Big Joe – enjoying his mineral lick!
Big Joe had an interesting life before coming here, along with his friend Phoebe. They had been mostly kept in a garden and conservatory and given chips and biscuits as part of their diet. Joe now enjoys his days here with Phoebe, chomping on grass and hay. He’s a very big, soft lad who absolutely loves a back massage!
At the sanctuary we support the work of Fresh Start For Hens and open our farm once a month, to rehome ex-commercial hens who are considered ‘spent’.
At 72 weeks old, the hens are usually sent for slaughter as they are coming into their first moult, which means their bodies need to work hard to grow new feathers. This takes a lot of work for their already overworked bodies, and consequently during the moult their egg production drops slightly. Once the moult is over, they will happily continue to lay eggs for as long as their body is able to.
After every rehoming day, we often keep back some for ourselves and always take in the ones that may look fragile or need some extra tlc. Every little hen deserves her Fresh Start and although we can’t save them all, we save as many as we can.
If you would like to know more about the amazing work that the FSFH does, please click here.
Hello – I’m Michelle
Welcome to my website, where I share the different aspects of what I do and why I do it!
My interests have always fallen into three distinct categories which have grown and changed over the years. I have always loved animals, art and the esoteric.
A childhood spent in and out of hospital meant that much of my time I would draw, paint and take comfort in nature and my connection with animals. I was lucky to be born into a family where an awareness of Spirit was considered normal; so the idea of a Spirit world and psychic phenomena never felt strange to me. In my teens my sensitivity grew stronger, as did my psychic awareness.
When I left school I began a long career working in the NHS. During this time I also trained as a Clinical Aromatherapist (IFA) and as a spiritual healer with The Healing Trust. I then went on to learn the USUI Reiki Healing system (Levels 1 & 2) and completed the Reiki Master programme (Level 3) in 2001.
I have always been creative and I have read tarot and oracle cards for over 25 years.
Spirit Work and Art – For the Animals:
Five years ago we started to take in sheep and poultry that had come from various circumstances; some were no longer able to stay with their owners; others had been abused and needed rehabilitation, time and patience. We now have our small family run sanctuary, where we can rescue, rehabilitate and give a home to animals whose futures were uncertain.
Our sanctuary is self-funded. We are not a charity and aside from the occasional kind donation, we receive no outside support. It made complete sense to me to use my creative skills to raise money which supports their feed, rehabilitation and veterinary fees and also use the money raised from my work as a card reader and healer. Every penny goes back to the animals, and covers the cost of winter feed, hay, bedding and the regular vet bills we incur as we rehabilitate animals that are unwell.