I don’t know exactly what your past was like, whether you were abused or neglected or whatever. But I know what your future is going to be as long as I’m here.”

Arthur Franco

Arthur Franco is probably not the type of guy you would expect to see kneel down beside a hot pink-bridled miniature pony, whispering soft words of encouragement while enticing it with a handful of hay.

But if you talk to him for just a short while, you’d see this is just a normal morning routine for him, Spirit (the aforementioned mini horse), and the some 20 different animals, most of them miniature varieties, that he has rescued from various situations since moving to Warren in 2020.

“People have different hobbies right? Some guys love to golf. This is my hobby,” Franco said. “I don't drink. I don't smoke. I don't go clubbing. You know, this is my thing now. And now that I'm retired I can obviously devote a little more time to it, and it is work. But I don't really look at it as work because there's no one telling me you’ve got to get this done in an hour or two. I wake up in the morning. I do my thing.”

Franco, who grew up in Bristol and graduated from Mt. Hope High School, is also former Marine who went on to a successful career as a correctional officer. But even throughout those years of seeing some of the more disheartening things humans can do to one another (and to animals), his heart never grew cold, and he knew one day — after securing a good life for his wife and children — he would have the ability, and find the right place, to pursue this most interesting and unique hobby.

It started with two mini ponies, Spirit and Petunia (a mother-daughter pair), but then Franco heard about Noodle, a mini donkey whose original owner had abused him pretty badly. Franco originally was skeptical he could take on the additional responsibility.

“But, my heart just kind of said, ‘Let’s do it Arthur.’ So I did.”

In doing the research Franco always does to become more informed about how to properly care for the animals he rescues, he learned donkeys don’t like to be alone. So, of course, he had to adopt another mini donkey, Scooby, to befriend Noodle.

You can imagine how it grew from there. Nearly all the animals Franco has acquired were not sought out by him, rather he heard through family or friends about animals that were in bad situations, and he offered the space to provide them a better home. The animals have large pens with plenty of room to roam, and he keeps them well fed and sheltered. The Warren Town Council actually provided some assistance as well, recently granting Franco permission to utilize a portion of unused, town-owned land to the rear of where the animals are currently held, which will provide even more grazing and roaming space.

Although Franco delighted that his grandson has been able to bring friends over to see the animals, he doesn’t have any real plans to monetize the farm or expand into anything much larger. He’s just grateful to have the opportunity, space, and agency to care for them, and hopes to raise awareness about the care these animals need and deserve.

Simply observing how the animals flock to him, and how they implicitly trust strangers holding out a hand to pet them, it’s clear how much love Franco has instilled into them.

“I have a bench on the corner of the porch, and sometimes I just sit down and look at all of them and I’m like, ‘I’m just happy you guys are happy.’ I don’t want anything else in life. That’s pretty good to me,” he said.

“It’s the peace of mind that, okay, maybe I don’t know exactly what your past was like, whether you were abused or neglected or whatever. But I know what your future is going to be as long as I’m here.”