Bella View Farm a sanctuary
for special-needs farm animals
Tucked away in a holler near Ellijay lie 25 acres of meadows and forests that make up Bella View Farm. The farm is home to the usual assortment of barnyard animals, but there’s nothing typical about the goats, horses, rabbits and chickens who live there.
Bella View is a sanctuary for unwanted and discarded farm animals, most born with a deformity or bearing the scars of abuse and abandonment that make them unfit for life on a regular farm.
At Bella View, however, they get a second chance. Greg and Rhonda Farrell run the farm on two guiding principles: No one gets turned away, and you don’t give up on any of them.
“Some are missing limbs, some have neurological issues, some are blind, and some are deformed,” Rhonda said.
Greg sold real estate and Rhonda was a hair salon owner in the Hamptons of New York when they started looking south for greener pastures. After multiple trips to the Franklin area, they found their home and established Bella View Farm Animal Sanctuary in April of 2018. It is now home to more than 80 animals, the vast majority with special needs that for many would have been a death sentence on a traditional working farm.
“Rescuing special-needs animals was always a passion, but here it grew into something much more,” Rhonda said. “One special-needs horse led to another. Then came a crippled chicken, a crippled duck, and then came the goats, and everything just fell into place.”
And each one has a story. Bella View is home to four horses, including Phoenix who was saved from slaughter and came to the farm about 200 pounds underweight.
“I didn’t think he was going to make it,” Rhonda said.
But he did, and now he’s living the good life. Then there’s Sonny, who arrived at Bella View with a tumor in one eye 12 years ago. He’s blind in that eye but otherwise healthy, and recently celebrated his 30th birthday.
Two Socks was found tied up with a dislocated knee, no shelter, and suffering from rain rot that was so bad his skin was peeling away. Now he’s in high cotton at Bella View.
Moon came to the farm with a broken leg that was not expected to heal, and Joey came from Alabama with a joint illness that required knee surgery.
Haven for unwanted goats
Bella View is home to a menagerie of rejected animals, buts it’s the goats that live at the heart of the farm’s mission, especially the misshapen and misfit young kids that come here. Many get around on wheelchairs. These “bottle babies” require extra special attention, but no matter. To Rhonda and Greg, they’re worth it.
“None of these guys would be here,” Rhonda said. “They would have all been euthanized.”
Animals find their way to Bella View through social media, word of mouth and a small network of farm animal sanctuaries.
Betty is a Cornish Cross chicken, bred to grow quickly for meat. Two teenage girls were determined to save the hen from slaughter. They found out about Bella View and drove four hours to deliver the lucky hen.
A few of the residents of Bella View came to the farm whole and healthy, including three ducks who came as a package deal with the two deformed-footed ducks that the Farrells were after.
High cost for caring
It’s an expensive passion. Caring for any critter can be expensive, but special-needs farm animals require much more time and money.
“Vet visits, medications, surgeries, prosthetics and wheelchairs are not cheap,” Rhonda said.
The wheelchairs that allow the baby goats to get around price out at $500-$800 each, and surgeries run into the thousands.
When Rhonda says she never gives up on an animal, she’s not kidding. Take Val, a young goat who was born with no back hooves. She had castings made, and a veterinarian fashioned little prosthetic booties.
“We still run out of our own pockets, but once we became a nonprofit it made running the sanctuary a little easier by being able to accept donations,” she said. “Hopefully one day the sanctuary will be able to support itself.”
A few volunteers have been at Bella View Farm almost from the beginning.
“I am so grateful for their time and the way they love the animals,” Rhonda said. “We are always looking for volunteers to help with the daily chores.”
People thinking of volunteering should understand that it’s not all about snuggling with baby goats, though that’s certainly one of the perks. Mostly it’s hard, unglamorous work; mucking out stalls and doing other farm chores.
The Farrells are planning some changes and additions to make life easier on their residents. Peanut, a three-legged pig, needs a quiet place of his own, and they’re leveling a shady spot just for the goats.
Caring for special-needs farm animals is extremely rewarding, but it can also be devastating. Bella View recently lost two baby goats that were favorites of everyone at the farm.
Love and loss
“It’s been a whirlwind of ups and downs, happiness and heartbreak, but my heart is full and my soul is happy,” Rhonda said. “It’s amazing to watch them heal and live their best life.”
And each breeding season brings a new batch of special-needs animals.
“I know there will be more babies coming that need help,” Rhonda said.
The constant stream of critters coming to Bella View means ever-increasing costs. Since being granted nonprofit status, the Farrells are happy to accept donations.
“We are hoping to build a few new shelters for the animals,” Rhonda said. “Another smaller barn for the wheelchair babies is a top priority.”
Anyone who wants to volunteer or make a donation can go to bellaviewfarmanimalsanctuary.com. You can follow happenings on the farm on their Facebook and Instagram pages, where you’ll find photos and videos of the animals.
Bella View Farm Animal Sanctuary is not open to the public. The special animals need peace and quiet, and they and the Farrells have earned it.