Asking for Donations

Dogs Walked/Runned - Check
Henry and Gertie Fed - Check
Dodged Presley’s attacks - Check
Gracie Fed - Check
Charles Fed - Check
Pot Belly Herd Fed While Listening to Eugene Squeal - Check
Eugene and Violet Fed - Check
Goats Fed - Check
All Waters Filled Up - Check
Fresh Straw For Everyone - Check
Dogs Fed - Check
Close Up Roosters for the Night - Check
Put Gertie and Henry to Bed - Check
Put Dogs To Bed - Check
Put Tiny Human to Bed - Check
Feed the Cats - Check
Write Blog While Watching the Second Season of “This is Us” and Snuggling Our Cat Alice - In Progress 
Asking for donations is pretty much the story of my life these days because running a sanctuary requires a constant inflow of funds.  This is in order to ensure the operation runs smoothly and the animals are cared for appropriately. There are several grant opportunities available but we haven’t been able to apply for any of them because all the ones I can find require your non-profit to be a registered charity which we are not yet.  But since we have been up and running for a year, we will soon apply for our charity status but this can take 1 to 2 years if we are approved. So for now we rely solely on donations from the public which is also harder for us to obtain because we are not able to issue tax receipts as this can only be done by registered charities.  Our main sources of income are sponsorships, crowdfunding, Patreon supporters, fundraising and online requests for donations. Constantly asking for donations is definitely out of my comfort zone and it’s not something I’m fond of doing but I wouldn’t be able to run the sanctuary if I didn’t. One of the key reasons why I am writing this blog is that I want everyone to know how the money we receive is spent.  All the funds that come into the sanctuary go directly to the animal’s care or to the infrastructure of the sanctuary. There are absolutely no administration fees and on that note you should check out the percentage of the money that actually goes to some big charities, it will blow your mind how much goes to administration fees.

Whenever possible I try and get items for free or second hand and if that’s not obtainable I must purchase them.
Here is a list of items our money is spent on:
·        Materials to build shelters
·        Labour to build – this is only for larger projects where I don’t have an experienced volunteer to take on
·        Fencing (An incredible expense due to the high quality required to keep our animals safe and contained)
·        Food (one of the biggest expenses)
·        Insurance
·        Equipment (halters, wheelbarrows, shovels, hoof trimmers, food dishes, water bowls, tarps, brushes and this list                     could go on and on…..)
·        Medication (dewormer, antibiotics, materials for minor cuts and scrapes etc.)
·        Crates
·        Unanticipated veterinary visits (A huge expense)
·        Spays and Neuters
·        Enrichment activities
·        Bedding (Straw and Shavings)
·        Supplements

I am truly honoured that there are so many members of the public that entrust their money with us.  Please know that all the money that is donated goes directly to what you hoped it would go to along with my blood, sweat and tears.  So I just want to simply say thank you!