Today we’d like to introduce you to Angela Devine.
Hi Angela, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I have had riding horses for most of my adult life. In 2014 I bought a little hobby sized farm in Loudon and took in several miniature horses that had been in a bad situation before being rescued. I absolutely fell in love with these pint sized equines and before long people were asking me to take in others that were in bad situations.
In 2016, East Tennessee Miniature Horse and Donkey Rescue was born. When the rescue started I had no idea how big the need was for helping these little horses and donkeys. We took in 89 in our first years.
Now, almost 10 years later, we have helped over 700 miniature horses, donkeys, mules and the occassional farm animals. We take them in and provide medical care, training, and work to get their body and soul ready for their forver homes through adoption. We take in animals that have been loved but lost their family, cruelty cases, and when we have funds we pull the unhealthiest from livestock auctions.
With the amount of equines we have helped over the years, we do have some that are just too medically delicate to adopt out but still have good quality of life with specialized care. For these unique minis we have started a sanctuary program. Some examples of our sanctuary minis are a blind mini, a mini with cancer and a small pony with a prosthetic leg.
All of this is done completely through public donations. We are volunteer ran organization and rely on everyday people to keep this a safe place for minis in need.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
In the beginning there were no volunteers. It was just myself and my children who were still living at home who did all the care for the miniatures. I did and still do work full time which makes the volunteers we have critical for providing the best care possible for the miniatures in rescue.
Our biggest struggle? Probably the same for every small rescue, Funding. We completley rely on private donations from the public to run the rescue. We use social media, have online auctions for donated items, and several times a year we have small events at the farm. And let me tell ya, horses aint cheap. This year especially has been hard because so many people are struggling but because people are struggling our program is needed more than ever to help keep littles in emergency situations safe.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
In my private life, I have always working in some sort of service industry. I really enjoy helping people. I feel this is part of the reason I started the rescue. When someone is going through a hard time knowing that their animals will be cared for and loved takes that one big stress away so they can focus on taking care of themselves.
Is there any advice you’d like to share with our readers who might just be starting out?
Know that there will be times your heart will be broken and you will want to quit. You cannot save them all but you must focus on the ones you did save and know that sometimes saving them means saying goodbye.
Pricing:
- Our yearly budget is about 80,000 our two biggest expenses are :
- over 20,000 a year for vetting approx
- 20,000 a year for hay and feed approx
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.easttennesseeminiaturehorseanddonkeyrescue.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/minirescuetn/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/minirescuetn/
