Founder Elaine West Info

Elaine West founded Rooterville Animal Sanctuary Inc. with the help and support of her late husband and partner Dale West, in 2004. Elaine was disabled after a car accident in 2011 and Dale passed away in 2015, leaving her to manage the operation of the sanctuary, a daunting task! She did not back down, showing her undying commitment to help the animals and share them with as many people as possible.

Elaine serves as president and leads a small team that handles everything in the daily operations of the business and upkeep of the sanctuary, as well as caring for the amazing, happy animals that call the sanctuary home.  Her greatest joy is seeing the smiling faces and hearing the comments of happy visitors like "this is the best day EVER"!  What a priviledge to bring joy and peace to so many visitors every year while giving the animals treats and attention, its a win-win for everyone.

In 2021, the private foundation that supported our sanctuary decided to cut funding, claiming sanctuaries didn’t provide a good return on investment and that they were "run by older, mostly burned out older women in bad locations." This happened despite promises from the founder, who had assured me that I would "never have to worry; he would always be there for me" after Dale’s sudden death. As a result, we were left scrambling for financial support, with private donations never being enough to care for over 300 animals.

The foundation initially promised to rehome all the animals except for a few that would stay with me, a manageable number that I could care for without hiring outside help. However, at the last minute, they backed out of finding homes for 100 pigs, forcing me to change plans and find a much larger property to house and care for such a large number of animals.  This was to be temporary, until fencing was completed for them, and then the foundation would move them to their new home.  They promised financial support until they could be moved to their hew place and then shortly after, shocked me by telling me that they wouldn't be able to rehome them.  However, that was the last I heard from this multi millionaire foundation until I asked them again to fulfill their promise and then I was told that they couldn't help!  Due to this breach of promise, I have had to shoulder the care on my own of 100 more pigs than I had anticipated, putting me in debt of over $600k to do so and continue operating for the past 4 years.

Keeping the animals well-cared for while managing finances has been a struggle, especially after COVID. However, we are getting back on our feet with the help of a life-saving loan and support from kind people through visits, stays, donations, and shopping in our online store.

 Despite having a disability, which makes much of the work extremely difficult and exhausting, we continue to provide excellent care for our animals and exceptional experiences to our guests and the community.

If you would be interested in being part of an incredible, first-class organization that offers guests the most memorable stays and experiences while helping share the message of compassion for ALL animals, please get in touch. Rooterville always welcomes those who desire help in any way possible so that it can continue serving as a first class sanctuary for the animals and a place of peace and joy for it's visitors.