Q: We ran the “Run your Bundts off” 5K benefitting War Angel Farms. Would you tell me about this place?
A: WarAngel Farms is a rescue and rehabilitation organization on 104 acres in Canton that believes in second chances.
Prior to founding WarAngel Farms, Casey Montana Henson had a horse that she saved out of a kill box named Mr. Bojangles.
“Unfortunately, a lot of the horses that come to the kill pen are not in good shape. He only made it three months and I had to put him down. It kind of just opened my eyes to the whole kill pen world,” she said.
The Kennesaw State graduate felt she was led to help more horses like Mr. Bojangles, the inspiration for WarAngel Farms.
“I really feel that when God gives you a passion, he gives you a way to pursue it,” Henson added.
Horse and donkey slaughter is illegal in the United States, according to the founder. WAF buys slaughter-bound equines from auctions before they are shipped to Mexico or Canada.
The farm’s mission is to save as many animals as possible and increasing awareness.
WarAngel Farms specialize in horses and donkeys, but also have cows, goats, sheep, alpacas, pigs and an African tortoise. The animals are available for sponsorship.
Credit: contributed
Credit: contributed
Every couple of months they will purchase two or three at a time. It is capped at three because “they are usually really sick … they are just trying to survive. When they get here they finally feel like they can settle and that’s when all their sickness really comes out. It’s a process,” she said. “You don’t know what you are getting until they get here.”
Some of the animals get homes, some live there forever and others don’t make it despite the best efforts of the WarAngel staff.
It’s not just animals that get a second chance. “We do courts: mental health, DUI, drug and veterans. We have community service out here all the time,” the founder added. “It’s a whole new world to them.”
Giving back to others is not missed by WarAngel Farms. They also hold private tours of the farm, camps and other events like movie nights or ladies night out.
“When you step onto the farm, and I mean this in the most humble way, it feels like a little piece of heaven. It’s secluded and there are all these animals that have these stories,” Henson said. “Every person ... will find some animal that they connect to and they look forward to seeing that animal each time and watch it grow from being sickly to running through the pasture.”
For more information, visit https://www.facebook.com/warangelfarms/
New to Atlanta or simply have a question about this place we call home? Email your request to atlactualfact@gmail.com
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Credit: AP
