West Place Welcomes Guests Ahead of Fall Visitors Weekend
- Patrick Cole
- Sep 3, 2024
- 2 min read
September 4, 2024
TEMI-TOPE ADELEYE
TIVERTON, R.I. — The oldest and largest farm animal sanctuary in Rhode Island is getting ready to welcome the public.
West Place Animal Sanctuary's Director of Development and Communications Patrick Cole said they are hosting their annually Fall Visitors' Weekend with some new animals to meet.
"It's still summer technically, but we're getting ready for our Fall Visitors' Weekend here Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 7 and 8, " said Cole. "We're doing prep around the sanctuary to welcome hundreds of visitors."
Next week will mark 18 years since West Place began saving farm animals from abuse, neglect, and cruelty cases across much of Southern New England.
"This is Erna, she is a Crested Pekin Duck, and she recently celebrated her seventeenth birthday this spring," said Cole.
"She has been with West Place since Day One, since we opened our gates 17 years ago, almost 18 years ago."
Their newest guest is Clover, a sweet Emu that arrived about three weeks ago.
They have also welcomed three curious and social Nigerian Dwarf goats, along with many new birds.
It has been almost two years since the Avian Flu outbreak at West Place Animal sanctuary. It was the first report in the state at the time.
Since then, the sanctuary has had visitors' weekends, but this will be the first time in a while that birds will roam freely outdoors.
"It was a devastating time for us. We lost 38 birds in total and we've done a lot of improvements to the sanctuary since then," said Cole.
They built what they call the "Taj Mahal of Chicken Coops," and had work done to their pond to keep things safe for their animals, while keeping the wild birds away.
The West Place Animal Sanctuary has pigs, geese, chickens, donkeys, cows, and other animals.
It operates to remain a haven for its animals for the rest of their lives, so they hold fundraisers like this to raise the money they can't get from grants.
Clover's recent arrival has put them in a tight spot. It has made it difficult for them to accept any larger animals at this time.
Their solution is to expand their barn, a more than $8,000 cost.
So, they hope you will buy a ticket and visit their animal friends this weekend.
"All of these farm animals have unique personalities. They have unique behaviors and quirks and they're just as intelligent and emotional and sentient as dogs and cats," said Cole.
"We believe their just as deserving of our care as dogs and cats are."
West Place also accepts animal sponsorships and volunteers.
For more information about visitors' weekend, visit the West Place Animal Sanctuary website.
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