Posts Tagged ‘good rescues’
Let’s do another one of those tests…
You know how I sometimes like for you to show pictures to your non-horsey friends and significant others to see if they can tell if something is wrong with a horse? Try it with this one. I’m curious to hear the results. I think this is tougher than the typical 1 body condition score horse I ask you to do this with, but I still think it’s a really obvious example!
“TIER & Falconridge Equine Rescue are working together to help this mare. We have named her Sugar Bear.
3-2-10 Late in the evening, we received information about a QH mare, approximately 14 years old that was injured and lying down. We need your help!
Original listing on Craigslist:
Free Approx 14 year old , Mare.. my ex-boyfriend left this horse with me and I don’t know alot about them.. she is lame and underwieght. I have been feeding her 2 flakes of hay in morning, afternoon and night to try to help her weight issue, cause I feel bad for her, I took her to my sisters house to put her in a stall to be out of the rain. My sister told me to try and have her rescued or put down, I don’t want her put down.. please help this mare..
After phone calls by TIER & FalconRidge, we got the following information:
Mare had been with a horse trader (ex-boyfriend)…mare was ridden in the sand at the riverbottom and the horse was sound…but came back SHAKING and has been lying down a lot since. Off on the front and back leg swollen so sounds like she pulled or injured something in the sand she said. She’s very thin. This woman who has had her for 4 days now (sister to the gal who rode her in the sand in the riverbottom) said the mare will get up to eat, but thats it! Of course a vet has not been called since this occurred 4 days ago.
We are making arrangements for the mare to initially go to TIER. She has been christened “Sugar Bear”. The vet has been contacted and once he has evaluated her, we will know more about what we are dealing with. If a chiropractor is needed, Dr. Don Moore will be contacted. Once we have more information about her condition and she has stabilized (depending on vet recommendation) she will then go to Falconridge Equine Rescue.
We need your help! We are in need of emergency funds to pay the vet, purchase medications, chiropractor (if needed), feed, etc. & eventual transport to Falconridge, etc. This mare has been suffering for days and days! We were told that she was being given 1 scoop of bute per day. That is equivalent to 1 bute tablet…..not near enough for an injury that causes a horse to lie down frequently. Horses do not lie down that much or that often unless they are in great pain!”
Oh, and of course, TIER and Falcon Ridge could always use donations for this mare’s vet expenses. They’re good rescues and will do the best they can for her!
And if you’re looking to adopt, I don’t believe anyone has closed the deal on Angel Acres’ cutie-pie Tango yet…
It’s a good time of year to make this list!
I don’t have time today to write up the story I was planning on, so instead let’s see if we can make a list. Today’s list:
LOW COST OR FREE GELDING ASSISTANCE
1. First, I want to make a list of rescues offering these programs, with contact information.
2. Second, I want to know if anyone has any experience taking advantage of the services and how it went?
Here’s a newer group in Northern California that just offered a gelding clinic. Hooray!
http://thebackinthesaddleproject.blogspot.com/2010/02/gelding-clinic-success.html
Here are some others that I know of:
http://www.frontrangeequinerescue.org/whatwedo.html – Front Range in Colorado has been offering partial reimbursement for gelding for a long time!
http://stalliontogeldingsupport.org/ — In North Carolina but I don’t think they are location-specific.
http://www.norcalequinerescue.com/gelding.php — NorCal Rescue continues to offer this service.
http://www.equus.org/hoofcentral.html — Equus Sanctuary in Ravensdale, CA also says they will help with gelding costs.
Let’s also mention vets who geld for a reasonable cost! If you are in the Pierce County, Washington area, I recommend Dr. Briskey. He normally does them for under $100. (360) 893-6587. If you have a vet that will geld at a low cost like this, please sing their praises in this thread, with location and contact information!
I know there are people who have coming two year olds that aren’t cut yet reading this. If you aren’t going to keep them a stallion prospect and if you don’t have a plan for training and showing them, just get the job done. Make the call today. They CAN get mares pregnant as yearlings and you do NOT want an oops. An oops makes you look unprofessional no matter how nice your facility or horses are.
As always, if you prefer to be anonymous, I have no problem with anyone making a second account. There are places that get all uptight about that and go, OMG, matching IP’s, it’s a secret conspiracy! All I ask is, don’t be a jerk on any of your accounts, and don’t defend/support your own posts because that’s lame. Other than that, you are welcome to your anonymity here, especially when it serves to help others because you can discuss your mistakes and what you learned from them.
Speaking of geldings, this is Tango and doesn’t he look like a wonderful ride? He looks super smooth and quiet! To me this guy, even though he’s just started his post-track training, screams “nice amateur horse.” He’s available for adoption from Angel Acres. Just click here!
Someone call the Weekly World News!
We have YET ANOTHER horse resurrection. ;)
You may recall the story of Voodoo, the Pinto mustang stallion rescued from Three Strikes Ranch. Jason Meduna, ever the drama queen, went scampering off to the Internet…
(I have to interrupt my own blog for a side note: How is it that ALL of these asshats who don’t feed or care for their horses have Internet? Even in the wilds of Nebraska, they are ALWAYS online. Here’s an idea, cancel the Internet and buy five bales of hay. That will also help you avoid making an complete and total ass of yourself online making ridiculous statements when the truth is, you should admit you were wrong and quietly drop out of sight and wait for your trial.)
… and told everybody we had “run Voodoo to death” on his property.
Voodoo, of course, was very much alive and happily eating grain out of everybody’s hands. Admittedly, he was a complete skeleton thanks to Jason, but he did not appear to be in any danger of leaving the planet anytime soon. He was obviously perking up every day I was there with him!
He did fall down at one point because he was so weak (again, Jason’s fault) but you can fall down without dying. Ask anyone in college about the likelihood of this on a typical Saturday night. ;)
Well, a few weeks ago I heard that the rumor mill had, once again, spun out of control and pronounced Voodoo dead and Habitat For Horses/Jerry Finch merely another internet con artist who simply wanted the high-profile horse for P.R. and then proceeded put him to sleep. So, for those of you not smart enough to recognize immediately that no such thing took place (and of course for all those of you who will just think it’s super freakin’ cool to see the “after” pic!) here is a pic taken today.
Yep, still not dead. 
And carrying about 300 more pounds than the last time we saw him! Jerry says he’s just going to stay a pet and a permanent resident at Habitat for Horses – something I’m sure Voodoo is very happy about!
You may also recall the tale of Lexi, the sweet bay mare who was supposed to be 36 years old. Well, Lexi had a surprise for everybody. I will let her new mom, Rebecca, tell the tale. That’s the baby at left.
“Lexi is home. She has a place with me for the rest of her life. She is doing really well – better than I ever expected. I remember reading about her of the FOB and waiting and watching to see if anyone raised their hand for her. I love mature horses so when it came time to move the mares to Wyoming I told Jerry if she could make her way a little closer to me I would pick her up. He found a way to get her to the Tyler area and I picked up Lexi and five companions and brought them to my place and the ranch.
I had seen a picture of Lexi and knew she was skinny but I had rehabbed mature skinnies before so I was confident I could help her. What I didn’t know was there was a possibility that she was pregnant. Seriously, how could that be? I was told she was 36 years old – would that even be possible? How would her body handle that? I got her to the vet two days after she arrived and the vet confirmed she was between 7-9 months – which was a good guess because it turned out she was 8 months. I was warned that terminating the pregnancy was not an option (I was horrified at the suggestion) and told that she would probably do ok but that there was a good chance that the baby would not survive as Lexi had been deprived of basic nutrition during the early stages of her pregnancy.
As Lexi’s time grew closer I was terrified that she would go into labor while I slept and I wouldn’t know that she needed help. I was getting up 3 times a night to check on her … On Saturday morning, August 8, 2009 I checked on her about 1:15 am and the tiniest, leggiest foal came tripping out of the run-in behind Lexi. I hung around just long enough to make sure they both were ok and left them because Lexi was noticeably nervous. I went out a little while later and introduced myself to what I found to be a perfect little filly. I have spent a lot of time with her since – she’s a fun-loving, smart, knows what she likes and what she doesn’t, little girl. She’s a talker like her mom. It took me a while to find a name for her but I knew it was perfect when I found it – Audi – it’s African for Last Daughter. Lexi won’t ever have to go through this again. She is an awesome mom – I love to hear them talk to each other – and takes excellent care of Audi who just turned six months old. I am happy Lexi came into my life and ultimately excited to have Audi with me. A lot of worry went along with waiting for her arrival but it was worth it – she and her mom are both worth it.”
Mom and baby are also alive Here is another great blog entry about them!
Now, remember my little favorite, Piglet? Piglet’s thread is still going strong on the Nebraska200 Message Board and you can see she has lived up to her name. You can see before and after pics of her at this link…truly amazing. Her adopter has done a fabulous job with her. Their vet thought she was pregnant when rescued but at this point I don’t really think she’s got anything in there but hay. At any rate, she is fat and happy and having a ball playing with the other horses and enjoying her new life. This is a huge success story, as she was so weak at Three Strikes that she fell several times, and had to be physically lifted into a small trailer by herself in order to be removed from the property. She was as near death as I have seen a horse be and still come back, and it has been really special to read that thread and watch her progress.
Another happy ending from Three Strikes, for Ziggy. Here is his mom’s blog.
Here are updates from Freedom Hill Horse Rescue, which took two mares – they’re now in training, hooray!
Finally, here’s a happy recent update on Chloe, the palomino paint mare who was injured and had to be immediately transported to CSU to save her life (big thanks to Margaret DeSarno, who hauled her up there despite having to climb over someone’s whopper ego to do it, and to her adopter Sue who paid the whopper bill!). Chloe was, of course, pregnant so not only was she three legged lame, she was about to pop out a baby. Amazingly, both survived and here is some video of her. Check out the before and after videos. See, folks, this is why sometimes it’s worth it to go straight to the top of the line vet care. Makes a difference!
I know I talk a lot about the bad rescues but let’s not lose sight of the fact that there are many quality rescues that can and do help horses in need and many great adopters who put time, money and love into horses whether or not those horses are ever going to be ridden. I have another big expose story coming (not a rescue, just another repeat offender BYB) but I wanted to give you all a happy thread to enjoy this Monday. Kudos to those who made this happy thread possible, and if you have an update on another Three Strikes horse, please post it to the comments. As always, if you have a picture, post the DIRECT link…NO CODE…and I will make it show up when I approve comments. Code simply creates more work for me. It will only let me, not you guys, use the img src tag…I don’t know why.
P.S. Hercules is jealous. He only came back from the dead once. Check Facebook under “Hercules the Horse” to see updates with new pictures of Herc enjoying his Valentine’s cookies!
I think she might be one of the happiest little mares in the world now!
Back in July of 2008, I blogged about the amazing recovery of a little mare named Naysa from an attack so violent that I think the critter that did it should have just been shot immediately – and I don’t care if he walks on two legs.
This might be the toughest little mare in the world
The good news: Naysa is fine! Naysa is great, actually. The pic at left is from last week!
Naysa today at her wonderful home in Florida.
I don’t know which I love more, the pics of her cuddling with people or the pic of her with her own sleazy hood and blankie! You know she never lived that well in her life before this. I am happy just looking at those pictures! You can totally see that her faith in humans has been restored. Every kudo on earth to you, Jolee!
You guys know how often I talk about how everybody is right up there wanting to help a horse when the rescue is “fresh” and you get to be in the spotlight for doing it. But the real rescuers are the ones who are still just as committed to taking care of the horse a year, two years, ten years down the road. And that’s why I’m so delighted to be able to show you all of these new pics of Naysa — because this is a case where it was all done right. Habitat For Horses did it right in rescuing her and rehabbing her, then carefully selecting just the right home for her. Jolee has done it right in giving her a loving home from the day she brought her home, where she could learn to trust again and finally feel forever safe.
Now this is about as cute as it gets! And look at the size of that field that little miss Naysa has to play in!
I read something really stupid this week about how you should try to be nicer and more compassionate to avoid “rescuer burnout.” Screw THAT. I just need to look at things like this very happy ending to avoid feeling burned out and hopeless! Feeling hatred toward people like the asshat who did this helps keep me fired up and motivated and that’s a good thing!
So that brings me to the fly in the ointment, the one thing that keeps this from being a perfect rescue story:
The man who did this, Tony Meyers, aka evil incarnate, perpetrator of what is arguably one of the cruelest incidents of abuse toward a horse reported in recent years, has not been tried yet! Yes, I know. Our legal system at work. This bottom-feeding, knuckle-dragging waste of oxygen gets postponement after postponement. It is ridiculous, ludicrous, unacceptable and needs to stop.
So today, please take 15 minutes to write or call the prosecutor and demand that Tony Meyers be brought to justice. If you appreciate my blog at all, please do this one thing. I can’t deal with this maggot going unpunished one more year.
Assistant District Attorney Chester Cedars: ccedars@16jda.com or phone number: 337-394-2222
The Case No. to reference is 07-00009229 (important – no one will know what you are talking about without it)
As always, be POLITE and RESPECTFUL. You are calling to ask when he will be going to trial, and want to share your opinion that he should receive the maximum penalty allowable by law. It is never okay to use profanity or get angry. You don’t want to sound crazier than the crazy person you are trying to have put away. Be calm, clear and have the facts ready to discuss. Please let me know what you are told in response. Thanks!
Who needs coffee this morning?
I am sending out a $25 Starbucks gift card to whoever can solve this mystery!
I am absolutely positive that some reader of this blog knows who this horse is. Here is what we know.
– He was rescued from the December 2009 Enumclaw Auction, so he probably came from Washington or Oregon.
– He is a true 17 hands (we sticked him) and is a tattooed Thoroughbred gelding. We are having trouble reading it. He is in his 20’s.
– He has had white line disease and his right front hoof has been resected. The farrier did an excellent job.
– No sign whatsoever of any abuse or neglect. A bit thin but we believe this horse has been living in a barn.
– We are positive he is an old show horse. You can clip his ears without a twitch and he loves being bathed and fussed over.
– He has not, however, been shown in a long time as his bridle path has been allowed to grow out fully and his whiskers were very long.
– When he arrived, he was aggressive and it seemed to be pain related/defensiveness. He bit Ron the kill buyer in the shoulder at the auction. What a good pony! 
Now, he is a SNUGGLE BUNNY. Someone has taught this horse to give hugs – if you hug him, he wraps his neck and head around you and squeezes. He is particularly affectionate with petite women and children.
– He has some pushy behaviors on the ground and will try to whap you around with his head if he doesn’t want to stand still.
– Even lame, he is an AMAZING mover. AMAZING. If he wasn’t an A circuit horse, it was not for lack of talent.
– Ringbone (obvious) in hind right.
– VERY playful. When you turn him out, he pulls stuff off the walls to play with, knocks over my trainer’s stuff, anything he can reach is fair game.
I want to know who this horse is. If not for Second Chance Ranch, he would have gone to kill. Ron marked him as “kill only” thanks to the bite.
I also suspect that he has an old owner who loves him. I just have a feeling about it. I also have a feeling that the other people at the barn he came from have NO idea that he went to auction.
So get your week’s worth of coffee and out the asshat(s) – extra credit for proof, i.e. pictures of him at his previous location or with whoever dumped him! Who the hell sent this awesome horse to die in a slaughterhouse? They KNEW where he was going with that hoof. And why? Sick of paying the vet? What? This is a Ferrari that was nearly crushed into a cube, and I want to know why and who was responsible.
Click below for even more pictures.
Finally, a way to tell the good from the bad
I mentioned this before on the blog while it was still being discussed, but now it’s become a reality. The Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries has developed a rescue/sanctuary accreditation program and so far two rescues have been accredited – Habitat for Horses in Texas and Angel Acres in Pennsylvania.
Last spring, I attended a presentation on the program and I was really impressed. They were going to evaluate rescues from every perspective – from the quality of hands-on care to the record keeping and financial status. It’s a great system. Not only do you have to have clean stalls and quality feed to pass muster, but you have to know where next month’s hay is coming from. They aren’t going to accredit you if your finances look shady or donor money has gone unaccounted for (but you are driving a Mercedes despite not having any other source of income). Oh, and they are going to do rechecks, particularly if complaints are received about an accredited sanctuary.
I think the program is a great idea, and I do understand that it’s quite paperwork intensive but let’s face it – the paperwork is part of the job if you want to have a 501(c)(3) charity.
So if you want to see if your rescue passes muster, apply by contacting patty@sanctuaryfederation.org. I think that this is going to become an absolutely great way for donors to choose good places to send their money to, even if the rescue is too far away for them to visit in person.
