A Suffolk care farm and animal shelter is just a few days from being left homeless after failing to find a new site.
French’s Care Haven and Care Farm has spent more than a decade in Hadleigh, but a change in landowner means it needs to find a new home for the animals, including grazing space and outbuildings, by the end of June.
Founder Jann Turner said many of the animals, mainly horses and donkeys, have complex needs and would suffer if separated.
She is appealing for a site that the charity can rent, including a minimum of about 13 acres, plus a barn and other buildings if possible, within about a 20 mile radius of Hadleigh.
It had been a stressful time since she was given notice to leave back in February, she said.
“It has been horrendous - it’s impossible. I know there’s somebody out there who would have the land, but it’s just getting the message to them,” she said.
The farm has been based at its current home for about 11 and a half years. She has four donkeys, who have been offered a temporary home for a month, and 12 horses and ponies, which still need a temporary place to stay.
“They are all elderly. It’s like running an old people’s care home. They have to have medication,” she explained.
“They have to have special diets. Those that are healthy we have re-homed. The animals we have left are all animals that need attention.
“We are trying not to split some of the animals up.”
These are ones that had been together for up to 20 years, she explained, and would pine for their companions.
One horse, aged 30, had no grinding teeth left and had to be fed every hour, she explained.
But all of them interacted well with the care farm clients, who found a rapport with the animals, she said. They were used as a form of therapy, and the charity works with groups including Community Action Suffolk.
“I want to continue the good work we are doing and just find a permanent base for use somewhere,” she said.
Although she has approached farms in the area, so far she has had no luck.
If you think you can help the care farm in its quest to find a new home, or help out with the animals, you can contact Jann Turner at jann.turner@hotmail.co.uk or reach her by phone at 07747 755556.
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