Heartland Farm Sanctuary

Description

Heartland Farm Sanctuary was founded in 2009 as Wisconsin’s first farm animal sanctuary. The sanctuary started with two rescued baby goats, Clark and Diana. As Heartland started rescuing more farm animals in need, we started a humane education summer camp for kids. Campers learned about caring for our rescued residents and helped with animal care and barn chores. We also started two animal-assisted therapeutic programs: Animal Hearts, for kids who have experienced some type of loss or trauma, and Barn Time: a program for children living with special needs.

Years later, our humane education camps have expanded to include fall and spring camps, as well as Leadership Camp for teens who are interested in our mission of inspiring compassion for all beings. We also switched from an animal-assisted therapeutic model to experiential therapy. Animal-assisted therapy implies the "use" of animals as an intervention "tool" in therapeutic settings. Because our focus is on developing social emotional skills, empathy, and compassion for all beings, we found that an experiential therapeutic approach encompasses the entire experience of life at a farm sanctuary, including the role that we play in ensuring that animals get to live life on their own terms.

Since opening our doors, we have rescued hundreds of farm animals in need. We are currently home to 13 different species. We take pride in providing each of our residents with high-quality, individualized care.