Crosskennan Lane Animal Sanctuary

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Crosskennan Lane Animal Sanctuary

Hope for the Future 🌱 | See crosskennanlane.co.uk/support-us 💚 | Visits by appointment only! 🐴🐶🐱 Once upon a time there were two horses called Kim and Candy.

Sadly that was where the fairytale ended. Their story is the story of Crosskennan Lane Animal Sanctuary, or at least the beginnings of it. The failure of the animal welfare system in Northern Ireland to look after Kim and Candy prompted me to apply for charitable status in 1996. The subsequent years have been full of heartache, tears, anger and ultimately triumph. I promised myself that, whilst Ki

m and Candy had been failed by the welfare system and the ignorance of the rescue centre they were placed in, the horses, ponies and donkeys who came into the care of CLAS would never be denied the love and attention they so desperately deserved. Crosskennan on opening our gates were for equines; horses ponies and donkeys but we have never turned any animal in need away when we can help them. Over the years we have helped an average of 400 animals annually and now in our 25th year we are home to an average of 150 animals on a long term or permanent residency. The last 25 years certainly have not been easy but have made us all the more determined to improve the situation in Northern Ireland. Ignorance is a great stumbling block and time and time again we have found ourselves up against it. It is ignorance that allows a mare to be locked up in a stable in filth for years without regular food or water or exercise. It is ignorance that allows 13 cats to be left to fend for themselves, turning wild and fighting among themselves, in a house after the owner passed away. And it is ignorance that allows a trotting horse to be driven to his death on a public road. Old habits die hard and attitudes are firmly entrenched but we are determined to fight on to make Northern Ireland a better place for all animals. In the meantime, however, we will continue with our educational and cross community approach to animal welfare. Through our Animal's Helping People workshops and training we hope that the next generation of animal owners will be wiser and more informed than this one. Our story isn’t all doom and gloom though. We have the support of many kind people, friends and volunteers who keep the sanctuary running. We also have many success stories. The mare walled up in misery and filth now has a super home and 12 of the 13 cats have all been treated, spayed, and rehomed: living wonderful lives with new families. We may have helped these animals but their triumphs are down to them. They are a testimony to the resilience of animals to overcome psychological and physical abuse and neglect. Their ability to forgive mankind for the terrible deeds inflicted upon them is surely one of the most amazing phenomena of life. Our work has taught us many lessons, some of them humbling, some of them inspiring, all of them worth learning. Our motto is ‘Hope for the future: Help us trust Again’ and it will be for as long as it takes to make a difference in Northern Ireland. We realise that we cannot change the world but that doesn’t stop us trying.

27/09/2025

More fly spray please!

Love Elijah! ###

27/09/2025

🙋 Junior Volunteer Inductions

Reminder: there’s still time to sign up for our Junior Volunteer Induction on Saturday 11th October.
Ages 12–17 welcome, no experience needed — just a love for animals and a willingness to help.

📧 To book, email: [email protected] with your/your child’s name, age, and why they’d like to volunteer.

💚 Other ways to support if you can’t volunteer:
• Share this post so others see it
• Donate towards feed & care
• Join our adult volunteer team

27/09/2025

Cyril says good morning!

Every morning starts with breakfast 🍽️ → turnout → rugs & coats on → hay for the horses → dogs swapping places → cats… well, the cats do their own thing no matter what we do 😼

Over 100 animals need care every single day, each with their own quirks:
🐴 Hercules is an eejit (we love him) but Serena is in season and not responsible for her actions…
🐴 Stan has a double paddock because Forza wouldn’t keep quiet and upset the whole yard…
🐶 Charlie loves being out but doesn’t get on with everyone — so he has to go back in eventually (where he complains for half an hour 🙄).

All this with just three people on site this morning, more help coming later. While we’re mucking out, feeding, and turning out — the phone rings… the cats sit beside it, but they haven’t mastered note-taking yet. So the answering machine picks it up.

We hope it’s a message about donations — because right now, we’re physically full. We can offer advice, rehoming support through Home From Home, and a listening ear, but no more animals can come in.

It’s a long day. But it’s rewarding. Even if Tinny just rubbed his freshly watered mouth all over my jumper 🐴💦

💚 Ways you can help us keep going:
• Donate to support daily care
• Send supplies from our Amazon Wishlist: https://www.amazon.co.uk/hz/wishlist/ls/3H0PFLPE4ZO9W/ref=cm_go_nav_hz
• Volunteer your time

26/09/2025

Another huge thank you — this time to Greenland Community Fridge and CAP for donating a wheelbarrow full of Naturo dog food, kindly gifted to them from the Blue Cross 💙

It’s already been put to good use keeping our dogs fed and happy 🐶✨ A perfect example of how communities working together can make a real difference.

We’re so grateful for the kindness that flows through these networks of support 💚

26/09/2025

Wow! A massive thank you to Plays for Strays for this incredible donation 🎉

Wheelbarrows full of food, treats, supplements, and supplies — enough to keep our dogs, cats, chickens, and horses happy for days to come 🐶🐱🐔🐴

It takes a community to keep a sanctuary running, and we are so grateful for your support 💚

26/09/2025

Nancy has come a long way since being rescued in 2020. She arrived frightened and defensive, hiding and lashing out when cornered. Today she keeps us company in the office — still cautious, but comfortable enough to perch nearby while we work ❤️

💚 Want to help more cats like Nancy?
• Sponsor a cat in care
• Donate food or litter
• Contribute to our vet bills fund

25/09/2025

😂 Charlie vs Charleen

Oh dear… watch out Charleen! Giant Charlie is sneaking up! 🐶💨

⚠️ caution: dogs in this photo may appear larger than they are in real life!

No photo tricks, just Charlie enjoying some time on a lap while the team grabs a lunch break. Camera angles are funny! 🤣

💚 Want to help dogs like Charlie?
• Donate toys, treats, or food
• Sponsor a dog in care
• Share our posts to spread the word

25/09/2025

🐴 New “Neigh”bours

Our residents had some surprise visitors over the fence today — new ‘neigh’-bours stopping by to say hello 👋🐎🐎 We love these little moments.

💚 Help us keep tails wagging & hooves happy:
• Sponsor a sanctuary resident
• Donate hay/feed towards their care
• Share our work with friends & family

24/09/2025

🐴 Hercules Says Thank You

Yum yum! Hercules says a huge thank you to everyone who donated towards our appeal for Airways and supplements ❤️ He licked his bowl clean!

💚 Ways to keep helping horses like Hercules:
• Donate towards specialist feed & supplements
• Sponsor one of our residents
• Share our appeals

24/09/2025

☎️ Answering Machine Marathon

Admin is a big part of rescue life — today we cleared 43 voicemails and took another 5 calls live. That’s on top of emails and people dropping by. Calls ranged from needing to give up pets, adoption enquiries, session bookings, to urgent call-backs.

👉 Please help us help you quicker — when leaving a message, include your name, number, and a short reason for your call.

💚 How you can help:
• Be clear when leaving messages/emails
• Support our admin costs with a donation
• Volunteer with admin tasks

24/09/2025

🐾 Home from Home Rehoming – Castro

Castro is a 4 year old British Bulldog looking for a loving new home through no fault of his own.

He is a very affectionate boy with a gentle nature. Castro adores attention, gives plenty of kisses, and is wonderful with children of all ages. He has also shown great patience and kindness around people with additional needs, making him a truly special companion. 💕

Important to know:
- Castro is not fully toilet trained and needs an owner who is patient, understanding and prepared to work with him on this.
- He is otherwise a healthy, happy dog with lots of love to give.
- He will be best suited to a home where someone is around most of the time, so he can get the attention and companionship he craves.

Castro’s owner describes him as “a great dog with a very lovely nature” and is heartbroken to have to have to part with him. This is a reluctant decision made purely due to personal circumstances, not because of any fault with Castro himself.

If you can offer Castro the stable, attentive, and loving home he deserves, please get in touch.

⚠️ Please note: This dog is being rehomed through our Home from Home scheme is not at the sanctuary.

If you think you could provide Castro with the right home, please apply here:
https://www.crosskennanlane.co.uk/dog-re-homing-application

Unfortunately, due to the large number of applications we can receive per dog, we do have to state that we may not be able to contact every unsuccessful home.

Adoptive homes will only be considered in NORTHERN IRELAND. We are sorry we cannot accommodate further afield but this ensures we can carry out effective home checks and you have a chance to meet the dog before adoption.

23/09/2025

We often receive requests to rehome kittens. (While we don’t currently have any available at the sanctuary at the moment, we do have young cats aged 1–3 years!)

In the meantime, we’re sharing this on behalf of another rescue - three kittens are available for adoption:
• Biscuit – Female, 14 weeks
• Callie – Female, 9 weeks
• Peanut – Male, 14 weeks

If you’re interested in rehoming one, please email [email protected] and we’ll put you in touch.

Address

Telephone

+442894465384

Website

http://www.crosskennanlane.co.uk/

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