We are an animal sanctuary giving a forever home to the unloved + unwanted rescue animals. This is fully funded by bringing some of the animals out to various encounters, workshops + events 

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We currently have over 100 rescue animals in our care and each of these live with us as part of our family in our home which is a very old building that used to be both a school and a church in West Sussex.

 

Obviously this requires a lot of funding and we create this by bringing a selection of the animals out to different types of settings, celebrations, workshops and events.

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We have both always had a passion for unloved and unwanted animals and wanted to help those who fell through the cracks. There has always been a lot of rescue centres focusing on cats + dogs so we wanted to give our time and attention to the mammals and reptiles that, through no fault of their own, need a forever home. When we started this journey it was never meant to be a full time lifestyle - we were both in very different careers (Mark was an Art Director and Jerry a Special Needs Teacher) but as we waded deeper into the area of rescue it soon became clear we were heading down a new path together. 

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We officially started offering encounter in 2015 but had been rescuing animals for a long time before this - the workshops were just a natural progression and a way to fund the endless vet trips and specialist diets.

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Caring for animals

Caring for such a large menagerie is a huge amount of work which means no time off, holidays or social life - the animals become your life and take up every inch of it but honestly we wouldn't have it any other way (although a holiday does sound lovely!).

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Who are we?

 

Mark

Born and raised in Kent - our animal man Mark moved to London in his 20's and worked for many years as an award winning Graphic Designer. In his 30's he explored Europe and settled for ​a number of years in Holland where he met Jerry. While working in design he never lost his love for animals and in 2015 made the jump from behind the computer into full time animal care.

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Mark works closest with our animals and especially those who have had severely upsetting backgrounds. 

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Jerry

Born and raised in Holland  Jerry moved to the UK in 2009 where he carried on a successful career in teaching. Awarded an 'outstanding' from Ofsted for his continued work in 'Special Needs Education'. Jerry has many years of experience working with emotional, social, learning and behaviour difficulties.

 

Jerry juggles his time between animal encounters and managing the business side of things making sure everything runs smoothly.