In Memoriam
Otis
Otis became a Farmaste resident at only a few weeks old. After suffering an injury to his eye during or shortly after birth, he was facing slaughter. Fortunately, he found his way to Farmaste instead, and after a short course of eye drops, he was healthy and ready to embrace sanctuary life! Otis loved every minute of it. He had a larger-than-life personality. He charmed thousands of visitors to the farm. He loved greeting people, looking them straight in the eye, and waiting for them to breathe on him (his preferred way of getting to know someone). He was playful and goofy, with the best strut on the farm. He could be the biggest baby; he loved cuddles, seeking comfort from his loved ones, and being hand-fed delicious leaves. He was a devoted big brother to Willow for his entire life. Otis brought so much joy and laughter to Farmaste.
Otis lived 5 beautiful years of freedom. While it is much shorter than we had hoped, he lived a peaceful and safe life on his own terms. We can’t hope for anything more. Run free sweet boy.
Starr
As you may remember, Starr saved his own life. He was scheduled to die -- he made it as far as the slaughterhouse in Iowa. Once there, Starr and several other members of his flock managed to escape. While the others were eventually caught and returned, Starr evaded capture after which he was corralled and cared for by a loving local family. Since the summer of 2018, he has lived peacefully at Farmaste. He was the senior member of the sheep flock and while he valued his alone time, he was close with Luna. Eva had also recently won him over, despite his best efforts to resist, and they were an adorable opposites-attract pair of friends.
Starr made many friends while at Farmaste. When he first arrived, he chose to join the cow herd after closely bonding with Moolan, who was a small calf at the time. He spent the summer grazing in the pastures with the “big cows.” He loved spending time with them - you could see his joy. When fellow sheep Ringo moved to Farmaste, they formed their own small flock and became best friends. Their flock grew over time, and after Ringo’s passing, Starr quickly settled into his role as the wise elder of his new family.
Starr was a fighter. He was slow to trust, but loyal to his friends. He pretended to be a curmudgeon, but loved to be loved. He is missed. Run free sweet boy.
Jeka
Jeka was one of the lucky few. Born into an ASPCA foster home after her mom had been rescued pregnant from a case of neglect, Jeka only knew safety and kindness in her life. She was loved from the day she was born until her last day on earth. She moved to Farmaste with her sister Ophelia and Violet when they were 18 months old, and Jeka loved sanctuary life!
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Jeka shared love just as freely as she received it. She was often the first resident to greet us when walking up to the barn and easily made friends with her human caregivers and visitors. She was gentle and easy-going. She loved to root, wallow, and explore. During her younger years, she often tried to convince her sassier sisters Ophelia and Violet to play with her – and sometimes she succeeded. She never looked as content as she did when cuddled up with her sisters for a nap, and her adorable snore let you know she was deep in dreamland.
We are grateful that Jeka’s life was filled with the peace she deserved.
Kristen, along with her friends Beata & Clarice who passed away in early 2020, was rescued from a small goat dairy farm in western Minnesota. The owner of the farm was looking to downsize her operation and was happy to find a place where her goats could live out their lives in peace. Despite living on a small family farm, Kristen came to us in poor health. She had issues with her udder - it had recently been punctured by a stick, and without proper care, it became severely infected. After having a full mastectomy, Kristen moved home. She spent almost exactly 6 years living her best life at Farmaste before passing at 13 1/2 years old.
Kristen loved sanctuary life. When she arrived, she was the top goat in her herd and enjoyed keeping her friends in line when needed, which Kristen thought was often! She was also the “representative” of her herd with the other species. She was often spotted interacting with Gertie, Moolan, and even the pigs. Kristen was a tough girl, and she was certain she could take on a competitor of any size! As Kristen aged and younger goats joined her herd, she gave up her position as top goat but she never lost her sass. Kristen knew her own mind and could be stubborn, but she was also loving and loyal. She would go to bat for her friends. She loved a snack and scratches from her human friends. She always made us laugh with her silly antics, she loved to cause a little mischief.
Kristen
Ringo
Ringo joined Farmaste at only one week old after being posted for free on Craig’s List. Very ill and in need of multiple bottle feedings per day, he spent his first few months inside Farmaste’s founder’s house being raised by her daughter Morgan. He was a tiny little bouncy ball of black fuzz, but his personality was as big as they come. He would sprint around the house bouncing off every surface until he cuddled in with Morgan for a nap on the couch.
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When he was about six months old, he moved to the farm and met his best friend Starr. They got along well enough, but Ringo continued to prefer the company of humans. He was always the first to greet us at the barn and loved to play with his human friends. However, Ringo really blossomed in the past six months with the addition of Levi, Lola, and Luna. He quickly established himself as the leader of the flock and for the first time, became a sheep’s sheep. Ringo was so proud of his flock and reveled in the joy and responsibility of being their leader. We had never seen him happier.
It seems unfair that Ringo only had two short years with us. We take comfort in knowing that he escaped the life he was born for and lived those two years joyfully surrounded by love. But Farmaste won’t be the same without his larger-than-life personality. He will be so missed. Run free sweet boy.
Clarice
Clarice passed away at the old age of 13, only two short months after her best friend Beata passed away. We can't help but believe that Clarice missed her friend and was ready to join her.
Clarice, who arrived with Beata & Kristen, was one of Farmaste’s first residents. After spending the first 11 years of her life as a working dairy goat, her retirement at Farmaste was well deserved. If you had the opportunity to meet Clarice, you know that she enjoyed every day she spent at Farmaste. Despite being at the bottom of the goat herd hierarchy, she loved her goat friends. Visitors delighted in meeting Clarice, she was always the first to welcome visitors and she treasured human attention. We are honored to have been able to provide Clarice 2 1/2 years of freedom and the simple pleasures that most farm animals are never able to enjoy. To be able to pass peacefully at an elderly age after years surrounded by love is all we wish for our residents. We hope that she felt safe and loved every moment at Farmaste. Run free sweet girl - have fun with Beata!
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Beata
Beata was one of Farmaste’s first residents. After spending the first 11 years of her life as a working dairy goat, her retirement at Farmaste was well deserved. She settled in very quickly and enjoyed every day of sanctuary life. We remember when she first arrived with Clarice and Kristen, she was so excited to spend her days exploring her new pastures. As arthritis caused by her CAE infection worsened, she stayed closer to the barn but still reveled in her daily pleasures. She loved bathing in the sun, savory snacks (everyone else in the barn prefers sweets), and a good massage. If you were lucky enough to have met Beata, you may have experienced the joy of scratching just the right spot - and watching her throw her head back and forth in pleasure.
Beata passed away peacefully at nearly 14 years old, surrounded by humans who loved her dearly and her best goat friend Clarice. While saying goodbye is always difficult, we are honored to have been able to provide Beata 2 1/2 years of freedom and the simple pleasures that most farm animals are never able to enjoy. We like to believe that today she is frolicking in a pasture somewhere - free of pain. We miss her dearly. Run free sweet girl.
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Lucy
​Lucy was rescued with Levi, Lola, & Luna when she was only months old. She unfortunately came to us very ill, after having been neglected over an extended period of time. She was originally rescued from spring slaughter by a college student with a big heart, but without a solid plan for their care. Lucy's rescuer knew she wasn’t eating, but didn’t seek veterinary care to determine what the problem could be. She had a high volume of parasites in her body. That, along with not eating and most likely not getting colostrum because she was born a triplet, played a large role in her severe health condition. The reality is that Lucy would have had a chance at survival if she had been provided with proper vet care even days before we rescued her, but weeks would have been better.
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Sadly, Lucy never made it home to Farmaste and never got the opportunity to know her as the individual that she was. We will forever picture you bouncing through an open pasture sweet girl.
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Monique
Monique came to us at only a few days old. A local farmer reached out to us because Monique had a malformed palate and was unable to feed from her mother. What she wasn't able to see was that her heart also had multiple deformities in it. Her sweet little heart wasn't going to carry her forward through life. Shortly after coming into our care, she took a turn for the worse, and we had to make the extremely difficult decision to humanely euthanize her end her suffering. We had fallen in love with her from the moment we heard about her and had dreams of her living out a very long life with us at Farmaste. We will forever remember her as the adorable, quirky girl she was. Escaping enclosures to explore her surroundings, giving you kisses with her crooked little face, and wagging her tail a million miles an hour to share how happy she was. Run free sweet girl.
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Annie & Violet
Violet & Annie were calves from the same dairy farm in Wisconsin born five months apart. Both of them came to us extremely ill at about eight weeks old. Despite receiving excellent care at the University of Minnesota, both were too sick to recover, and we made the difficult decision to end their suffering within a day of their coming into our care. These calves' deaths were the results of the farmer not seeking appropriate and timely medical care for their health problems. To him, they were something. To us, they were someone. While they never got to live a life of freedom, we are honored to have been able to show them love and compassion -- even for a brief time. We remember them for the individuals that they were, and for all of the calves that never get a name.
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