now, her health is good and she enjoys life to the fullest. Snowflake likes being brushed, play fighting, enforcing her place in the herd hierarchy, and eating bananas, apples, and other fruit.
Diego
Diego, and his pig friends Tom and Luther, lived his first 6 months in squalor along with hundreds of other pigs on a mere 1 acre. Since October 2019, he has been with us. Diego is the low man on the totem pole so when he gets a treat he is really excited about - like a piece of watermelon - he carries it off and eats it in the bushes so no one else will take it. Favorite foods include oat hay and persimmons. He also enjoys a good belly rub.
Chickens
Herd and Flock is the proud home of over 50 chickens as permanent residents, but we have be able to foster & help rehome over 400.
Geese
Herd and Flock has helped to save 26 geese and 35 ducks from being dumped in local parks.
Pearl
Pearl is one of 12 Leghorn hens that we took in in March 2020. These hens were in a factory where they lived in tiny battery cages, crammed in with other hens without even room to flap their wings. Battery cages are now illegal in California thank goodness. When we got them, a lot of their feathers were missing and they looked a mess. They have since filled out, their feathers are smooth, and their tails point upwards. Ruth enjoys going outside into the pig enclosure and looking for bugs and other goodies. On a hot day, she hangs out under the misters to keep cool. She also enjoys watermelon and cantaloupe
Pecan
Pecan is an austrolorp hen who came from a pasture raised egg operation. When she turned 3, she was no longer useful and would have been sent to slaughter had we not rescued her. When another of our austrolorps, Pat, was diagnosed with a terminal illness, she had to come live in the house. We wanted her to have a companion so Pecan stayed with her and was a wonderful friend until Pat’s death. Pecan is hanging with our friendly Special Needs Flock and is old for a production chicken at the age of 6. She suffers from arthritis in her right foot. Photo courtesy of Wendy Goodfriend www.wendygoodfriend.com.
Tom
Tom, the middle man, is an instigator of shenanigans and a pot-stirrer. At 1 years old, he is approaching 380 lbs. Tom has an open and friendly face and the attitude to match. He enjoys a nice relaxing nap after breakfast. He loves laying in the mud wallow, and when he is ready to get out, he dashes out, shaking the mud everywhere. He may splatter a few humans who are in the vicinity from time to time. Pet the back of his head, and you may find him flopping down and exposing his belly for
Meg The Goat
Meg came to us from a backyard situation where she was impregnated so that the owner could drink goat milk. The owner moved back to the Bay Area and could not keep her or Teddy or her babies. Meg has been very food focused, probably because she has been nursing and needs the sustenance, but also because Teddy was preventing her from eating by keeping her away from food with head butts. She and her kids have their own bedtime stall now where they can eat without that stress. Meg loves treats, particularly apples, pears, grapes, and carrots. She is always ready for treat time!
Biscuit and Oreo
Biscuit and Oreo are the kids of Meg and Teddy. They were 6 weeks old when they came to Herd & Flock. Their former owner intended to find a different home for the two kids separate from Meg and Teddy, so we were happy to be able to keep this family together.
Oreo enjoys eating whatever she can including pine needles, magnolia leaves, and grapes. She enjoys playing king of the mountain on a pile of hay bales, and when she jumps off, she sometimes flicks her back feet to the side and up, like a gymnast doing a dismount.
Teddy
Teddy is a handsome man! He came to us together with Meg and their son and daughter, Biscuit and Oreo. Of our six goats, he is the only one with horns, and he is not afraid to use them on the others, so he can keep them away from food that he is enjoying. Despite that, with humans Teddy has a sweet disposition and enjoys pets more than anyone except Snowflake. He also enjoys playing king of the mountain with Biscuit which is totally adorable.
Finn
Finn is a British White, a meat breed, born around October 2019. He was found on the highway near some meat and veal farms. Since he wasn't claimed, he was fostered at Sunset Farm Sanctuary in Brownsville, Oregon for the first 5 months of his life. Finn is a good looking guy with arched black eyebrows and black eye shadow. He is also rambunctious and is always trying to get the upper hand over his brothers Tony and Han.
Han
Han Solo is a Holstein born around September 2019. Like Tony, Han was a drop calf of little value to cattle or dairy farmers. Whats more, Han was born with retracted tendons in his legs. Happily, Han was rescued and rehabilitated at Sunset Farm Sanctuary. His rehabilitation included splints and massages every day to help him stand. Can you believe he didn't stand and walk on his own for the first month of his life? Now, he's at Herd & Flock and he will pal around with Finn and Tony for the rest of his 19-25 years of life.
Hunny
Hunny was rescued from a dairy farm in southern California. She had been impregnated multiple times so that she would produce milk, and most of her babies were taken from her. She and her daughter, Snowflake, came to us in February 2020. Hunny has a nervous nature and it took her some time to adjust to her new living situation, but now she happily engages in maintaining her position near the top of the herd hierarchy at Herd & Flock. Hunny enjoys soaking up the sun, spending time with Snowflake, and eating apples, grapes, and sunflower seeds.