Woodlands proudly states that we are West Lancashire’s only multi-species sanctuary. Taking in rescues from across Lancashire and Merseyside for over 20 years. During that time, we have rescued over 3000 animals, some staying permanently with us as residents, the remainder finding new homes upon rehabilitation.

Increasingly however, and we’re not sure whether this down to other rescues being overwhelmed, or a growing reputation, but more and more calls are coming in to us from as far afield as the Lake District and Greater Manchester. Obviously, we take all cases on a welfare over geography basis, and if we aren’t able to help due to capacity issues, we will tap into our network of  other rescue centres to help these cases insofar as is possible.

Receiving desperate calls from the public from all around the northwest is now something that happens every day and we’re happy to help however we can to support these animals in need.

That said, we weren’t ready for one call that came in during early spring 2024. A call that kick started a nationwide rescue and put us on the other end of the phone asking other rescues if there was any room at the inn.

It was a lady whose health was sadly declining, meaning she knew that she would soon be unable to look after her rescue goats. Costs were also spiralling; the pens needed repair, she had neither the funds nor the energy to undertake this project to provide the standard of care she’d expected of herself after years of running the rescue. Would we be able to help? We were delighted to. The only issue was the goats, there were over 30 of them. Far too many for us to safely accommodate.

Vickie, our founder’s daughter, arranged to visit the lady to perform an assessment. During the visit, it became clear that action was needed urgently, leading to them both forming an agreement grounded on trust. It was obviously very difficult for the lady to let her beloved goats go without assurances for their wellbeing, and in Vickie she found the conduit to help her find those goats the quality of life she longed for them to have.

Thus a nationwide search was undertaken to help find animal care partners where we could offer these goats a continued loving life.

We regularly face the tough situation of having to turn away enquiries, and triage them according to need and capacity, yet on this occasion, the boot was now firmly on the other foot.

Back at the sanctuary we started searching for suitable goat rescues and sanctuaries. Call after call was made. Some just didn’t have room. Some didn’t have the finances to care for more. Some would have to look at what they could move around to see if they could accommodate any more.

Time was of the essence as the lady’s ability to care for her goats became stretched further and further.

After days of frantic phone calls to sanctuaries all across the country, we were delighted to have secured enough homes for the rescues.

So, Buttercup Goat Sanctuary and PACT Norfolk joined us in Cambridgeshire in early May to transport these lovely, adventurous characters to their new homes throughout the UK. Early starts, lengthy drives, and finding hope against hope when organising this made it all worthwhile when, after a fraught day of feeding, health checking and herding into trailers they departed for their new homes, and new green grass.

We couldn’t leave Cambridgeshire ourselves without a memento of the huge effort that had gone into this mass rescue mission. Therefore, Vickie decided to return from a gruelling day with three new additions to the Woodlands fold. Anna, Elsa, and Olaf, soon given the moniker of the ‘Frozen’ goats (named after the Disney film) were 3 white goats, a mum and two kids).

After a long journey back up north to Woodlands the goats settled in well. However, Anna soon fell ill and we discovered that she had retained some material during the birthing process. After several vet visits and treatments, she was soon on the road to recovery, and today all three happily enjoy life at woodlands with the rest of our herd.

Indeed, the kids get to enjoy a bit of local stardom every now and then as special envoys to our shop and community fundraising events, allowing people to see our rescues up close and view first-hand the impact that their support has.

Whilst they are now firmly Woodlands rescues, they also represent the increasing role we are playing in collaboration with other rescues, alongside governing bodies such as the Association of Cats and Dogs Homes, to improve welfare outcomes for all animals, regardless of location or size.

With costs of living continuing to drive abandonment and neglect, whilst impacting income streams via donations, it is of the utmost importance that rescues are there to support each other. If this structure is not in place, then a domino effect has a bearing on capacity, meaning more animals become stranded without help. Something we experience first-hand when people call us in desperation after trying others, not being able to find a home for a pet they can no longer care for, or a stray they have found. Likewise, when the tables were turned and  it was our turn to man the phones, calling rescue after rescue, looking for sanctuary for 32 goats.