Soon after, Myrtle made her way to Happy Herd, where she was given the care, stability, and space she had been missing.

Today, Myrtle is thriving in sanctuary life. Curious, clever, and just a little mischievous, she quickly formed a strong bond with Patsy. The two are often found exploring together, turning everyday moments into entertainment for the humans who adore them.

At Happy Herd, Myrtle has what every pig deserves — safety, companionship, and the freedom to simply be herself.

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Recognizing that a newborn requires intensive, around-the-clock care, his owner reached out for help. We were able to step in quickly and bring him home to safety.

Thanks to experience raising other fragile newborns like Garth and more recently Chloe, we were prepared. A playpen was set up in the living room, bottles and milk replacer were ready, and the every-two-hour feeding schedule began immediately.

Winston spent his earliest weeks indoors where he could be closely monitored and supported as he grew stronger. As he gained confidence, he began exploring the outdoors and meeting other members of the herd — including Pickles, with whom he bonded with beautifully.

Today, Winston continues to thrive as he finds his place within the farm family.

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Today, Rosey zooms around the sanctuary in her wheelchair, exploring with endless curiosity. She’s quickly become part of our “wheelie team” alongside Chili.

With her ice-blue eyes and irresistible bleats, Rosey has a way of capturing hearts instantly. She reminds us every day that resilience comes in the most unexpected forms and that life on wheels can still be full of joy, adventure, and friendship.

Caring for Rosey means ongoing therapy, special equipment, and lots of love. If you would like to be part of her journey, your support helps us give her the best life possible.

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Despite these challenges, Chili is a happy, playful and sweet little girl.  She needs constant supervision and bunks with her buddy Chloe, who she is especially bonded to.

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When we transported her home, she showed us what a superstar she is (with a little help from a tasty treat), she walked right into her crate like a pro.

She’s now settling in beautifully and we couldn’t be more thrilled to welcome her to our Happy Herd family.  Although understandably cautious because of recent experiences, she is gaining trust and accepting treats by hand.

Her most adorable feature is her white markings – to watch her tail swish with happiness is a delight!

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Curtis is a large goat, but very polite and gentle. He has the funniest habit of spending time on his knees!

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We were pleased to designate an entire enclosure, house and mud pit to these lovely brothers.   They are always together, whether that is out foraging in the field, or tucked away sleeping, the two are virtually inseparable.  Luckily Tummy is the larger of the two and Paddy has black marks; making them easy to tell apart.

Like all of our pigs, they love their food, basking in the sunshine and napping in a bed of straw.

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Maggie was picked up two weeks earlier in terrible condition. She had been moved from a foster home to a horse rescue and desperately needed a forever home. Her eyes bulged with fear, her wool was patchy and matted, and she had collapsed once. Yet, the vet believed she had a chance.

With the help of two volunteers, we created an area and brought her home. To our surprise, she relaxed almost immediately and began grazing. Maggie knew she was finally home. We named her after a 12-year-old friend of the farm who loved animals and recently passed too young.   We honor her memory by helping Maggie thrive.

Gaining weight and gaining trust, Maggie surprised all of us one morning when we arrived at her sleeping area only to discover she’d given birth. The male was bright and healthy, the little female however looked underweight and at risk. We immediately got her to the vet, warmed up and on formula.

Humphrey (grey & brown), the little male is strong, confident and growing well. Chloe (all black) under the watchful eye of all her housemates, lives in the house so she can be bottle fed. This little family is so unlikely, the vet was pretty sure even if Maggie was pregnant, in the condition she arrived in it was unlikely she would carry to term. While Chloe is not out of the woods just yet, we are pretty amazed by this lovely little family.

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At two months old, he was slowly transitioned outside and joined our small “lamb” herd that also included Gibbles the goat and Pickles the pig.  From the beginning, Mousse was VERY outgoing and independent.  Keeping Mousse entertained can be a full time job, he loves to jump in wheelbarrows (during clean up), steal gloves and playfully head butt.

Today, Mousse is part of a larger family that still includes Pickles.  Mousse shares his space with sheep Linus, Lincoln, Lola, Tyrell & Noodles, and another goat named Percy.  GIbbles unfortunately passed away in 2023.

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Percy is quiet and friendly, always up for a scratch or ten. His adorable markings and gentle nature make him a visitor favourite.

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Ginger (the ginger) was a barn cat owned by a neighbour.  She loves the animals and visitors and quickly became our permanent resident. She loves being a barn cat, spending most of her time outside.  On very cold days, she will use the cat door and come in to warm up.  It’s not long before she is back out saying hello to all the animals; she seems especially fond of our pigs.

Cosmo, is our big tuxie.  Cosmo’s mother was a feral cat found on our property that had given birth. The entire litter was feral except for Cosmo and were rehomed at a nearby equestrian centre where they were happier.  Cosmo made it clear he liked people and stayed.  He is a very affectionate boy, loves to greet the volunteers and visitors.   He enjoys long naps by the wood stove and plenty of lap time.

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Sparky has grown into a very large and handsome boy.  He looks almost identical to his big brother Desi, except for the tuft between his ears that is very noticeable.  Sparky loves treats, scratches and attention from visitors.

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Scooter is a large boy, very friendly but a little more on the shy side.  Pears are his favourite treat.  He has figured out how to use the low branches on every fruit tree in the summer pasture as a back scratcher!

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Rusty is all about living comfortably. You can find him lounging in wheelbarrows full of hay or even the large food bins we have outside the goat houses. Comfort is number 1 for this little guy.

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Lily had given birth to 2 girls; Bif and Moby, and 3 boys; Monroe, Wee Wille and the runt of the bunch, Garth.  After his prolonged and separate rehab, Garth decided he didn’t want to rejoin his littermates.  The four were inseparable, grew very quickly, were weaned and kept together ever since.

It can be difficult to tell them apart when you first visit but as you spend more time with these beautiful pigs you get to know their unique personalities!

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Though she began as a skittish girl wary of contact, Pickles has quickly become one of The Herd’s most popular and sassy socialites. She can be found clearing her roommates out of their building with her zoomies, sunbathing on her bed, going for long strolls around the sanctuary, or relaxing in her pig-loo.

Pickles is the only pig amongst her mates that include Lincoln, Lola, Linus, Tyrell, Mousse & Percy.

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Mowatt spends his days with his best buddies Farley & Finn, of course there are other mates around, but head butting with Mowatt & Finn is good fun and no one else has suitable armour for the task!

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We fell in love with these two female miniature goats, Smudge and Puddin, and knew that this would be their forever home. Much to our surprise, they both turned out to be pregnant and gave birth just a few months later. Smudge had twins, Bubbles & Squeak, and Puddin had 2 babies, sadly one of her babies passed and only Tinker survived.

This family of 5 are inseparable, living their best lives at the Happy Herd. It is truly beautiful to watch this family grow up together and thrive. Being born at the sanctuary, these babies will never know anything but love, kindness, and freedom.

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They arrived at the Happy Herd initially as a SPCA foster situation, we were guaranteed that they could not be pregnant, little did they know that the owner neglected to inform them about the male pig who got loose, evidentially ended up having an encounter with Lulu. We had never seen animals so terrified and immediately decided that this would be their forever home. 3 months later, surprise! Lulu was in fact pregnant and gave birth to 5 piglets Garth, Willy, Monroe, Bif, and Moby.

Just 2 days later Lulu was very sick and needed immediate surgery to repair a torn uterus and remove a dead fetus which was going septic. Lulu survived and 4 of her babies were returned to her but the 5th piglet, Garth, was kept inside due to his tiny size and sickly attitude. Which turned out to be a good thing because only 5 days later he had emergency surgery for a ruptured intestine.

When Lulu and Lily(originally Angelina and Jennifer- ugh) first arrived at Happy Herd they were terrified of all humans. Even being in their presence rattled them and made them quite scared. Through the patient work of a couple of our volunteers, Lily and Lulu have come to understand that we are only here to love them and let them live as they wish. Lily even enjoys a back rub from time to time!  These ladies are still a bit shy but very vocal , always making the sweetest noises.

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Lola (pictured at right) arrived 2 days after Lincoln, and was also rejected by her mother at a farm in Abbotsford. Lola had some trouble initially, coming down with pneumonia at just a few weeks old. She was very tiny and was not expected to live.

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After Garth’s remarkable recovery, he decided he enjoyed the “people” life and chose not to be reunited with his littermates.  Garth continues to be a very independent boy, but now fully grown, strong and full of character.   Garth makes his home with 2 other pigs named Bebop and Gordie.

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Now fully grown, this handsome fellow is a lover at heart and enjoys nose and head rubs!  His best pals and Finnigan and Mowatt, they are often seen in a friendly duel for a visitor’s attention.

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Elliot had been beaten up and abused and was absolutely terrified. Initially our plan was to re home him along with another goat we had just taken in named Gertie. They were going to go live with our friends who had been wanting to take in some goats, However due to Gertie suffering from epileptic seizures we could not send them off. We gradually introduced them to our other goats, Willow and Rusty, and the 4 were a happy goat grouping. He still is a timid boy but now happy in the big goat area with the other goats and sheep.

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Our three bulls have been professionally castrated under full anesthetic by a veterinarian and are now steers, at the same time when they were under anesthetic for their castrating procedure, they were also surgically disbudded to prevent them from growing horns for the safety of all our other family members at The Happy Herd.

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Casey is shy but rewards a quiet and patient visitor with a nuzzle every so often. Be honoured! It’s rare! Casey is a Barbados sheep, which means she sheds her wool, giving her the scruffy look for some time!

Casey has a best pal Norman, they are never very far from each other.  Casey’s favourite treat is banana.

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Bebop lives with his big brother, Garth and similar sized brother Gordie. Since Garth was the runt of his siblings and had suffered their rejection, there was hope that Bebop could become a companion to Garth, and vice-a-versa. The pair met through the fence on the day of Bebop’s arrival, and they were very excited to meet one another.

We think Garth likes having a pig who is smaller than him for a friend, and Bebop is happy to have Garth’s company and leadership.

Whether he’s happily grazing amongst his friends, making a mud pit with Garth, or napping in his house, Bebop has clearly made himself at home here.

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Willow is so sweet and loves attention, and no she is not pregnant, but her body shape will make you question it. She is a pretty white goat, bred for milking.

She has a quirky habit of “star gazing” a potential sign she might have a contagious disease which spreads through her milk if she breeds. Luckily she has never shown any symptoms and lives a happy and carefree life. She must be part ghost because she escapes her pen and we have never been able to figure out how!

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