Our Story

We moved to a farm...

The Sanctuary was founded in 2018 by me, Alona Yorkshire, because of my conviction that animals can heal those who need it most. I have been informally rescuing animals my whole life, while having a "real job" and becoming a foster parent. I am a Behavior Analyst and primarily work with adults with disabilities. In this position I saw the incredible healing that animals bring to their lives. Again, informally, I started exploring the world of animal assisted therapies. Then, I became a foster mom to an intensive treatment kiddo who could only hold it together when he was around animals. Through these experiences, I saw that we had to formalize a place, a sanctuary where we could spread this healing to others. We launched the Sanctuary through a partnership with The Adult Skills Center (TASC), a non-profit assisting individuals with disabilities where I work. TASC clients and staff helped build, and now help maintain the operations though their work programs, therapy programs, and volunteerism. 

So we moved from our Hollywood home to run a farm in Santa Clarita. And here we are. Please follow our journey as we learn and establish ourselves in the rescue and therapeutic communities. 

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Mission: Our mission is to provide a therapeutic sanctuary connecting humans, animals and plants with the goal of healing, building compassion and respect between all sentient beings. 

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Vision: In the Sanctuary, we envision a world free of cruelty and abuse where humans live in harmony with nature, utilizing its healing powers, and caring for all living things.

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Sanctuary Animal Assisted Therapy is a 501c3 83-1021900

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This is a photo of our foster son having a hard time surrounded by our rescue dogs and cats.