July 2019
Thank you all for your patience as the Fear-No-More Zoo guild has gone through some necessary growth over the past year. We are really excited to reconnect through our new website. Here is an overview of the infrastructure projects that have been going on at the sanctuary in northern California.
Our Zoo crew consists entirely of volunteers and all projects are funded by individual donation. We welcome any donation, no matter how modest, to help us care for our residents and provide comfortable environments where they can safely receive visitors.
Camels
The camel herd is healthy and fit. They browse high into the hillsides of the valley and enjoy great freedom.
We have major work happening in the camel’s valley that will offer significant advances to their care, our ability to receive service help, and to host visitors. Examples include:
Newly Remodeled Grain Shed Vet and Training Area
The creation of this new area involved creating good working gates, spraying a layer of concrete on the existing shed and creating a concrete “safety” bench around the side (primarily used as seating but also useful for many camel training applications). The fencing around the shed is designed for different training applications and makes working inside to prepare grain and supplements much easier without the camels reaching in. We used earth bag fill for the concrete bench which saved a lot of money and worked great.
Rock Circle Gathering Area
A previously disheveled area filled with rocks and brush was transformed into a useful habitat where camels can gather. This area is great for feeding in the winter as it is safe, level, and drains well. The camels love using this area for shade and it’s where we comb wool from the camels in late May. Still a work-in-progress, this area is the hub and main gathering place for the herd and has the potential to serve as an area for humans to gather safely with the camels.
Summer Time at the Lake Shelter
This shelter is a tall roof structure that is the beginning of what will be built on and developed over time into a very large open shelter likely to be used mostly in the summer months. Last summer we secured this shelter from being chewed by the camels with a sprayed-on a layer of concrete over the post. We also added sandy dust pits for the camels to lounge in.
This turned out to be a favorite spot for the entire herd (the camels always make home base around where Peaceful Baba is). This happens to be Peaceful Baba’s “summer home” as every late spring he is let out of his winter enclosure to wander and graze the fresh grass and eventually ends up landing at the lake shelter for the summer months. We hope to continue developing this area.
More Freedom to Roam
We have removed a large amount of old barbed wire fencing that formed the herd’s old paddock. The camels are now free to roam the valley as they please. This has been happening for well over a year now and we’ve noticed many pleasant adjustments. In general the camels are more relaxed and satisfied with this arrangement, certain members of the camel herd that were challenging to work with have calmed down a lot. Not having a paddock fence has initiated expansive and dynamic movement patterns for the camels. This provides us with very useful information for going forward creatively in terms of design, accommodations for both human and camel, and retreat processes in the future.
Hardscaping Project
We have also just begun a major hardscaping project in the camel valley. This hardscaping is designed to prepare the land in areas in which we hope to develop more infrastructure for the care of the camels. An example of this is the making of a new road along with what will become the new paddock hard fence line made out of galvanized horse panels. We will then be able to manage the herd in an enclosure when necessary and out of the flood zones of the valley during the winter. This project will also address safety issues in areas the camels move through and spend their time, for example, around their hay shed and over creek crossings.
Horses
We integrated all of the horses, including the mini horses, into a single horse herd. We also made several improvements to their area including updating shelters and storage areas, slow feeders for eating hay, learning hoof trimming (necessary for horse health), installing safe hitching posts for training, and more. Rainy seasons are the most challenging with the horses as we need to make sure they get enough exercise, and their hooves need monitoring as they tend to pack with mud. We’re looking into strategies to reposition the horses during the winter and spring months to more sandy, well-drained hills.
We are really happy about the horses’ adaptation to the slow feeders for the winter and spring months as this dynamic has offered some significant benefits including: it takes the horses hours to eat instead of 30 minutes, the horses must share feeders and have therefore grown in their tolerances of each other while feeding, and the slow feeders make for very easy hoof care as the horses are happily settled into the feeders and allow us to work on their hooves with less fuss.
Llamas
In early 2018 the llama area was remodeled and Lori Chowning, a highly respected “llama whisperer” from Montana, came to sheer the llamas and provide basic grooming and health maintenance. Unfortunately, we lost two of our llamas in early 2019, leaving one llama—Kriya. We recently got a new llama named Apple Pie to befriend Kriya. The introduction of the two llamas was very easy and happy and they are bonding well.
We have constructed a new 6’ fence that is very secure and expands to include more space for the llamas. Both llamas have enjoyed watching construction of the fence.
Kriya seems relaxed and happy about the new developments in her life. Both llamas will be involved in ongoing training and handling.
Goats
Bamboo the Goat was relocated to live at Sara’s so she could work more closely with him. They acquired a small family of goats for Bamboo to have a more full and happy life experience. Some time in the future this little herd may spend time on The Mountain of Attention Sanctuary.
Bamboo has bonded to the two mothers very well and enjoys playing horns with one of them that he’s identified as his lady, and she’s happy about that too.
Bamboo has been introduced to the babies and is responding to them well.
Future Goals
We are making strides to being able to offer visits and retreats in the near future, but it’s imperative that we make necessary infrastructure improvements first in order to ensure the safety of our non-human residents and their guests.
Support Fear-No-More Zoo
We are grateful for your support of Fear-No-More Zoo! All of the money donated to Fear-No-More Zoo goes toward our ongoing, basic expenses which directly supports the animals. These include hay, grain for treats and training, special supplies, salt and minerals, hoof trimming, veterinary care, infrastructure, repairs, and continuing education for staff. In the future we hope to raise monies to upgrade our facilities and infrastructure to better host visitors.
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