2017 Misfit Support

As those of you that follow my work and blog know, here at Apifera Farm I have been adopting and helping barn animals, including special needs/elder animals for about 15 years, first in Oregon at our farm, and now in mid coast Maine. We moved Apifera all our Misfits here in 2016, built a new barn and my work continues. This work includes hospicing animals that come my way too. I really gravitate to hospice, as many of you know. You can see all the Misfit animals I've helped  and communed with at the blog-I cherished each one.

Now in Maine, I have talked to the State Veterinarian, and she likes the work I've done. She explained there are often needs where farm animals have to be removed from a site for neglect or other reasons, sometimes short term, other times forever. It is often hard to find places to send them, soI am now one of the people they can call. Im really excited about this. I am NOT an animal rescue, but rather, a safe harbor for an animal in need, or a hosice caregiver if needed. My understanding is sometimes these animals need a place or a short term, sometimes long term, sometimes forever. 

What the $5,000 fund will provide:

1] Quarantine shelter: I need to build a small quarantine shelter near the other barn, but where I can put an incoming animal, and make sure it is ok to mix with the other animals. We will be able to do the work ourselves, but I would like help to buy the materials.  

2] Feed/hay: It costs about $250-$300 to feed small goat annualy, about $800 a donkey and about $300 for a [small] pig.  

3] This does not  count meds, vaccinations, vet checks, and vet  emergencies, or fencing and such to help create proper paddocks. It's very hard to predict vet costs per year, but I can tell you it costs more in Maine than in Oregon since there are very few large animal vets, and the ones there are tend to be a good $100 trip charge.

Currently I am caring for the following Misfits who have been adopted out of needy situations:
- Rosie  [World's-Grumpiest-But-I'm-Fine-As-I-Am- Pig]
- Wilbur the Acrobatic Goat
- Sir Tripod Goat [crippled, ony three legs in use]
- Moose and Goose two goats
- Opie, a pygmy [plans to do therapy work with him]
- Rosie a retired pygmy
- Tigger, Anna and Yume three elder shelter cats
- Mother Matilda, an elder donkey
- Paco the Poet a mini donkey
- Sophie an elder goat
- The Little Apiferians: five house finches
- Isabelle Noir: an abandonned rabbit
- Hughie, a blind elder one-eyed pug
- Big Tony, original father to 25 cats, from old farm

Apifera is also home to other creatures [but the funds being raised do NOT go to there care since these are animals that did not come from neglect]:
- Boone, my horse
- Pino the therapy donkey, Lucia his sister
- A flock of 6 sheep [their wool will help pay their keep]
- Lady Birdie, a llama for the flock
- The Secret Sisters: our laying hens
- The White Dogs: Marcella and Benedetto [Maremma guards]
- Muddy, the chocolate lab house dog
- Earnest, Eleanor and Cornelia the Kunekune pigs

I will be leaving this fund up since it is a lot to raise. And I will be of course sharing stories of Misfits on the blog.