08/29/2026
Loving animals sometimes means making decisions that are sad for the humans. 🤎
And sometimes you don’t get to make the decision at all.
If you’ve been around Dell for a while, you probably remember a few rather unforgettable residents.
Maisy, our zebra.
Sandy, our camel.
And Blue, our very beloved bird.
Maisy brought a whole lot of zebra magic to Dell, and we got far less time with her than we would’ve liked. But she left behind plenty of very good stories, photos, and people who still ask about her.
Sandy’s story was different.
As she got older, she started telling us, in the very loud and occasionally bitey way that camels apparently communicate these things 😬 that she needed something we couldn’t give her here.
Other camels.
So we found her a place where she could have them.
It was the right decision for Sandy.
It was a much less fun decision for the humans who loved having a camel in the backyard.
And then there was Blue💙
Blue was beloved. Blue was a character. Blue deserved a long and dignified paragraph here about his contribution to the Dell animal kingdom.
Unfortunately, Blue’s story also involves a pack of gangster raccoons.
Nature, as it turns out, does not always respect the tone of the post.
We’ll leave the details there.
Blue was very loved. He is very missed. And the back alley-pandas have been permanently removed from the Dell guest list.
The animals around here have always been a little ever-changing.
Some grow old with us. Some are only ours for a season. Sometimes loving one means realizing they’d be happier somewhere else. And every once in a while, a new little face shows up and somehow becomes part of the Dell story too.
That’s the deal we make when we bring animals into our lives.
We get to love them and know their weird little personalities. We get to watch them make ordinary Tuesdays feel slightly ridiculous and magical.
And in return, we promise to give them the very best lives we can.
So while a few familiar faces may be missing from the pasture, it certainly isn’t the end of the story….
In fact, we may already have a few plans for some new babies come spring. 👀
Thank you for your love❤️
