live in peace and safety until they die naturally

All of their 278 animals have been rescued from the farming industry

Hugletts Wood Farm Animal Sanctuary is like an alternate universe where animal agriculture doesn't exist.

All of their 278 cows, chickens, turkeys and sheep have been rescued from slaughterhouses, markets, dairy and battery farms.

Here in Dallington, East Sussex, the animals live in peace until they die naturally from old age - with one grieving Jersey cow even receiving acupuncture and massage to get over her lost love.

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This is Lester, sitting with Deni, who is wearing a faux leather jacket and boots

Hugletts co-owner Wenda Shehata with Bruce the bullock, who is the leader of a natural herd of 27 cows

The warmhearted owners welcome these animals to enjoy the freedom and safety of their 56-acre farm sanctuary.

I joined a trip which was organised by blogger Fat Gay Vegan, aka Sean O'Callaghan, and sponsored by vegan food company Fry's Family Foods.

I was joined by high-profile vegan bloggers, comedians, athletes and editors, as well as competition winners, in a van taking us from London to the Sussex farm.

Each animal at Hugletts has its own story of suffering - but of course they are the lucky ones. A total of 62 billion farm animals die in the agriculture business every year.

Each animal has a heartbreaking story before they came to Hugletts - such as this former battery chicken

This is Radhe Priya. A gentle soul, she was born without eyes and was being raised for the family freezer

Check out the full cut of this video on Chris Hines' YouTube channel.

We got to meet a glorious herd of cows, stroke them, speak to them and sit with them.

Most breeds of cow could not survive in the wild because over the thousands of years of farming they have lost their survival skills. And the cattle are not allowed to roam wild and free in Europe.

'They've not been bred that way,' said Hugletts co-owner Wenda Shehata, who runs Hugletts with her partner Matthew Sparey.

'We have a duty. It's not perfect, but we try to make things as uncontrolled as possible.'

A phenomenon hardly ever seen these days has been allowed to flourish on its grounds; a naturally formed herd of 27 bullocks and cows with their own hierarchical structure.

A big black bull named Bruce is the leader and I greet him first out of respect for his position.

THE STORY OF ARCHIE THE BULL BY CO-FOUNDER WENDA 'Archie was born in a dairy farm, deformed due to inbreeding - using the same bull to breed with three or four generations of his progeny. 'He has no tail, (Archie No Tail), fused hips and scoliosis (curvature of the spine). He is partially deaf and is blind in one eye. 'When I first saw him he was standing with his head in a corner of the barn, hunched up. 'I asked the farmer why he was doing that and was told that as he didn't get out of the way when they wanted him to, they would hit him with a stick, so to avoid getting in the way he would stand all the time in the corner. 'Archie was supposed to go for slaughter as a welfare case - the vet was concerned he had no future with his physical and mental challenges. Archie took years of love and care at Hugletts to reach this incredible stage of rehabilitation 'They said that he would never be able to go out to graze because brain damage made it difficult for him to understand what he was supposed to do and the fact he was deaf and partially sighted would cause other problems. 'I asked that he should be allowed to come to us, which after a lot of discussion, happened six years ago. 'Instead of mooing, Archie would emit the most blood-curdling scream as if his life was being taken and he would run sideways as his restricted hip movement didn't allow him to go forwards. 'The physical damage he had meant he would not be able to moo, we were told. It has taken years of love and gentle support for Archie's damaged body and mind to feel safe enough to blossom! 'Archie jumped at the slightest touch, fearing a beating, so we simply spoke quietly to him when we were close and tried not to force any physical contact. 'Four years ago, having been content to watch his family go out to graze each day from the safety of his barn, Archie plucked up the courage to join them one morning and spent the day screaming in delight and running in circles. 'He followed them in at night and thus began his rehabilitation. Archie is inbred and was born without a tail, partially sighted and deaf in one ear 'Even so if anything happened that made Archie fearful, he would run to his corner in the barn here and huddle into it. 'Two years ago after making strange grunts for over a week, he found his voice - there is a video of this on our Facebook page, 'Archie finds his moo' - and bellowed all afternoon, evening and night until he was quite hoarse. 'Archie is growing more confident by the week; he greets visitors who understand his need for quietness and slow movements if they want to be lucky enough to be permitted to stroke him. 'He has his own adopted bovine family - who support him - and within it special friends his own age with whom he plays, grazes and lives happily.' Advertisement

The lambs love human contact, so with Wenda's blessing a few of us jumped in the pen and snuggled up

Vegan blogger/Hit The Floor magazine founder Chris Hines and I with cuddly lamb Peanut

In the UK, Hugletts is the only farm animal sanctuary that operates a dedicated Cow Protection Program. They maintain a separate herd which comprises special needs and very elderly cows and bullocks.

They include Archie, who is inbred and was born without a tail, partially sighted and deaf in one ear, as well as one of four founding cows, Leena.

'Leena came in 1995 with her two sisters and her brother Sam from a school farming club in Ashford,' Wenda explained.

'She and her siblings at six months of age were due to be sold on at market for fattening and eventual slaughter, when some of the parents complained and, as a result, brought them to us.

'Leena has lived all her life since at the sanctuary. She is now 21 years old - the oldest cow who lives here at present.'

After greeting the cows, we headed over to meet half a dozen six-month-old lambs, including an especially handsome and friendly male called Peanut.

They share a pen and love human contact, so with Wenda's blessing a few of us jumped in, laid in the hay and snuggled up with them.

They were curious and cuddly - and they nibbled on everything from chins to zips.

'We let the animals dictate the relationship they will allow us to have with them,' Wenda said.

'Some will never allow a relationship; some may take years.'

Freerunner, animal lover and Ethics And Antics founder Timothy Shieff joined us on the trip

Most cows would not be able to survive in the wild because of the way they have been conditioned on farms

Tim and I greet the two large turkeys - Bob and Vic. They aren't too tactile but when humans laugh around them, they gobble along endearingly

After greeting the cows we sat down for a lunch of Fry's vegan burgers and contemplated our experience on the farm.

I was struck by how tranquil, intelligent and unique all the animals seemed, with their own personalities. They feel joy, pain, love and fear.

The two large, majestic turkeys - Bob and Vic - aren't too tactile but when humans laugh around them, they gobble along endearingly.

One of the jersey cows, Padmini, suffered badly after her lover Gromit died and refused to get up for three months.

'We stayed with her round the clock until she recovered,' said Wenda, who massaged the grief-stricken mammal and had a vet give her acupuncture every fortnight.

'Reg (Padmini) lived all her life with Gromit - infact she watched him being born and when he was a baby. It was Reg who took him out and showed him all round, as she was two months older than him.'

Deni sits with the lambs and listens to co-founder Wenda's incredible life story

Luckily, they haven't had to turn away a single animal yet. Five weeks ago they collected ten sheep and a lamb from Wales with just a day's notice.

'The sheep came to avoid a welfare issue at a smallholding due to there being too many sheep for the land,' Wenda said.

'We were called by the daughter of the smallholder (who is vegan) to ask if we could take 10.5 sheep so they wouldn't have to be sold or end up in the food chain. So we did! They are called the Myffanwys, which is Welsh for "much loved".' The couple even picked up a turkey on their way home.

For a chance to meet the animals you can attend the Huglett's annual open day or one of their open barn Sundays during the summer.

This is Dino the goose who is very noisy and loves cuddles

These friendly, healthy chickens were all rescued from battery farms

For this year's open day, Wenda and Matthew hosted 450 people - showing them around the sanctuary, introducing them to the animals and setting up a vegan café. They only ask for a donation in return.

Hugletts is almost 20 years old and largely relies on the generosity of strangers to keep going.

Their Facebook page states: 'We try to self-fund as much as possible, growing vegetables and fruits and producing a whole range of garden products and natural Ahimsa compost but we still face hefty bills for feed and bedding plus the inevitable cost of Homeopathic treatment and essential veterinary care, which runs into thousands of pounds a year.'

Unlike some aquariums or zoos, here at Hugletts there's no doubt over the quality of the treatment of the animals. They are loved completely and considered equal beings.

You can donate to the FGV and Fry's Family Foods Hugletts Wood Farm Animal Sanctuary fundraiser here.

The funds raised from this campaign will help cover the cost of new fencing and cameras on the properties to help keep the animals safe from harm.