Does anyone run an animal sanctuary of any kind?

[wheresmymojo]

A bit random I know...

My absolute dream is to run an animal sanctuary one day.

I wouldn't care about making much money as long as I could live....I know absolutely nothing about how funding for them works though.

So just looking for a bit of insight really if anyone's here that can help...

Like how did you get started?

Did you already have land?

How do you fund the running costs?

How much do you end up earning? (Just a rough idea, not asking for your tax returns!)

I think the number of people running animal sanctuaries and making money out of it will be vanishingly small.

Most will consider themselves very lucky to cover their costs and anyone doing it as a business probably has other sources of income, stables, agricultural.

I think it's hugely variable.

A number of animal sanctuaries aren't owned by anyone - they are charities which have a board of Trustees, and the majority of their income comes from grants, donors etc.

I don't know anyone who runs one as a business and makes money.

I know a couple of people who basically set one up as a sort of retirement project. They live off a pension and some years break even and some years have to put money into it.

Do you know about animals OP ? What animals do you know about ? Dogs/ cats/ horses/ reptiles ?