Who We Are
The Retreat was born in 1989 out of frustration at the way the human race treats animals. A rescue centre which would save tormented, abused, sick, injured, and unwanted animals from certain death was therefore founded.
● Program Overview
Who Calls The Retreat “Home”?
Some of our residents include:
Christmas turkeys
ex-riding school ponies
injured live export sheep
cows saved from slaughter
ex-petting farm goats
injured birds
ferrets
ex-racing horses
worn-out battery hens
disabled non-releasable wildlife
fish
small domestic animals
old or feral and FIV cats
and dogs who have failed behaviour tests in other dog homes
Rescue
In animal rescue there are no obstacles: there is a solution for every problem, you just have to think outside the box.
We have been faced with some extremely difficult situations with animals that needed our help, from horses with broken legs and pioneering skin graphs, to Lara, a cow with a foot missing, and paraplegic dogs, nothing stops us from doing our best.
We have sent foxes to chiropractors, lambs to physiotherapy, a ram for chemical castration, dogs for acupuncture and laser treatment, a pig with a broken leg to Supervet Noel Fitzpatrick, and birds to be neutered.
The list is endless in our quest to ensure that each and every animal we come across gets the best chance to live a long and happy life.
Our rescue team takes calls and messages 24 hours a day and we attend as many as possible. Thankfully, we have two animal ambulances of different sizes and a horse trailer.
We are grateful for those volunteer rescuers who have responded to our calls of help in their area, from sheep stuck in canals to dumped and dying foals, we take our commitment seriously to those needing our help.
Most residents living at The Retreat were successfully rescued and brought back to health by our brilliant team before calling The Retreat their home.
Earth Dragons International Dog Rescue
LIKE those ones from countries that have little compassion for street dogs barely surviving harsh winters, where dogs starve or freeze to death; where poisoning and other cruel methods of canine population control are still in use today.
Dogs in death camps and rescue projects who have very little chance of getting out alive come to us: we are their last lifeline. The blind, scarred, tortured, disabled, broken, and shut down ones. These dogs who have seen it all, been through the worst trauma and somehow survived. They start a slow and steady journey of recovery supported by our many residents who have experienced the same malice.
My heartfelt message to animal lovers is: don't support the ignorant view of "Haven't we got enough dogs to save here?" from those with a very fine pedigree dog sitting at their heel. Kindness is not something you can pick and choose — a dog is a dog, wherever they were born.
Our work in countries that have little to no animal welfare protection for street dogs is heartbreaking and soul destroying, but we battle on. What our eyes and hearts see is not for everyone; few could cope with seeing the horrors our dogs have been through. Each dog saved tells a story of hope and is educating people along the way. All animals deserve to live without fear and risk of untimely death. Our work at EDIDS shows that where there's a will, there's a way to help the most needy of street dogs. Our worldwide team of rescuers is working to end needless cruelty.
Please support our work, now across over twenty countries: @earthdragonsdogrescue
Sanctuary
For those animals we can not rehome due to behavioural issues, complex health needs, or the lack of the “right home”, they simply stay with us.
Our residents include horses, donkeys, ponies, cows, pigs, sheep, goats, turkeys, ducks, chickens, geese, pigeons, dogs, cats, foxes, corvids, fish, and terrapins.
Our brilliant team of animal carers provides absolutely everything that our residents need, from special diets, purpose-built enclosures and unique housing projects, we cover every aspect of our residents' emotional, physical and wellbeing needs; ensuring each intake is eventually teamed up with a friend or family to help them settle into their new home.
On arrival, our new residents are given a full veterinary health plan and will be monitored until they are clear to move from the intake areas to their new home.
From abused and blind horses, cattle with eyes and hooves missing, blind and deaf sheep, to goats with attitude, we never give up and they are welcome to stay with us until the very end.
● Contact
Get In Touch
Thinking about getting involved in a fast-moving, high-impact animal rescue organisation? Want to fundraise for us at a sporting event? Or maybe you’d like to visit for a stroll around the site and to meet the animals at your leisure, perhaps even accompanied by our Founder Billy himself. Drop us a message!