2026 Goals & Budget

Secondhand Stories' mission is to inspire compassion for chickens through rescue, advocacy, and education. This upcoming year, we have 15 big goals. We're dreaming bigger than we ever have before, but it's a dream we know we can make a reality with your support. Read on to learn more about what we have planned and what it will take to get there:

Animal Care & Infrastructure

• Recruit & Train Caretakers: Successfully recruit and fully train 2-3 new animal caretakers (via Canada Summer Jobs or volunteer applications) to independently complete all daily feeding, cleaning, and health-check routines.

• Enhance Biosecurity: Install Puck Board on interior coop walls to create non-porous, easily disinfected surfaces for enhanced avian influenza protection.

• Update Coop #4: Mouse-proof and restore the roof insulation of Coop #4 by completely removing all contaminated insulation, installing a continuous hardware cloth barrier, and replacing it with new, clean insulation before the 2026 winter season.

• Improve Enrichment: Add greenery in all existing chicken runs to ensure our flocks enjoy constant access to natural foraging, even when monitored free-ranging time is limited by predator activity.

• Implement Composting: Implement an effective pathogen control manure composting system to convert 100% of all chicken run bedding and waste into usable, finished compost by June 1.

Advocacy, Education & Outreach

• Website Redesign: Design, build, and launch the updated, mobile-responsive sanctuary website by April 1, with a focus on enhancing educational resources, including uplifting organizations that are values-aligned.

• Sharing Knowledge: Publish two educational blogs per quarter, ensuring the intersections between animal liberation, social justice, and environmental health are at the top of mind.

• Community Presence: Actively participate in at least four community tabling events to share our mission and build new relationships.

• Gathering Together: Plan and host our signature Summer Open House event again in the summer, inviting the community for educational tours and a chance to connect directly with the chickens. 

• Implant Project: Increase veterinary accessibility and reduce the prohibitive cost of hormonal implants for rescued hens across Canada through our 3-phase Implant project. The goal is to secure broader veterinary approval and distribution of this treatment, critical for preventing fatal reproductive illnesses.

Operations & Governance

• Secure Charitable Status: With support from AEL Advocacy, complete and formally submit the application for charitable status to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) by July 1st.

• Financial Transparency: Publish a detailed quarterly update following each quarter’s end, highlighting variances in spending and providing a comprehensive narrative explanation for financial transparency.

• Governance Expansion: Recruit and appoint a 7th Board Member by the end of the year, expanding diverse perspectives welcomed in our governance and strategic oversight.

• Operations Update: Finalize the updated Operations Manual by February 1, incorporating all new protocols and plans from 2025.

• Ensure Accessibility: Hire and complete an independent Accessibility Audit of the online sanctuary presence as well as grounds and facilities, resulting in a report that outlines necessary structural (e.g., path surface) and non-structural (e.g., signage, policies) improvements.

In 2026, to accomplish the above and solidify a medical emergency fund, we need to raise $47,000.

Over half (65%) of our expense budget is funds to provide medical care for our flock. With 22 rescued chickens, we must ensure we are prepared for their veterinary needs & treatments. Just like last year, we're trying to create a medical emergency savings fund to ensure we're being responsible caregivers and thinking long-term about the health and wellness of our flock family.

Our second-largest expense, at $7,060 (15%), will be infrastructure updates. Included in this are a few projects we're really excited to get started on. Once the weather heats up, we'll be removing soiled insulation from the ceiling of a coop that came pre-insulated and re-finishing it - the final coop to get this upgrade. We're also planning to invest in "puck board", a recommendation from the incredible folks at HEEFS, who have used it successfully in their own chicken coops. This material is easy to clean and will enhance our biosecurity by replacing our porous plywood coop walls with a sturdy plastic board, making disinfection easier. One of our biggest infrastructure goals this year is to secure an outbuilding (such as an office trailer or storage unit) that can double as a volunteer space and serve as storage for food & bedding. Having this combination space will allow us not only to purchase much-needed supplies in bulk quantities that can't fit in our garage, but also to formalize and professionalize our volunteer program by providing a space separate from our home. Our long-term plan will enhance this space with solar power, turning it into a workspace for administering treatments.

One new budget line you may not have seen before is our programming line. As Secondhand Stories grows and we develop new advocacy and education goals, there are usually costs associated with these ideas. However, our work always focuses on the chickens' well-being first, so our programming is entirely reliant on the grants we receive. We've earmarked $2,000 for programming based on anticipated grant income, but this will only occur if we are successful.

There are, of course, some exciting routine costs: website fees, email marketing, insurance, postage, and more. All tiny pieces that come together to help us build something wonderful: a sanctuary that helps chickens and inspires folks to care about them too.

Altogether, we have a big challenge to raise more funds than ever before to meet our anticipated expenses. But if there's one thing I know for certain, we won't do any of this alone. Our incredible board of directors will guide us, our volunteers will assist us, and our supporters will cheer us on and share our mission. Together, let's make 2026 the year chickens are celebrated.

P.S. - If you're inspired to start 2026 by making a chickie BFF, you can sponsor a friend here!

All this would not be possible without the generous support of people like you.

You can donate here if you're inspired to make a gift to our sanctuary.