Sammamish Animal Sanctuary

What Sammamish Animal Sanctuary does

Sammamish Animal Sanctuary is a 501c3 non-profit organization founded in 2016 by Diane Odegard (Diane Gockel) and Don Gockel in Washington state. The organization provides permanent rescue, rehabilitation, and lifetime care for abused, neglected, unwanted, and homeless barnyard animals — currently 60+ residents including goats, cows, alpacas, llamas, chickens, and horses — at its 5.35-acre permanent facility at 16515 SE May Valley Road in Renton, where it relocated in May 2022 from its original Sammamish location.

The sanctuary operates a free-admission, reservation-based visitation model with voluntary donations, complemented by paid programming: goat yoga sessions, children's summer camps, birthday party rentals, and school field trips. Founder Diane Gockel has authored a series of 9 children's books about the resident animals, sold at the farm and on Amazon.com. There is no proprietary technology platform; operations rely on a small paid staff (1-10 employees) supported by 100+ community volunteers.

The business model blends charitable contributions (donations and animal sponsorships) with earned revenue from events, programs, and merchandise. Marketing is community-led, relying on word-of-mouth, local news coverage (KIRO 7), earned media features (BYUtv's Wizard of Paws), Instagram, and the organization's website. The founders personally fund capital improvements so that 100% of donations go directly to animal care and food.

Name

Sammamish Animal Sanctuary

Legal name

Sammamish Animal Sanctuary

Website

https://sammamishanimalsanctuary.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Sammamish Animal Sanctuary is a 501c3 non-profit founded in 2016 that provides permanent rescue and lifetime care for 60+ abused, neglected, and homeless barnyard animals at its Renton, Washington facility, serving general public visitors, families, school groups, and donors through free visits and paid programs including goat yoga, summer camps, and birthday parties.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Animal Sanctuary and Nonprofit Welfare Services

NAICS

Environment, Conservation and Wildlife Organizations (813312)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Sanctuaries & Long-Term Care (Farm, Equine, Exotic) (BPAGAIAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Animal Shelters & Adoption Services (BPAGAIAA), Animal Welfare & Advocacy Organizations (AFAEALAC)

Keywords

• Animal rescue services
• Nonprofit animal sanctuary
• Farm animal welfare
• Animal sponsorship programs
• Educational farm visits

Headquarters

HQ city

Renton

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and contributions: As a 501c3 non-profit, the sanctuary relies on donations from the public. Most visitors are generous with donations which allows others to visit at no charge.
2. Events and programs: Revenue generated from summer kid's camps, birthday parties, goat yoga sessions, and event reservations.
3. Children's books sales: Diane Gockel has written 9 children's books about the animals from the animals' point of view, available at the farm and on Amazon.com.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Sammamish Animal Sanctuary is a 501c3 nonprofit that provides permanent homes for abused, neglected, unwanted, and homeless barnyard animals on a 5.35-acre property in Renton, Washington. Its core offering is free guided public visits to meet 60+ rescued animals, complemented by paid programs including goat yoga, summer camps, birthday parties, and field trips. The sanctuary also generates revenue through an animal sponsorship donation program and nine children's books authored by founder Diane Gockel.

Product overview

Sammamish Animal Sanctuary operates as a single-location animal rescue and education facility in Renton, Washington. The core offering is its rescue animal visitation program, where visitors meet and interact with over 60 rescued barnyard animals including goats, cows, alpacas, llamas, chickens, and horses. Complementary services include goat yoga sessions, youth summer camps, and birthday party events. The sanctuary also offers an animal sponsorship program for donors to support specific residents, and produces children's books written by the founder documenting the animals' stories. All programs support the sanctuary's non-profit mission of providing forever homes for abused, neglected, unwanted, and homeless animals while offering community access regardless of ability to pay.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Rescue Animal Visitation Guided visits allowing the public to meet, interact with, and learn about rescued barnyard animals including goats, cows, alpacas, and llamas in a peaceful sanctuary setting.
• Goat Yoga Yoga sessions held at the sanctuary where participants practice alongside friendly rescued goats, offering a unique recreational and wellness experience designed to uplift mood and provide relaxation.
• Summer Camp Seasonal summer camp programs for children where participants engage with rescued animals, learn about animal care and compassion, and participate in educational activities at the sanctuary.
• Birthday Parties Celebration events hosted at the sanctuary featuring animal interactions and visits with rescued residents, providing a unique party experience for children.
• Field Trips School field trips and educational group visits at the sanctuary, allowing children to learn about animal care, compassion, and rescued barnyard animals.
• Animal Sponsorship Program allowing community members to financially sponsor individual rescued animals, supporting their ongoing care, food, and veterinary needs at the sanctuary.
• Kids' Books Nine children's books written by founder Diane Gockel about the sanctuary animals told from the animals' perspective, available for purchase at the farm and on Amazon.

Quantifiable outcome

• 60+ animal rescues provided forever homes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• Wizard of Paws (BYUtv)minorOthers · 1 January 2023TV show featuring prosthetics expert Derrick Campana visited the sanctuary to help Amelia (a blind cow with mobility issues) and Logan (a 3-legged goat) with custom prosthetics. The episode 'Saving Amelia' aired on BYUtv Season 5, featuring the sanctuary's special residents.
• Infinitely Able PetsminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Team from Virginia flew to the sanctuary to assist with creating a new prosthetic leg for Amelia after she outgrew her original prosthetic. Jaron and crew provided expertise and care to successfully fit Amelia with a new bionic leg.
• KIRO 7minorOthers · 1 January 2023Local Seattle news station covered the heartwarming story of Amelia's new prosthetic leg in a 'mooving' story feature.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Farm Sanctuary: Farm Sanctuary is one of the oldest and largest farm animal rescue and advocacy organizations in the U.S., operating sanctuaries in New York and California. It is the most directly comparable peer given its identical mission of providing forever homes for abused and neglected farm animals.
• The Gentle Barn: The Gentle Barn rescues abused and neglected farm animals and operates a public sanctuary in Santa Clarita, CA with on-site programming including animal interactions, events, and school visits — closely mirroring Sammamish's rescue + visitor + programming model.
• Catskill Animal Sanctuary: Catskill Animal Sanctuary is a farm animal rescue and advocacy organization in New York that operates a public sanctuary with visitor programs, vegan advocacy, and educational outreach — a strong functional peer in mission and programming.
• Woodstock Farm Sanctuary: Woodstock Farm Sanctuary in High Falls, NY rescues farmed animals and operates a public sanctuary with guided tours, vegan education, and youth programming — a direct functional peer in operating model and visitor experience.
• Happy Trails Farm Animal Sanctuary: Happy Trails is an Ohio-based farm animal rescue and sanctuary providing permanent care for abused and neglected farm animals with public visitation and community outreach — closely comparable to Sammamish's rescue + community access model.

Broad incumbents

• Best Friends Animal Society: Best Friends Animal Society is a large, well-funded national animal welfare nonprofit (primarily companion animals) with sanctuaries and a strong donor development operation. It is comparable as a benchmark for national non-profit animal welfare fundraising and operational scale.
• ASPCA: The ASPCA is a major national animal welfare organization with rescue, advocacy, and grantmaking programs. It is comparable as an institutional benchmark for animal welfare fundraising, donor base development, and non-profit governance.

Regional players

• Kruger's Farm Market & Petting Zoo: Kruger's is a regional Portland-area farm and petting zoo with animal interactions, events, and on-site programming. It is comparable as a Pacific Northwest competitor for family visitor attention, birthday parties, and agritourism spend.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/SammamishAS
• Facebookfacebook.com/SammamishAnimalSanctuary
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sammamish-animal-sanctuary

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Sammamish Animal Sanctuary