Meadowbrook Horse Sanctuary
Renee Duncan is not your typical animal lover. Rather than having one or two domestic pets, she takes in all of the abandoned animals that she can find.
“I’m very, very passionate,” Duncan said. “Sometimes, I think my heart is bigger than my brain.”
It’s Duncan’s big heart that inspired her to found the Meadowbrook Animal Sanctuary & Haven, where she has saved hundreds of hundreds over the past 30 years.
She lives at the sanctuary with her 50 horses, 30 dogs and a variety of other miscellaneous creatures – from her pet pig named Jack, to an unruly emu. All of her animals were either scheduled to be euthanized or had been abandoned when she took them in.
“I’ve slept out many a night with a sick horse wrapped in a sleeping bag, just to give them emotional support.” Duncan said. “That’s important, same as it is nursing humans. You know, you have to have a heart.”
But, rescuing horses isn’t an easy task – nor is it a cheap one. Caring for a horse typically costs thousands of dollars a year.
Recently, an increase in hay exported from California to Asia has steepened the market and drastically increase its price. Five years ago, a bail of hay cost around 15 dollars but today it’s more likely to be around 22 dollars. Duncan’s horses eat approximately 12 bails of hay everyday.
Duncan relies solely on donations and help from volunteers to keep the shelter running. Luckily, she has connected with several other local animal lovers.
“Feels a lot better than doing something for humans,” said Michael Norcia, a volunteer. “Because, you know, I’ve been bit by a lot of humans before and animals tend to bite less.”
Randy Carter, a volunteer handyman, comes by to get a taste of the outdoors.
“Gets me back to what I consider the real life,” Carter said. “So you’re not sitting at a desk, pushing a pencil, having somebody tell you what to do.”
When Duncan runs low on donations, she uses her own personal funds to cover costs. She has vowed that she will miss a meal before her horses do.
“My horses eat before I do,” Duncan said. “And you know, we don’t live very fancy. I don’t need anything fancy. I would rather see horses get better.”
Her determination is what inspires the volunteers to keep coming back to help her run Meadowbrook. Together, they save animals that would otherwise be left for dead.
