Apifera Farm is home to artist Katherine Dunn and landscaper Martyn Dunn. Located in mid coast Maine, Apifera takes in needy animals but also shares them with elder people. They are a 501[c][3]. Contact katherine@katherinedunn.com with questions.
The 103 year old birthday boy showing me his favorite pony bells through the window
Fuzzy one of the new elders to arrive. She has chronic cyst issues which makes her bleed
We are in the midst of raising $5,000 this month to cover annual hay cost and the large spring vet bill from last week for routine vet care /rabies shots for non equines [equines were done in the spring]. Keeping our fun healthy is always a priority here, we pay our bills as they come in and do not use credit although we are very able to if needed. One of the things I saw happen over the years at many animal sanctuaries was them getting overextended, and it is easy to understand how that can happen. So your donations help feed and maintain our animals and keep vet bills up to date...and keep our fund healthy.
You can donate by check or at the blog, or if you are a Facebook person you can donate at the fundraiser [FB does not take any fees, all money comes to Apifera]
Keeping the health of the 30 year old Honey the horse [we took in from an elder couple last year] is a challenge and we have been testing her for various things to no avail. She is very thin and we continue to try by working with our vet. But we will assess her again in fall. It might mean we have to help her get wings rather than go through a winter. She is old and at some point all elders can not stay healthy no matter how hard we try.
We saved Moose the goat after his bout with goat polio, but he relapsed in late June and his neurological issues were very stressful for him. He was having pain we could not determine and considered it to be a brain tumor. Our vet guided us, and his daily routine had to be monitored so he would not hurt himself. In the end, I knew he was stressed, and we let him go. It was very sad, but he is pain free now.
Through COVID, we continue to do our best for our elder friends in residences by taking Harry the llama in for window walks-it brings them much needed joy. The situation is so hard and we do not think we will be able to meet in person for some time but we continue to do our window walks.
While Harry the llama is getting all the press, Arlo the younger llama is in training. I am unsure if he will go out on visits this year due to the virus. he is doing well though.
We also are doing some Facetime chats in the front barn with the elders, one-on-one which is better than nothing and only works with some eldres. Many elders just don't grasp the Facetime thing, we find, but some do and it makes them really happy to be remembered and see the garden and animals.
We took on two more elder pygmy goats, both of whom were used for years as breeders but had life threatening issues and were retired and I took them on. {Joliet and Auntie Bea}
And if you follow along, you know Pickles!!
My little love hut is built and were all excited to open her up for visitors, but then the Covid hit. So "Lovey", as I call her, sits waiting, as we do. The plan is to let people come and sit with a llama or what animal I choose for the afternoon, and have quiet healing visits. I hope to also do some small events there, like book readings, music with the llamas, etc. Stay tuned. I hoped to do some this fall, but everything is up in the air and we choose to follow science and data and be safe versus rushing, especially since this area gets a lot of out of towners.
We have taken on three more elder cats since January, all sad cases of owners dying, or going into homes. One is a hospice case. The elder cat suite is home to old cats that we take from our local shelter. We have a wonderful contact there that knows our farm and if an elder comes in that she knows would fit in, she calls.
This coming month through fall I will [finally] be working more with Captain Sparkle and The Teapot, the two elder ponies. I hope to do some agility training and hiking with them.
We continue to care for many elders-the llama ladies, Honey the horse, Matilda the donkey, and many crippled elder goats to name just a few.
Pickles meets Harry. "Are you a God?" she asks him.
