Fur & Fields

02/10/2026

It’s wild out there…

22/09/2026

They should provide it on prescription….check out our Animal Assisted Intervention session and Wellbeing Session 🐴👀🥰

A 2026 study published in Scientific Reports by researchers at the University of California, Davis examined how a very short interaction with miniature horses and donkeys affected teenagers’ emotions.

The study included 61 adolescents, including 8 who were reported by their parents to have autism spectrum disorder, ADHD, or both. Each participant completed a single 3-minute interaction with two miniature horses and two miniature donkeys.

The teenagers were randomly assigned to either gently stroke the animals’ backs or give firmer scratches around their necks, while the animals were free to approach, remain with, or walk away from them.

After just 3 minutes, the teenagers as a whole reported feeling calmer, less nervous or anxious, less sad, less lonely, and less excited. Calmness increased from 4.75 to 5.39, while nervousness fell from 2.57 to 1.97, loneliness from 2.05 to 1.59, sadness from 1.62 to 1.33, and excitement from 4.99 to 4.52 on the study’s rating scale.

The way the animals responded also appeared to matter: teenagers who noticed the horses or donkeys displaying lip-wiggling behavior had larger reductions in loneliness, while those who saw an animal voluntarily walk away showed larger reductions in sadness.

15/09/2026

Squeak is having to stay with the sheep for a while whilst we figure out how he is getting into the big grass field 🫣

05/09/2026

Oh Franky Baby 😍🦙

28/08/2026

Note to self…don’t offer donkey picnics as an experience…donkeys 1….cake…GONE!

25/08/2026

Tuesday evening with the emus 😍