The
Furrytale Farm.....a place where old and
unwanted animals can come and live out their
days in peace and comfort. . .a place where
abused and abandoned animals can learn to trust
again and have a second chance at happily ever
after. . .a place where neighs mingle with
brays, where oinks are truly squeals of delight
and where woofs are welcoming. . .a place where
kids learn to respect and value animals and
learn in turn to respect and value themselves.
Now in its twelfth year of operation, The Furrytale Farm is a no-kill multi-species rescue facility that provides its residents with sound nutrition, complete medical care, and a comprehensive rehabilitation program, and its visitors with a new and different concept of compassion and acceptance. It features open societies for the equines who frolic with one another in their pastures, for the porcines who root happily side by side in their yard, for the felines who roam the acres, keeping the farm safe, and for the canines, who play together, eat together, sleep together and share their home with the farm’s founder, Suzannah Sloan.
It
was Sloan’s idea to end some of the misery and
save part of the world when she bought the
eight-acre sheep farm in 1998 and turned it into
an animal sanctuary. Little did she know how
much larger her world would become than those
eight acres, as she now looks for both public
and private funding to take the farm and its
anti-abuse work to the next level.
It was also Sloan’s concept to combine education with her rescue and rehabilitation efforts. Believing that preventing animal abuse is far preferable to treating it, the farm runs a number of programs aimed at persuading children from all over the Puget Sound area that there are always alternatives to mistreating animals. If left unchecked, such patterns have been shown to repeat and escalate.
While there are facilities across the country that aid troubled children by bringing in animals for therapy purposes, The Furrytale Farm is unique in its concept of pairing children in need with animals in need. There is a bond that forms between damaged animals and damaged children that is unlike any other, a four-step process as we have come to call it. First, there is recognition — “I’ve been where you’ve been.” Then there is communication — “I’ll tell you my story if you tell me yours.” Next comes commitment — “I’ll never let anyone hurt you again.” And finally, there is healing — “I understand now and I can survive.”
Each year, well over one hundred animals are cared for at Furrytale. Each year, more than two hundred children participate in the farm’s unique programs.
There are two kinds of animals that come to Furrytale. . .those who can be cured, healed, rehabilitated, and adopted to good homes, and those who can be cured, healed, rehabilitated, but have no place to go, and so stay at the farm for the rest of their lives. Each has a face to remember, and a story to tell. We invite you to meet some of them, hear their stories, and then decide how you might be able to help.
Our Mission. . .
It is our two-fold mission to rescue animals in need and to reduce abuse because we firmly believe that the best way to treat abuse is to prevent it . . . one child at a time.
To that end, we provide a wide range of educational programs for children aimed at engendering respect for all living beings, having found that those who learn to respect and value animals learn in turn to respect and value themselves. And those who respect and value themselves do not abuse.
We began by saving animals. We moved on to saving children. And now it’s time to take the next step — and do what we can to save the planet. Want to know more? Contact us. Want to be part of something vital? Join us.