Sandi’s Week at Legendary Acres: Kittens, Chaos and a Day Job Somewhere in Between
This was one of those weeks when it felt as though three weeks were somehow packed into seven days.
Between everything we worked on, posted, documented, rescued and celebrated, here’s a look at Sandi’s week at Legendary Acres.
Cats and Kittens Took Center Stage
The biggest theme was definitely cats and kittens.
After Friday’s big spay and neuter day, we worked through photos, profiles and adoption posts for kittens including Merlin, Lancelot, Guinevere, Slippers, Cuddles, Cupcake, Cupid and Glinda.
At the same time, more cats and kittens continued arriving. That included a group of five little ones who had already been treated for botflies and came to Legendary Acres for continued nursing, rehabilitation and, eventually, adoption.
By the middle of the week, the numbers really put the workload into perspective. We had roughly 30 cats and kittens in our care:
- 11 spayed or neutered and ready for adoption
- 14 youngsters waiting until they are old enough for surgery
- Five adults still awaiting spay or neuter appointments
Somehow, we still found time to discuss kitten feeding, coccidia, watery eyes, swollen little bottoms, socialization, adoption screening and all the glamorous parts of animal rescue that nobody puts in the brochure.
Advocating for the Overlooked Cats
We placed a special emphasis on the cats who sometimes have a harder time finding homes.
We talked about why black kittens are awesome, those incredible green feline eyes and shy cats like Tim, who might thrive as a barn cat or with a patient person willing to respect his boundaries.
Not every rescued animal needs the same kind of home. Success means understanding each animal’s personality and finding the environment where that particular animal can feel safe and comfortable.
We also continued encouraging potential adopters to meet the kittens instead of choosing solely from a photograph.
Come sit with them. Spend some time together. Let one choose you.
The Tiny Whiskers Fund Became More Important Than Ever
We continued sharing the Tiny Whiskers Fund, especially with the incredible opportunity to have donations matched through the end of August.
Being a nonprofit animal rescue doesn’t magically make the bills disappear. Food, litter, medications, veterinary care and spay and neuter procedures still need to be paid for.
We also asked for donations of cat food, kitten food, dog food, cages, garden leftovers, toys and even trampolines that might become animal enrichment.
Basically, if you have something useful you no longer need, there is probably somebody at Legendary Acres willing to eat it, sleep in it, climb on it or destroy it.
Donations to the Tiny Whiskers Fund help us continue caring for the cats and kittens who find their way to Legendary Acres:
Behind the Cute Animals Was a Lot of Nonprofit Work
This was also a major administrative week.
We worked on the Legendary Acres Animal Rescue bylaws, board meeting minutes, organizational records, financial documents and an estimated operating budget.
We also worked through how to properly separate and document the nonprofit rescue activities from the hobby farm and business operations—and how support provided by our businesses should be recorded and publicly acknowledged.
The numbers were sobering. Approximately 70 cats and kittens have come through the rescue since 2025, and the initial annual rescue budget we developed projected about $37,500 in expenses.
That is the side of animal rescue that Facebook usually doesn’t see.
Meanwhile, the Farm Kept Farming
Because apparently caring for 30 cats isn’t enough entertainment.
We talked about Nigerian Dwarf goats and the great horn debate: everybody has horns or nobody has horns—and all the benefits, drawbacks and goat drama in between.
There were Muscovy ducklings and the beautiful assortment of colors appearing in the newest babies.
There was Buckley, our miniature Highland/Dexter, and an explanation of what it means for him to be chondro-positive.
We also discussed cattle horns, horse wolf teeth, alpacas enjoying the summer water, rabbits—including a surrendered Teddy-type rabbit—and all the assorted residents who make Legendary Acres what it is.
And Then There Was Frank
One of the sweetest stories continued to be Frank—or Frankie—the rescued Bernese Mountain Dog.
His story began with an anxious, complicated dog who had spent much of his previous life isolated and didn’t quite understand how to exist comfortably within a family.
Now, he is a giant shadow who believes Sandi should remain approximately six inches away from him at all times.
We talked about the 3-day, 3-week and 3-month adoption rule through Frank’s experience—and the reality that rescued animals do not arrive magically healed.
They decompress.
They test boundaries.
They learn routines.
Eventually, they realize they are home.
Hunter Was Right in the Middle of Everything
Almost-three-year-old Hunter continued growing up believing this entire situation is completely normal.
Goats? Normal.
Baby chicks? Normal.
Thirty kittens? Sure.
A gigantic Bernese Mountain Dog following Grandma everywhere? Obviously.
We even discussed the very normal challenges of being almost three: throwing rocks, testing limits, becoming frustrated and learning how to redirect some enormous toddler emotions.
That led us back to one of the loveliest themes of the week: the little things really are what make everyday life magical.
A rescued dog learning that he is safe.
A toddler growing up surrounded by animals.
A tiny black kitten staring up with enormous green eyes.
Baby chicks with Toby faithfully watching over them.
Goats, ducks, cats, alpacas and assorted chaos everywhere you look.
And Yes, Sandi Still Has a Day Job
In the middle of all this, I almost forgot to mention that I also have a day job—and businesses to run.
Somewhere between answering adoption inquiries, nursing kittens, creating posts, completing nonprofit paperwork, raising funds, caring for the farm animals and cleaning something questionable off the floor, regular work still has to happen.
Apparently, the animals have not received the memo that I have meetings, clients and deadlines.
One Animal at a Time
Somewhere in the middle of all this is Sandi, taking pictures, answering messages, caring for animals and occasionally wondering:
“How exactly did we get here?”
The answer seems to be:
One animal at a time.
That was Sandi’s week at Legendary Acres.
And somehow, tomorrow, we’ll get up and do it all again.
At the same time, more cats and kittens kept arriving—including a group of five little ones that had already been treated for botflies and came to Legendary Acres for continued nursing, rehabilitation and eventually adoption.
By midweek, the numbers really put the workload into perspective: roughly 30 cats and kittens in care, including 11 already altered and ready for adoption, 14 youngsters waiting until they are old enough for surgery, and five adults still awaiting spay/neuter appointments.
And somehow we still found time to talk about kitten feeding, coccidia, watery eyes, swollen little bottoms, socialization, adoption screening and all the glamorous parts of rescue nobody puts on the brochure.
We advocated hard for the overlooked cats
There was a big emphasis this week on the animals that sometimes have a harder time finding homes.
We talked about why black kittens are awesome, those incredible green cat eyes, shy cats like Tim who might thrive as a barn cat or with a patient person who respects his boundaries, and the reality that not every rescued animal needs the exact same kind of home.
We also kept encouraging people to come meet the kittens instead of choosing solely from a photograph.
Fundraising became even more important
We continued pushing the Tiny Whiskers Fund, especially with the incredible opportunity to have donations matched through the end of August.
There was also the reminder that being a nonprofit animal rescue doesn’t magically make the bills disappear. Food, litter, veterinary care, medications and spay/neuter surgeries still have to be paid for.
We promoted donations of cat food, kitten food, dog food, cages, garden leftovers, toys and even trampolines that can potentially become animal enrichment.
Basically: Got something useful you’re getting rid of? There is probably somebody at Legendary Acres willing to eat it, sleep in it, climb on it or destroy it.
Behind the cute animals was a LOT of nonprofit work
This was also a major administrative week.
We worked on Legendary Acres Animal Rescue bylaws, board meeting minutes, organizational records, financial documents and an estimated operating budget. We worked through how to properly separate and document the nonprofit rescue activities from the hobby-farm/business side and how support from the businesses should be recorded and publicly acknowledged.
The numbers were sobering: about 70 cats and kittens have come through the rescue since 2025, and the initial annual rescue budget we developed projected approximately $37,500 in expenses.
That is the side of rescue Facebook doesn’t usually see.
Meanwhile…the FARM kept farming
Because apparently rescuing 30 cats isn’t enough entertainment.
We talked about Nigerian Dwarf goat babies, including the great horn debate: everybody has horns or nobody has horns—and all the pros, cons and goat drama in between.
There were Muscovy ducklings, including just how ridiculously cool Muscovies are and the beautiful colors showing up in the babies.
There was Buckley, the mini Highland/Dexter and what being chondro-positive means.
We talked cattle horns, horse wolf teeth, alpacas enjoying the summer water, rabbits—including the surrendered Teddy-type rabbit—and all the assorted residents who make Legendary Acres what it is.
And then there was Frank
One of the sweetest stories continued to be Frank/Frankie, the rescued Bernese Mountain Dog.
His story went from being the anxious, complicated dog who had spent much of his previous life isolated and didn’t quite know how to exist comfortably in a family—to becoming the giant shadow who believes Sandi should remain approximately six inches away at all times.
We talked about the 3-day, 3-week, 3-month adoption rule through Frank’s experience and the reality that rescue animals don’t arrive magically healed.
They decompress.
They test boundaries.
They learn routines.
And eventually, they realize they’re home.
And Hunter was right in the middle of it
Almost-three-year-old Hunter continued growing up believing this entire situation is completely normal.
Goats? Normal.
Baby chicks? Normal.
Thirty kittens? Sure.
A gigantic Bernese Mountain Dog following Grandma everywhere? Obviously.
We even talked about the very normal three-year-old challenges too—throwing rocks, testing limits, getting frustrated and learning how to redirect those enormous toddler emotions.
And that led right back to one of the nicest themes of the week: the little things really are what make everyday life magical.
A rescued dog learning that he’s safe.
A toddler growing up surrounded by animals.
A tiny black kitten staring up with enormous green eyes.
Baby chicks with Toby faithfully watching over them.
Goats, ducks, cats, alpacas and assorted chaos everywhere you look.
And somewhere in the middle of all of it is Sandi—taking pictures, answering adoption inquiries, nursing kittens, writing nonprofit paperwork, fundraising, cleaning something questionable off the floor and probably wondering:
“How exactly did we get here?”
The answer seems to be:
One animal at a time.
That was Sandi’s week at Legendary Acres.
And somehow…tomorrow we do it all again.
In the midst of all this, I guess I also forgot to mention I do also have a day job and business to run.
