Heaves Medications

To cut down on the risk of ulcers and other digestive issues, we like to feed high quality grass hay. It gives the herd just the right amount of nutrients so we don't have to worry about anyone but the hard keepers or those that require additional supplements or medication to keep their ailments under control.

Sadly, horses do come to Borderlands with ailments and Digger is one of them. He has heaves and we are doing our best to keep them under control. While it may not be ideal to feed him round bales, we do. However, we do keep a hay net on it so that he cannot bury his head into the bale. It also may help that he can't toss any loose hay around stirring up dust. We do our best to keep the dust levels at a minimum for feeding for everyone.

While we take precautions with the hay, we also know that it's not enough. So we have also feed him a supplement to try and tone down the heaves. When he arrived, he came with two different types of heaves medication, Cough Free and Antihist. We've used Antihist in the past on a different horse with summer allergies (where her heaves flared up during the summer rather than the winter).

We've been alternating between the two to see if Digger likes one over the other or if we like to handle one over another. In truth, they both smell the same so it's really a consistency thing. Cough Free came as a pellet (although it also comes in a powder form). Antihist came in a powder form. I prefer pellets personally for ease of soaking.

We also soak all of our grain to reduce the risk of choke. But it also cuts down on any dust that the grain may have. Beet pulp and alfalfa pellets can become dusty when you first dump them into the grain bucket and we want to do everything we possibly can to make sure there is no dust in the food that we give the horses, especially to Digger (and Brego who we suspect has heaves as well).

It's always a learning curve with each horse to see what will work and what will not work. So far either Cough Free or Antihist seem to be doing the trick. We'll continue to alternate between the two for ease of use. They both cost right around the same amount $30 for a 30 day supply. It costs $1 a day to keep Digger's heaves under control and that dollar is worth every penny.

In case you want to look up more about Cough Free, here's some more information:

https://www.farnam.com/all-products/supplements/cough-free

It can be bought at any TSC, Runnings, or Fleet Farm.

https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/search/cough%20free?

The Antihist is also sold at TSC, Runnings, and Fleet Farm

https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/search/antihist?

It's always a wise decision to speak with your vet about your horse's heaves issues. Digger's previous owners took him to the vet to figure out a game plan for Digger. We want to continue that treatment plan and will continue to give Digger his heaves medicine (either Cough Free or Antihist) for the rest of his life.

Giving Tree at Tractor Supply

We were blessed with the opportunity to have a Giving Tree at the Sioux Falls Tractor Supply on Cliff this year. It is a great opportunity to help the horses. Choose a snowflake wish from the Giving Tree, purchase the item, and take the snowflake home as a token of your generosity for your amazing support. We couldn't help the senior horses without your support.

We'll leave you with just a few pictures of the Giving Tree and we hope you stop down to Tractor Supply. And if you can't, check out the 12 Days of Christmas throughout December to help the senior horses. With your support, we can offer senior horses a loving and permanent home for their twilight years.

Giving Tuesday

It's #GivingTuesday and that means a lot of activity throughout the day for many nonprofits. This year we are keeping it quiet (like we do most years). Covid really through our plans out the window so we are in a holding pattern to see what comes of it and to see where we go when/if life goes back to normal.

But for now, we are participating in #GivingTuesday by posting all of our horses looking for penpals. Zeke and Skippy have penpals but they can always use more. The days are so short and the nights get so long and boring that it's always fun to have something to look forward to. So every hour on the hour if you go to Facebook, you'll see all of the horses who want penpals.

Every hour on the half hour, you'll see the horses again with their letters to Santa. We kept them short this year and told the horses that they can't have expensive items on their wishlist because the pandemic has caused many to be less fortunate than them.

The horses' letters to Santa will kick off the 12 Days of Christmas where the horses ask for items that they could use. Most will be the same items they asked Santa but it's always fun to see what they come up with.

Surprise Packages

Yesterday, while working from home for the paying job (not sure when we'll be back in the office), the UPS guy drove up the driveway. I wasn't expecting anything and didn't think Mike had ordered anything (but you never know with him). As I was running out the door to pick up the kids from school and daycare, I took a closer look at the three boxes.

And I began to cry. How can three big boxes make a grown woman cry? Fill them with Weatherbetta blankets for the horses!!! Weatherbetta and a Home for Every Horse donated 10 blankets to us to keep our seniors warm and snug this winter. And yes, it was an ugly cry sort of cry. We have blankets but they are starting to be in tatters and some horses don't get blankets (because they or their buddy) are too hard on them. I can now put a tattered blanket on one of those horses and put one of the brand new blankets on someone else!

I was not expecting such an amazing surprise. I can't wait to pull the blankets out and decide which one goes to who. I know everyone will be thrilled to have a new blanket and I can't wait to show them all off sporting new blankets.

Thank you Weatherbetta and a Home for Every Horse! Thank you for your generosity, your support of ALL rescues and sanctuaries. Thank you for allowing me to sleep easy at night knowing the horses will all be tucked in blankets when bad weather hits this year.

Christmas at the Capital

We were again blessed to have the opportunity to decorate a tree at our state's Christmas at the Capital. It is so amazing to see all the different trees and those behind the decorations. It is not only an honor but a privilege to have this opportunity to showcase the horses that call Borderlands home.

I like to think that we not only represent Borderlands, but ALL sanctuaries and rescues doing amazing work in South Dakota. I hope that our tree sparks people's attention and that there becomes an awareness not just for senior horses but for the idea of rescue and sanctuary of animals. That there needs to be more awareness and more help in caring for these amazing animals should be of great consideration. Wouldn't it be fantastic if our jobs were eliminated because there was no need for sanctuaries or rescues.

We drove out Saturday afternoon after getting all our chores done (thank you automatic water for making life even easier!) and enjoyed some quality family time (it was much needed). Being surrounded by laughing and happy children is the best medicine for stress (unless it's a horse nuzzle from your favorite horse). We were able to get to the capital early Sunday morning before people arrived so that we could properly social distance and do our part with covid. We questioned attending but figured if we went first thing in the morning on Sunday, there wouldn't be many people. And we were right. We had our tree to ourselves the entire time with only one group of people showing up for about 5 minutes.

As excited as I am to have a tree at the capital, I want to encourage everyone to do what is right for them if they choose to attend Christmas at the Capital. I'd strongly suggest masking up, washing your hands, and staying home if you aren't feeling well. But if you can sneak over some time, it will surly get you into the Christmas spirit. Our tree is on the first level and one of the first trees to great you when you walk in! Check out all of our sanctuary horses. They each have a picture in the picture garland and a gold ball with their name on it (minus three horses in the picture garland because I couldn't find their picture; they were at Borderlands pre-cell phone and are buried in one of the computers).

I will leave you with just a few pictures of our tree representing Borderlands Horse Sanctuary

Chores in the Dark

When the days are so short and I can't get out to do chores until after dark, it's hard to come up with topics to discuss. Oh sure there's the how to blanket, auto water repair, snow removal, etc. type topics but the day-to-day stuff isn't nearly as interesting.

I've been preoccupied with the upcoming Giving Tuesday although I doubt there will be much interest this year. The pandemic has really set us back. I don't know that it has changed the number of horses requesting to come to Borderlands but it has really forced us to hunker down and not do any of the stuff we'd planned to do, thus finding extra cash along the way. We'll survive and continue on but the burnout this year is strong. I chatted with a couple of ladies the other day to find out how to improve Borderlands (at least on the social media presence). I'm always interested in learning how we can improve and make things better. There are so many successful organizations out there, I want to learn from all of them so I can figure out how to make Borderlands more fun. And if you have ideas, I'd love to hear them. Even something simple like more pictures and videos, I'd love to hear if that is what interests you.

The weather is supposed to be nice this week and weekend which will make life so much easier. Of course we'll be on a different adventure for Borderlands this coming weekend. My fingers are crossed that we can haul hay over Thanksgiving so that we can get all of our winter hay home. It's not paid for but at least it'll be home and I'll have to scrape up the cash to make it happen.

We do have some fun stuff coming up starting on Giving Tuesday and throughout the month of December. Hopefully you'll come along for the ride and enjoy a few giggles.

Best Laid Plans

Well, the weekend didn't go as planned. Mother Nature decided to throw 2020 at us to mess up our plans of getting the hay home. I'm already stressed about how to pay for it and now we have to figure out how to get it all home.

Friday evening the wind picked up and what little snow we had gotten on Thursday started drifting on one of the roads (we'd gone to Madison where the hay was and noticed the snow drifts). One of the other roads was a sheet of ice. We'd hoped by Saturday that the temps would warm and it wouldn't be a big deal but in the morning, it was still cold and the roads were still slick.

So instead of hauling hay with the big trailer that holds 11, we used our car trailer that holds 3. We made one trip home with three bales so we'd have at least something. After we unloaded, we headed right back to Madison to pick up another load. Unfortunately by this time, the ground had warmed up and the roads were getting cleaner (still not completely clear) and where they hay was turned into a muddy mess. We got the truck and trailer stuck without even having the bales loaded. Luckily we were able to get a push out after getting loaded up but it also meant that using the big trailer was a no go.

My thinking with using the smaller trailer is:

The big flatbed trailer we can borrow holds 11 bales. If we order 55 bales, that should get us through the winter. We had leftovers from last year which was a good thing, but if something happens and we say yes to a senior horse in desperate need, we'll need to make sure we have hay on hand. So 55 it is because that makes five trips with the trailer.  But because our time is so painfully limited, I came up with the idea that if we took a load of hay back to Borderlands (11 bales), then we could put another three bales on the car trailer. If we did that four times, we'd have the fifth load of hay home without having to figure out a time to get it home. There's an hour + round trip just in driving and another hour or so to unload the hay. So typically we only get two loads home in one day. So if we had a full weekend (which we did this past weekend), we could get all the hay home.

Unless Mother Nature decides to throw us for a loop.

We thought we could at least haul two loads home on Sunday but after looking at the weather forecast, we knew we'd only be able to squeeze one in. Woke up Sunday morning to roaring wind. We aren't going to borrow someone else's trailer and haul it home with hay when we don't typically haul hay. If it was our trailer, we might have thought differently but because it wasn't ours, we weren't going to take any chances. So instead we hauled one load of hay home on the car trailer. It'll get us through until Thanksgiving.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that we can haul the hay home over Thanksgiving. We've made three trips with the car trailer so we'll only need to make trips with the big trailer. We'll be up to Madison sometime over the next two weeks to get the final load of hay on the small trailer.

The hay that was supposed to be ours is also trapped in a different field thanks to the unseasonably early snowfall. I was a little disappointed but the hay we are using is just as good. It technically could be certified hay if my hay guy wanted to jump through the hoops to make it happen.

So we'll try over Thanksgiving to see how it goes. Of course this coming weekend was supposed to be nice but we are out of town for a Borderlands trip. I'll have to tell you more about that later. But it's a somewhat surprise.

And because we work during the week, we can't haul day or even unload it if they bring it down. It's always dark thirty by the time we get done working and head out to chores when it's this time of year. Makes for some stress. Luckily we only have about two months of pitch black chores but it sure makes me appreciate doing chores in the daylight!

No Rest for the Wicked

The days have been a blur lately and I'm too exhausted to write. We've been busy working on home improvements and sanctuary improvements all summer. It's all stuff we should have done years ago but life got in the way.

When we started having kids eight years ago, all the home improvements and even some of the upkeep was put on hold. I didn't have easy pregnancies so for almost a full year, it was simply to survive and then the first year of baby, again it was simply to survive. If you're a parent, you'll understand completely. After the first year of baby, I'd finally come out of my fog and look around the place and do a little work but then return to the fog of baby.

Now that I'm too old to have kids, I took a look last September and realized that we needed to do a lot of work around here. I started last year painting the house but only got one side painted. Sadly, I used wrong paint or the wood is so old and dry that it disappeared. Fast forward to this summer and I decided to paint the south side of the house. It took me six months to do because I was doing it whenever I had "free" time. Anyone with kids and/or horses knows that there's no such thing as free time. But I FINALLY got it done this past weekend (after the threat of freezing temperatures). Ok, so it's not done as finished but there's a couple of coats of paint slapped on and I've decided I'll be taking a week off to paint the house properly next spring/summer. I won't try to do it after work and in between all the other stuff. But at least now when you pull into the driveway, the house won't look so ratty.

We also poured a huge concrete slab this spring after digging out what we wanted when we rented the skidloader. It's a lovely concrete pad that I'm hoping will get lots of use. While it's not sanctuary related, I do see that we'll be using it for many different purposes and if I get to do what I want, we may very well be using it for the sanctuary. We also hauled away six of the eight years worth of manure this spring. It's something we should have done every year but didn't. Sadly, we ran out of time to get all of the manure out so we'll have to push to get the remaining manure (and this year's manure) out next spring. After I get the trailer paid off, I'll be on the hunt for a skidloader. I'm thankful for our tractor but we sometimes also need a skidloader. My mother taught me to be as self sufficient as possible and to do that, we'll need a skidloader.

We also finally put gutters on the house. Now I feel like I'm an adult because I'm excited for gutters. We haven't had gutters on the house in years. We finally got rain yesterday and couldn't figure out what that sound was. It was the gutters! It makes me feel old to be excited for gutters and a little sad because we've gone this long without them and who knows what damage we've done to the house because of it. This past week, we also installed five new windows. They aren't officially done and we still have a bunch of stuff to figure out, but we now have brand new windows that open. Of the five, I was down to only having one window that would open. We'd stuffed weather stripping in all the windows because they leaked so bad. Come to find out that when we pulled them out of the house, that these were the original windows. Either original to the remodel or at least to when they put the siding up. So our best guess is that these windows were installed in the 1940s. At this point, we are also figuring everything around here is from the 1940s.

This fall I insisted we get a mini excavator so that we could bury water lines from the barn to where I want an auto water. We finally got the auto water installed although there's still some wiring issues we need to resolve. The barn's electrical box cant handle it. We are hoping though that with the new auto water, the electric bill will go down. We won't have two 500 watt water heaters in an open 100 gallon tank. I am super excited to not have to haul water every day. With how 2020 is going, I wanted to be prepared. It will also make life easier when we go on vacation. I won't have to worry about lugging water up to the red shed and that pasture when we go on vacation and trying to come up with a water holder so that the tanks stay filled while we are gone. We do everything we can to make it so that whoever is looking after the place doesn't really have to do anything (but make sure no one falls out of a fence).

When we had the mini excavator, we also dug out a trench for the electrical to go from the power pole to the new garage (new to us anyway even if it is 10 years old).  I've been trying to get the new garage hooked up with electricity for 10 years and hopefully this winter, we can finally work on it and convert the new garage over to a shop so that we can get a few more projects done. With kids, I see a lot of time in the garage building stuff. We better be prepared now for it.

We also started an accidental remodel of our utility room. Of all the rooms in the house, the bathroom and the utility room are probably used the hardest (with the kitchen a close third). Having the utility room in disarray for the summer was ok, but we are still in the middle of the accidental remodel and now that winter is almost here with boots, hats, gloves, snow pants, coveralls, and everything else that winter requires, I'm struggling. The wood paneling we need to even hide the 1950s mint green (with glue that was used to hold the old wood paneling) is still in eye sore I see every day when standing in my kitchen. We can't find the wood we want to cover it so until we can find it, it's mass chaos in my house. The accidental remodel is going to be moved up higher on the "to do" list very soon.

With all of our projects, we still have work to do to wrap them up and make them look nice. But at least the hard part is done and we can tinker to get everything looking the way we want all winter when we are hunkered down after the snow flies.

I think we made up for the last eight years in just one year. I guess it's a blessing we had the pandemic and I'm working from home at the paying job so that we can tackle some of these projects that have been at the back of my mind for so many years.

It's probably a good thing that winter is right around the corner so that we can rest for a little bit. But not for long as I look through my brand new windows (but see that there's no trim around them). No rest for the wicked.

Beginning of November

I'd hoped that by now the blogger issues would have been resolved but they have not. So we will be forced to move to a different platform. I've been too busy with the horses and life to get anything set up but I hope to very soon.

In the mean time we've been scrambling to get things wrapped up around Borderlands before the snow flies. We had snow in mid October and that sent me into a tizzy because we werent' ready yet. We had snow and freezing temps and we are still working on putting in an automatic water. Luckily this week is supposed to be above normal temperatures so we can get the auto water installed, I can wrap up painting the south side of the house, and we can install a few more windows in the house. While the house stuff isn't directly related to the Sanctuary, it does make my life easier. Once we dont' have to focus on maintaining the house, I can return my attention to improvements on the other buildings.

The problem is that we have spent the last eight full years focused on raising our little family and that takes time away from home improvements. Now that the kids are slightly older, we can get back to working on improving the place. We still have a ton to do before the snow flies again but fingers crossed we'll be able to do it.

It's actually supposed to snow next week (Sunday or Monday). So I'll be rushing around trying to get as much stuff done as possible. We still need to get all of our winter supply of hay home (and pay for it). I'm not sure which I'm more worried about. Getting it home (because it'll take a full weekend to haul 50+ bales) or trying to pay for it because we havent' done any fundraising due to the pandemic. Either way, it's a huge stress and even though we'll get the hay home, I'll still have to come up with the money. At this rate, it'll be coming out of my paycheck rather than out of donations.

Which is sad, because we have been asked to take in close to 40 horses so far this year. It's about the same as last year. Imagine if we'd taken in the 40 this year. And/or the 40 from last year. As much as I'd love to, there's just no way. Almost all of them come with some type of ailment that requires medication or vet appointments. And in the end some of them that do come to Borderlands actually needs euthanasia rather than a retirement home. It makes me sad to have to say no and I really do get worked up not being able to say yes. I want to be able to help but we have to help responsibly and we can't jeopardize the horses that are already in our care.

As much as I would love to have the funds for 40 horses and the volunteers, I'd also miss out learning about each of the horses. I have to remind myself that we can't save them all. But it's still hard. I would love to find some long-term fosters willing to take in pasture pets. We get asked about light riding horses but sadly the horses that we get into Borderlands are passed even light riding. Where the light riding horses go, I do not know but the horses that we get asked to take in are in their twilight years and only have a few years left.

Now that it's November, I will try my best to post more in blogger until I can switch everything over to a new platform. I make no promises when that will be but hopefully sooner than later. I'm never very good with change and when it's change for the worse as this blogger has been, it really makes me realize how old I am.

Happy November everyone! Lets hope the last two months of 2020 are an improvement to the year!

End of September

Blogger updated and it stinks. That's part of the reason for the lapse in posts. We will be migrating to a different blogging application and then we can resume our stories. In the mean time, it's been very hectic over the last week but unfortunately wrapped up in sadness. I'll explain more when I have more time and hopefully when we are on a new platform where I can actually post more than a few lines at a time. Have I mentioned this new blogger stinks!

Rain - Looking for a PenPal

Rain is the only other horse that has been with me since before Borderlands started. Rain was originally my personal horse and wasn’t added to the Sanctuary program until a few years ago when he was ready to retire (and I still kept pulling him out of retirement). Rain came to be with me back in April 17, 2004 as a green broke 6 year old. I saw him and knew I needed my own “Black Stallion” even though he wasn’t a stallion and anything like the Walter Farley Black Stallion. We had our ups and downs from the beginning but he and I have grown used to each other and know what to expect. Age is a wonderful thing (for both of us).

Not long after bringing Rain home to live with us, he became deathly ill and we were afraid we would lose him. We never had a definitive diagnosis but we believe he had a photosensitive reaction. Because of that near death ordeal, Rain is very susceptible to hot and cold. Because of Rain’s health issues, we knew that he HAD to stay at Borderlands instead of finding him a new home. He’s the perfect size for a youth but he cannot handle the heat. Any long trail rides are too hard on him so there’s no riding allowed when the temps climb into the 80s.

And with the South Dakota winters and even the fall/spring biting wind, we have to ensure Rain has a snug blanket and a place to go to get out of the wind and cold. He’s a hardy little arabian but doesn’t have a good winter coat or a thick skin to keep him warm during the cold winter months. In most of the winter pictures, you’ll see Rain wrapped up in a blanket.

Rain is enjoying full retirement these days. But the cold winter months are going to be long and boring so he’s hoping someone will fall in love with him and be his PenPal! If you’re interested in being Rain’s penpal, you can email us at borderlandshorsesanctuary@yahoo.com and in the subject line, type Rain. Or you can send a letter through snail mail to Borderlands Horse Sanctuary 26160 457th Ave Humboldt, SD 57035 with an Attn: Rain and we’ll make sure he gets it (and responds!)

#ForSouthDakota

#HiFromSD

#HiFromHartford

#PenPals

#BorderlandsHorses

Auto Water Needed

We NEED to get an automatic waterer set up in the pasture next to the barn. I want to turn that into not only the winter pasture but also a pen setting so I can move the ponies over there this winter as well. But it's already the first of September and I'm not sure how to swing getting everything lined up and done. I always think that we can do it ourselves because it's so expensive and we don't have the money to pay someone else. But we don't have the time either it seems.


We spent the long weekend running around and enjoying the last little bit of summer before going back to school (school already started but for me Labor Day has always signaled back to reality and the end of summer). So we did a bunch of running and it was super hot both Saturday and Sunday. We'd get home late from all of our fun and I'd head out to do chores. The pasture with Diavlo and Mayhem has the 100 gallon tank and I was making sure that there was water but it wasn't topped off.


I went out yesterday  morning after Mayhem whinnied at me and realized the tank was low. So I filled it just enough to what should have made the day. When we stopped in again for a quick minute, I checked the tank and it was below that level again. So I'm not sure if they drank that much (normally they don't), or if it has a crack in it. If it has a crack, I'm going to be mad. I searched all around for leaks but didn't so maybe they just drank a ton of water because it had gotten so hot. I feel sort of like a horse mom failure for this one. But it's a definite reminder that we need to put an auto water in rather than deal with a 100 gallon tank.


With how I'm seeing the winter unfold, life is going to get a bit chaotic. There's some personal stuff going on, outside of the whole pandemic and kids going to school/daycare and that stuff is pulling me away from the horses. But family is my number one priority so it has to be this way. But if it continues, it means my mind wont' be thinking sanctuary work and it'll be focused on other stuff. But that also means that I need to make my chores as minimal as possible this winter if we need to make a quick run somewhere. It's the unknowns that boggle my mind and make it hard to plan, since I'm a planner.


But just having the auto water would make life easier and much less stressful at times, especially for the winter months as the farmers almanac is calling for more cold and snow this winter. But that's typical of South Dakota but it's 2020 and the Black Hills saw snow yesterday. In all the years we used to go to the Black Hills for Labor Day (and even after that), there has NEVER been snow this time of year. But it IS 2020 and I want to be prepared for anything. And that means we NEED to get an auto water purchased, the lines buried, and everything installed before the snow starts to fly here.


Anyone want to help in any fashion? We need funds to purchase the auto water which is $500 (at least the last time we bought one). I have no idea how much it'll cost to bury the lines but we can rent a mini excavator for a couple hundred for the weekend. But the plumbing will have to be hired out. It'll all cost money but will be 1000% better than me lugging buckets and hoses all winter!

Fall Arriving

By next Tuesday, we will be dealing with fall. Currently, we are enjoying beautiful weather albeit a little windy (but that's to be expected). It's beautiful with sun and temps that aren't searing. It makes life so much easier on the animals.


Come Tuesday, we are dealing with the potential for not even getting to 60 degrees and the rest of the week will be in the 60s. While it means I can hide in hoodies and fat pants again, it does mean that the horses will need more to maintain their weight.


The pastures are all but done. I am trying to keep them at the bottom portion of the pasture to save the two top portions that may be able to come back next year. Fingers crossed that it can survive this lack of rain. With one rain shower last week, we are close to a month without rain.


We don't have our hay lined up yet but I'm assured that we will get it. I won't even consider the "If not" idea. We need to fundraise for our hay but I'm out of ideas for what we can do. In person fundraising is out of the question and my online ideas are either the same as everyone else or boring. I know everyone is tapped out so I hate to ask for funds.


At this point, we've been asked to take in 20 horses since the beginning of the year. It's far less than last year thank goodness. And I'm sure it's a far cry from other rescues/sanctuaries that get inundated. But for each no, I am heartbroken. These horses need a soft place to land and I can't say yes without jeopardizing our herd. It's been a year since we said yes to the herd of four. We are down to only Diavlo (although Pepper went to a new home and is enjoying a new career). We will continue on as we have but worry for all those that don't have a voice.


This weekend is Labor Day weekend so you will most likely not see me online or posting much. I hope to return on Tuesday with some fun ideas. It's been something I've been mulling over and can hopefully bring some cheer to others.


The horses and I wish you a safe and happy Labor Day weekend. Enjoy the beautiful weather and sunshine!

Fences and Cockleburs

Last night after the kids went to bed, I headed out to do chores. I'm not fond of doing chores in the dark but I was able to sneak out right as the sun set. Sometimes being outside as the world falls asleep, helps put life back into perspective. Or maybe that was trying to fix fence in the waning daylight. By the time I was done fixing the fence line the horses had pushed through, it was dark and I was maneuvering the pasture with the light of the "corn" moon.


Luckily the horses hadn't destroyed the fence like I'd assumed. They somehow managed to knock over the corral panels we had set up. I swear they have a dislike for having a fence in that section. If we can ever get a fence company to get out here and fence the perimeter, I'll start tackling dividing the pastures so that it's not an ongoing battle with the horses.


Our pastures are pretty much done but I want to keep them off a portion of the pasture so that there's a fighting chance of the pasture coming back. I'm starting to worry that there will be no pasture and we'll be forced to reseed and that means feeding hay all of next summer which we don't have the funds for. As it is, we need to do some serious fundraising for hay this year. I don't know how we will do fundraising this year as everything we do needs to be online and our online presence is not as grandiose as I'd love.


Maybe my heart just isn't into pushing our cause online or getting our name out there online or in person. But that is a problem if we want to get our name out there to showcase our seniors and to show that seniors are worth their weight in gold.


I'm hoping tonight I can get out to the pasture and hopefully clear my head. It's too full of too many thoughts to really be of any use to anyone these days.


The one productive activity yesterday was roaching Tommy and Skippy. They both got into cockleburs. And if anyone says that it's mean for me to roach them and that it's cruel, it is more cruel to leave them with a matted mane and forelock than it is to roach them. If you want to have a long mane and forelock, I welcome your help in spraying in the spring, cutting down the burdock as they grow, and coming out every day to pull cockleburs out of manes every evening. Right now I'm struggling to get everything done before collapsing in bed every night more mentally drained than physically.


Here's to hoping tonight's chores will go easier and will be cocklebur and fence fee.

Drastic Weather

We haven't had drastic weather. At least not like the derecho or hurricanes that recently hit. Almost all of August was hot, at least for South Dakota. We were dealing with 90 degree weather for a majority of the time. Even last week was rough in the upper 80s. We finally had a stretch of nice weather.


But when I look at the 10 day forecast, I can hardly believe my eyes. Tomorrow is supposed to be 87 for a high and then next Wednesday, it's only supposed to be 60 and will be in the 60s for the rest of the week.


As much as I like the cooler weather (so I can wear hoodies and hide my fat), it's a hard shift to go from upper 80s and lower 90s to 60s. I always worry with major temperature shifts that the horses will be able to handle it. Such drastic weather makes them prone to colic.


The flies have gotten even meaner than they were in June. They are relentless on the horses. Luckily I bought fly boots but they don't seem to bother the horses legs. The flies this time of year go directly for the horses' faces. I lost a few masks in the pasture and cant' find them. I've walked that pasture and still nothing comes up. I was hoping for a fly mask sale but I haven't been in any stores and I get overwhelmed with the online sales. There's only one brand that really seems to work and even the big herd has taken to pulling their masks off.


We will be keeping a very close eye on everyone as the weather shifts. I'm happy for the cooler weather. With the cooler weather, hopefully the flies won't be so vicious and the horses can actually relax instead of stand in the shade to try and keep cool. Oh what I would give to have a 20 stall barn, with fans and misters to keep everyone cool in the summer (and a few stable hands to do all the heavy lifting). I can always dream right?

Hello September

As the memes say, it may be September but I'm still processing March. Ok so the memes are way funnier but you get my point. The days are getting shorter and even though the kids are back to school, it's a struggle to get chores done in the daylight. I struggled to get chores done in the daylight all summer but that was because of our crazy schedule. Fingers crossed that September will be an easy month. As it is, with everyone going back to school and daycare, we all caught head/chest colds. So of course everyone is on high alert for covid. I hope this won't be the new norm for long. But it IS the season for vet bills. Two Mondays ago, we took Jim, Rain, and Dude to the vet for floats. Jim needed his teeth done and had a tooth pulled. Lets hope the weight will start going back on. He's much thinner than I want him to be at this point going into fall. Dude also needed a float. Luckily Rain didn't really need one but we did a quick hand float to make sure everything is on the up and up. He had problems in the past and had wavy teeth and I wanted to make sure that that issue wasn't still happening. I'd wanted to take Zeke but there was no room. But I might have a chance to take Zeke in when I take Chaos in. So Chaos has been off and on lame much to my disappointed. I'd hung the moon on him with all my hopes and aspirations but with there being something wrong (and sadly the more I think about it), he's had this issue for years. But we are going to take him in and see what's going on. I have to call this week and see when we can get in. It's a bit easier now to make appointments now that the kids are in school and I don't have to jump through so many hoops to make sure everyone is where they need to be. We had the farrier visit yesterday and were able to get a number of horses trimmed. I had a few more but I was played out. King's feet are still not the greatest so we are keeping a close eye on him. His feet have been bothering him all summer. Dude's hips are bothering him as well. We don't normally grain horses when they are out to pasture 24x7 but we will return to graining Dude so we can start him back on Buteless to help ease the pain. We will be keeping a constant close eye on him. It won't be his weight or anything else that gets him. It'll be those damn hips that have been a curse for so many years. We also trimmed up Jim, Zeke, and Chaos. We'll need to relook at everyone in October but we'll need to do Lightening, Diavlo, and the ponies at that time. I'd pulled Maverick and Lightening out so that we could tackle their feet but Maverick was too naughty and that got Lightening all riled up so we skipped those two. My biggest goal with farrier day is to keep everyone safe. I'm not interested in getting anyone hurt. Safety is my number one concern in all that we do at the Sanctuary. So we tabled working on them and hopefully even with the days getting shorter, I can maybe start working Lightening and Maverick so that when farrier day rolls around again in October, we can actually work on them. My lack of time is such a frustration. The roosters are also doing well. They have adjusted their crowing to the daylight and the one seems to crow before the sun is up. They like to hang out by the house. We also have a flock of wild turkeys that have taken up residence. Luckily the horses are no longer spooked by them. 10+ years ago we had a flock of turkeys wander through and it put Maverick into a tizzy. Now everyone is used to them. They perch up in the old tree I loved so much but which died last year. We need to figure out how to get that tree down before it takes out a fence. Not much has happened in August Sanctuary wise. Life has been crazy bouncing from one birthday celebration to the next making sure my kids are happy. We also had our annual trip to the Black Hills that we've been going on for 35+ years and NO ONE is allowed to touch that trip. And yes, it was during the Motorcycle Rally but we avoided it like the plague it was (don't get me wrong, I'm all for it but not this year). We are continuing to deal with family health problems so that's an added stress that weighs heavily on my mind every second of the day. We also had camping and school starting so it was a crazy month. August is always a hard month for me with all the activities and then summer activities cause a lot of burnout. I'd really like to start focusing on the Sanctuary but time doesn't permit. We are now on the first day of September so I'll be in a panic. Now it's time to focus on winter preparations. I'm going to do my best to post more on social media in September. It doesn't mean I'm not super busy and feeling overwhelmed but I want to keep everyone in the loop a bit more. Now that we are going back to a semblance of normal schedule (At least with the kids going to school and daycare), I can maybe ramble a bit more. I'm sure there will be many more posts voicing my worries and stresses and sadly you'll get the brunt of those. If there's something you want to see, please let me know and I'll do my best. Right now it's about keeping my head above water. Hello September! Please be kind.

Vet Appointment

We had a vet appointment yesterday morning. Jim had been losing weight and I noticed he was dropping everything he was eating (grass wise). So we loaded him (along with Rain and Dude) to the vet yesterday morning. I'd wanted to take Zeke too but the trailer only had spots for three. In the past Rain had wavy teeth so I wanted to double check to make sure they weren't bad. Zeke is fat but it's been awhile since he's had his teeth floated. I'd love to take everyone in and do floats on everyone (or at least checks). But it's not in the cards. I also wanted to take Dude in to make sure his teeth weren't too sharp. Of course, Dude being Dude, he fought the vet because it wasn't his idea. After sedation the vet went ahead and floated him too as his bottom teeth were sharp. The vet took a long time working on Jim to make sure his sharp edges were smooth. He pulled a tooth as well so hopefully with all the dental work done, we can start packing the pounds onto him. I'm not ready to let him go. I haven't prepared myself. It's been almost 11 years with him. All of the horses at the Sanctuary (not including Diavlo) have now been with us for years. The ones that remain are the ones we'd said yes to before we'd focused on seniors (or had originally been personal horses where we'd bought them but realized that they had physical limitations but didn't want to send them down the road to have someone else deal with them). I'm hoping we can keep Jim going for a few more years. He's definitely been enjoying retirement. He's somewhere between 30-32 (I always go on the high side for age). I know we don't have too much more time with him but I'll do my best to keep him happy for as long as his quality of life is good.

Checking In

We'e been MIA from social media. August gets to be such a busy month that we've decided to hang up most social media and events in August. It's pretty much the only way to save my mind from total overload. We have two birthdays in August (and because they are my kids, they have high expectations for their birthday), an annual trip to the Black Hills (which I've been doing for 35+ years and I will NOT break that tradition until our kids have school activities that requires us to), camping (to celebrate a birthday which was supposed to be at the Prairie Village Threshing Jamboree that got cancelled this year but normally we are there), and prepparing for school (toss in trying to plan school in a pandemic) and now my mind is blown. There doesn't leave any room for anything extra even though I'd desperately love to get something going. I have so many ideas and yet there's limited time. The days are now getting shorter and I'm still so far behind. Now that my brain is half way in gear (rather than paused due to baby brain or sleep deprevation due to babies), I'm trying to tackle the bigger projects that have been on my list. Maybe I'm being overzealous in thinking we can get them all done before the first snow. I guess some of what needs to be done even after the ground freezes and there's snow on the ground (might make for softer landing when I fall off a roof). I expect we will be MIA for the rest of the month. There's too much that needs to get done. Hopefully when September rolls around, I can report on all the progress we've made. Hopefully I can post some pictures on FB.

Feeling Like Fall

The last couple of days it's felt like fall. The monarchs are gathering, the geese are flying, and there's a nip in the air. The weatherman is saying we'll go back to super hot weather in a day or two. In fact this weekend we are supposed to be in the 90s again. It's a hard shift to go from upper 80s to low 70s to 90s but that's South Dakota in the summer time.


The nip in the air though has me scurrying around like crazy trying to get things done. We never know what winter will bring us or when winter will arrive but this year has been so crazy that I need to be ready for anything.


I'm going to have to start pushing others to make phone calls and to get a few things done around here. I have a few projects I want done and I don't have the connections to get them lined up or done so that means pushing others. I'm not good at pushing others.


Right now, there's a lot of fixing and repairing things that have deteriorated over the past eight years. Everything sort of went on hold when we started having kids so now that we are done having kids and they are getting a little older (enough where I don't have to hang on to them at all hours of the day and night), I'm trying to get a few projects done that have needed to get done all along (but I didn't have the energy or money to do them. Well, I still don't have the money but that's a different story).


While it's not specifically Sanctuary related, I am painting our house. I would have much preferred hiring someone but that wasn't in the cards. I guess no one wants to paint an old farm house so it's up to me. Luckily we have a small house so hopefully I can do it. I started last fall and got one side done but now I'm left with getting the other sides done. As with the barn, I started on our house this year with the bottom because I KNEW I could get that part done while watching kids. The second story is a different beast. Weekends are meant to be with kids and doing adventures with them so juggling fun activities with getting stuff done is a bit tricky. I'm sure to be in a panic soon. At least this year I'm working from home so the tight grip on my chest with all the worry of getting everything done isn't there (yet).


We don't have any more cleanup days scheduled and actually August is off limits for doing pretty much anything other than kids stuff what with birthdays and school starting (it's even worse in a pandemic). But I'm going to keep plugging along. This past weekend I added a temporary ally way to the bottom pasture and opened the bottom up for the horses to graze as the other parts of the pasture were done. It's a new method and the horses haven't quite figured it out (or don't like it). Hopefully the bottom pasture will hold for another month and then in September, I can open the entire pasture up and they can graze what's left over. I'd hoped to implement what I'd learned during my pasture management class but could only do a little and even then I STILL did a few things wrong. Time and energy are my worst enemy at this point (well, and lack of funds but that's a given). I need and want to go out with a clippers and cut down the thistles that I didn't get a chance to spray, along with the burdock in the other pasture so that I have a fighting chance of not dealing with cockleburs this fall. We'll see if I get a chance to get any of that done.


I also had helpers last week when it was hot to wash a few blankets. Of course the novelty wore off quickly (more so because I had an almost 5 and almost 2 year old helping me and they have no staying power). But I at least got three blankets done and two waterproofed. But I still have more to go. The weatherman is talking hot temps again so I'll be dragging out more blankets to get them washed and waterproofed. I still need to get them repaired but I can do that at night too (if I still have any energy.) I can't remember how hard the horses were on the blankets. Sadly, the blankets sort of ended up wherever they were taken off (inside buildings) so I never really remembered what kind of condition they were in. It's not the method I like or want to use with the blankets but its' the reality I live in right now.


We are going to take a pause in posting much on social media (more so than lately). So if you happen to not see us, it's that we are super busy doing kids stuff, prepping for school, and getting stuff done around the place and by the time I can sit down, I'm too exhausted to post pictures or to even think.


Fingers crossed that this cold snap is a friendly reminder but that winter holds off and gives me a couple of months to get things done before the first snow flakes start flying.

Tears

I was doing some cleaning today. The house like everything else is a disaster. It's odd how when I clean I can find stuff from years ago that we no longer need. As Mike said, it's easy to tell when major events happened because we'll have weird stuff from that time of year because we just couldn't handle dealing with it at the time.


I'd stopped developing pictures years ago and have them all saved in random places. But the final few rolls of film (pre digital camera), I came across today. It was random from a few different trips and they made me both happy and sad looking through them.


Then I saw it. A picture I don't even remember taking but I will hold it near and dear to my heart. The minute I saw that picture I burst into tears. Even thinking about that picture make me cry. It must be the stress to be so overly sensitive. It was a picture of the four original horses we had when I was a teenager. More specifically it was a picture of my first two beloved horses. My dream horse and my riding horse, both hold a special place in my heart but oddly it was my riding horse that caused me to cry.


Oh how I miss him. It's been more than ten years and yet seeing his picture brought back all the fun memories of him. I don't have many pictures of him because he was here pre digital so for some reason I don't have many. It breaks my heart to know I don't have as many as some of the others. I didn't remember his expression to be so quirky but I miss it. Maybe because I saw him for his personality and not for just his looks. A little red Arabian gelding with an unknown history. Any time I rode him, it was like we were riding as fast as we could away from the gates of hell with fire licking at his heels. That boy could fly. I miss him and I miss my confidence in riding and the exuberance of being young (and not worrying about falling off and getting hurt). Gone are those days (along with the slim figure) but I remember riding him like it was yesterday.


Riding Zeke was like riding Ace. Now that Zeke is retired I miss riding and the challenges of riding an arabian. Lightening is ok but doesn't have that same zest (or worldly experience).


In my cleaning, I've also discovered bags of hair from horses that have since left us. I never take a large chunk, just enough as a keepsake. I should take more so I can send them in to make keepsakes for each one. It's hard to say goodbye but coming across these little bits of past horses sometimes is tougher than I thought. I know what we do is good for the horse and their overall health and safety but sometimes its' just plain hard to let go.


I may frame that picture. It's one of the last ones that I know I have developed. Maybe I'll pause in cleaning and take a break from finding these little bits of history of the Sanctuary. I'm no sure my heart can take much more. Unexpected sad tears are a bit hard to take some days.