Good Neighbor

Thank goodness for good neighbors. Our neighbor told us we could use his pasture so off we went this morning to let the horses play. Some people may say that horses don't remember. I've seen multiple times just this year that horses do remember. We took Brego over to the neighbors (who just happened to be his previous owner). Brego kept checking the place out. I'm sure he was recalling his first few years. Sort of fun to watch his expressions.

I'll leave you with pictures of the horses we took over.

Brego up front, Dude on the right and Ivan on the left

Dude

Rain and Sam

Brego - he's checking something out.

Sam, Rain, Dude, and Ivan

Ivan, Brego, and Dude's butt

Sam and Ivan

Bo, Zeke, Brego, Sam, Ivan, Dude, and Rain

Bo, Zeke, Sam, Brego, Ivan, Dude, and Rain

Zeke, Sam, Ivan, and Brego

July 15th Auction Results

I'm finally getting a chance to list the horses that were at the July 15th Mitchell Horse Sale. Stupid blogger won't let me format it nice so it's all in one heap. The information is listed as: Hip #, Price, Buyer, and Description.

The first part of the sale was the cataloged/non-cataloged horses. I think they were done running these horses through in just over an hour.


Riding Horses
2 $325 Trader Travis Tri paint gelding
3 $350/NS 2005 tri paint gelding
4 $225 813 4yr old reg brown mare
5 $300 803 Blk green broke gelding
6 $950 818 6yr old red roan grade gelding
7 $1000/NS 2004 reg brown mare broke but didn’t move around in ring
8 $225 Trader Travis 11yr old appy gelding
9 $175 Trader Travis 7yr old paint mule gelding broke
10 $1700 827 2005 reg buckskin gelding
11 NS/$1075. Wanted $1900. 1998 reg bay mare
13 $210 818 10yr old brown mare. Led in said to have soft front feet
15 $1200 820 2003 reg brown gelding
17 $700 801 17yr old reg buckskin mare *nice
18 $275 336 1998 reg chestnut broodmare
19 $375 803 Black gelding
?? $210 803 14yr old reg little black paint gelding
20 $400 Trader Travis 2007 reg palomino gelding
21 $200 831 2006 reg bay mare *calm
22 $1650 807 16yr old red buckskin gelding
23 $85 833 18month old buckskin gelding. Halterbroke
24 $200 843 5yr old paint mare
25 $300? ?? 16-20yr old mare. Broke
26 $460 839 12-13yr old palomino gelding. Broke


Loose Horses
7877 $200 336 chestnut gelding
7878 $210 819 sorrel gelding
7879 $225 831 sorrel gelding
7881 $210 843 sorrel mare
7873 $235 831 reg bay roan mare
7872 $250 336 exposed reg bay mare
7875 $20 ?? bay weanling with bad feet
7876 $50 814 red roan weanling colt
7874 $20 832 bay gelding yearling?
7855 $100 ?? appy stud
78?? $5 ?? palomino pony filly weanling (private buyer)
7852 $100 819 mare
7863 free 844 shetland baby (private buyer)
7853 $100 831 appy mare
7934 $200 843 cremello mare w/ brand
7933 $300 814 gray gelding broke to drive from NE. had too tighter halter on **gorgeous
$30 ?? mini sorrel mare w/ paint mini baby (private buyer)
$30 ?? mini sorrel mare w/paint mini baby (private buyer)
$30 ?? bred silver mini mare (private buyer)
7858 $20 832 sorrel stud
78?? $20 843 sorrel stud
7856 $20 845 sorrel mare
7862 $60 819 sorrel mare
7854 $60 845 2003 reg appy stud
7851 $30 831 palomino mare
7857 $30 831 black mare
No # $10 843 appy filly
7859 $10 846 sorrel baby
7868 $600 839 1996 reg black gelding **my pick of the night. Absolutely gorgeous
7869 $700 839 12yr old bay gelding
7882 $75 819 reg 2yr old buckskin filly
7885 $80 833 reg 2yr old rose gray filly
?? $60 838 reg 2yr old sorrel filly
7890 $10 843 2yr old cremello gelding/stud? Thin
7886 $135 837 reg 2yr buckskin filly
7888 $40 819 reg 2yr sorrel filly
7883 $135 837 reg 2yr buckskin filly
?? $50 831 reg 2yr buckskin filly
?? $50 831 grade 2yr bay filly
7893 $?? ?? buckskin mare lame on right rear
7894 $110 843 sorrel mare with big knees
7892 $335 845 buckskin gelding *beauty
7924 $175 336 reg 1998 black paint broodmare (same owner for 9 horses)
7931 $250 336 2005 reg black and white mare
7928 $250 336 2005 reg sorrel paint mare
7927 $250 336 2001 reg bay paint mare
7925 $160 819 2005 reg tri paint mare
7930 $160 831 reg tri paint mare
7929 $235 842 reg 1999 black paint mare broke to ride
7932 $175 336 reg 1994 sorrel paint mare
7926 $135 819 reg 1998 sorrel paint (hildalgo)
7938 $250 831 8yr black/brown mare broke
7133 $30 ?? mini mule jenny
7131 $20 832 appy gelding
?? free Dennis paint with bad feet
7133 $5 819 sorrel gelding
7139 $30 845 chestnut mare
7134 $30 814 red roan filly
7130 free ?? black filly * pretty went to private buyer
7174 $110 843 big bay gelding
7132 $185 819 black and white paint mare
?? No Value sorrel paint gelding
?? No Value sorrel paint gelding
?? No Value chestnut stud
7891 $85 819 black paint mare
7141 No Value sorrel gelding
7867 $110 840 black and white stud
7870 $10 843 bay w/ hernia


Now you may understand why I think we need to fundraise to pull horses from auctions. I have a number of horses that came from auctions that are diamonds in the rough. Most of the loose horses went to killbuyers. Let's stop this madness. How are ways we can save horses from these terrible auctions?

Quality not Quantity

My heart hurts too much knowing what tomorrow will bring. Instead, I'll leave you with pictures of the herd.

Sanctuary/Rescue isn't always about the length of time with them but the quality. It's about giving each horse the diginity they deserve.

Chaos - isn't he a hunk?

Prince

Thor

Ivan

Maverick

Maverick

Not sure who's on the far left, Rain, and King

Chaos

Ivan, King, Brego, and Chaos

King

One + One = TwentyFour

Two weekends ago, plans changed because of the weather. Never fear we always stay busy. On that Saturday we headed to Alvord, Iowa to pick up this sweet girl.
Meet Flower. She is a 24 year old Appaloosa mare who is now enjoying the life of luxury that she so deserves. Here's what I learned from her previous owner.

Flower was a broodmare until she turned 15 years old. Someone trained her really well at that point. Not sure how many homes she's had in her 24 years. Her previous owners had her for a year and used her in their youth program. But Flower wasn't doing well in the larger herd and needed a place to retire. So that's when we stepped in to offer a retirement home for this sweet Flower.

And what a doll she is. She was here 24 hours and it felt like she'd been here for years. She's thin so we are headed to the vet on Friday to get her teeth floated. I want this old girl fat before winter sets in. She's pretty adimate about her grain and tells me what for if I'm not on "her schedule". She's a pretty laid back lady. She's in with Queen, Mayhem, and Sahara. It's really very funny to watch these girls interact. I'll have to sneak some pictures this evening.

Flower steals Queen's grain right from under her nose. It's hilarious. I have to stand watch to make sure Queen gets her alloted share.

I look forward to spending time with Flower and watching her enjoy retirement.





This boy arrived the day after Flower. Meet Prince. I've dubbed him Prince Charming. He is a five year old buckskin paint and the pictures do not do him justice. He had an accident last fall which left him blind in his left eye. This spring he went blind in the other eye. I don't believe he is totally blnd as he doesn't bump into things like the other two blind horses.

He's already very attached to Babe. In fact, he's a little naughty and will steal the hay right from Babe's mouth. It's fun to watch those two. I believe Prince will pair up with another horse quickly but he prefers mares of geldings. Thor isn't protective of anyone these days.


I know he can see a little bit but not sure to what extent he can actually see. He doesn't run in to me, any horses, or the fence. I'm guessing he can see some shadows. At the age of five, I'm curious to see how his sight will progress.

Prince will only be staying with us until October. He will be headed to Gentle Spirits Horse Rescue and Sanctuary where they can evaluate him for riding. I really believe with the right owner, Prince would be an amazing riding horse. He's so mellow, being blind or partially blind hasnt' freaked him out like Thor. Prince takes everything in stride. I'm really impressed.

I dont' think he's completely blind because he doesn't react like Babe or Thor did when they went completely blind. Even with seeing just shadows, when Babe lost all sight, she spent a month or so being even more cautious and paniced a few times. Same goes with Thor. Prince doesn't panic over everything so I know he can see even if it's just slightly.

I am hoping that Prince will be able to find his right person so that he can go far in life. He is so mellow and impresses me every day. When the farmer brought over alfalfa bales and the tractor was running, Prince just stood there by the water trough (right next to the tractor) listening to everything going on. Have I mentioned how impressed I am with this amazing horse. I truley think that Prince could be one outstanding riding horse with the right person. And to top it off, he's drop dead gorgeous. The pictures don't do him justice. It's been so dang hot that everyone is always so sweaty. It's hard to get good glamor shots when it's so dang hot out.

So now you've met the two newest members of Borderlands. We may only have them for a short time but both have made a huge impression on me. Both so very lovely and so relaxed in their new surroundings. You would think they've been at Borderlands for years instead of a week and a half.

I'll try to get better pictures tonight if I can find the time.

Tushies of Borderlands

Seems this is my typical view these days. Can you guess who these two butts belong to?

grrr....stupid blogger won't let me post comments....

You're close Darla... Rain on the left. Chaos on the right.

Losing Two Greats

This world is losing two great horses this week, one of which is our very own Dick the Percheron. We've only had Dick for a few short months (4 1/2 months) but it seems his body is giving out. I wish that I could do more but it's cruel to let him continue. He can no longer process food. There are wads of grass in the pasture and the grain he eats doesn't process correctly.

I guess this is the price we pay to run a sanctuary. It's a price we pay to watch our beloved horses grow old. But I wouldn't trade it for anything. I would rather I go through a thousand heart breaks than to know that a beloved horse left this world in a much crueler fashion.

We have an appointment this Friday for Dick. I may not post much as it's hard for me to form words when there's a lump in my throat in tears in my eyes. It doesn't take much for a horse to find his/her way into my heart, be it 4 days, 4 1/2 months, or 20 years. The loss is always great.

With the impending loss of Dick, I've been tossing around an idea. I'm going to talk with my vet on Friday (as long as I can keep my composure) to see what they have to say. If/when I find out any information, I'll share. Hopefully my idea can come to fruitation.

Too Tired

Too tired to type. Enjoy some pics from tonight. Tomorrow I'll show you more pics.

Ivan

Ivan

Maverick, Jim, and Bo

Dude front and center, Maverick to the right, and Jim and Bo on the left

Maverick

Maverick

Maverick, Dude, and Sam

Bo

Brego

Jinx

Every time I label a post "Quiet" or "not much happening" I jinx myself. I'm waiting for the vet office to open so I can call and verify we need to take Thor in.

Apparently Thor cut his head on a fence post. I have all the other fence posts capped but for some reason spaced these. Called last night and they said to use iodine, pack with nitrofurizone, and then put a fly mask to keep the flies out. We are to call in the morning. Uugh. I hate waiting.

Keep your fingers crossed that it's more superficial than I really think it is. Poor Thor.

Quiet Summer Day

If I could ever find batteries, I would be able to show you our exciting news. Pictures speak louder than words in this case. Until then, I’ll keep you in suspense.

Because of the intense heat, I haven’t really done anything except fill water tanks and try to hide in the house. We did make a run last night. I found some water totes on Craigs List that were a good deal so we hopped into the non-air conditioned old Ford and puttered on down to pick them up. Mike wants to use them while we are on our yearly (and much needed) vacation to the Black Hills. He’s afraid that if we have weather like we’ve been experiencing, that the tanks will run dry before we can get home and neither of us want to ask someone else to lug hoses to tanks and sit there watching tanks slowly fill. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that the weather will be cooler and we won’t have to worry about any of it. Power of Positive Thinking!

Queen has really perked up in the last few days. I let the fillies out on the road pasture and put Queen in with. Queen loves being surrounded by these little girls. It’s so nice to watch her and see the delight. I feel bad that I had to keep her away from the fillies for so long.

We are getting a break from the oppressive heat today. Thank you Mother Nature. I always freak out in the winter time about the weather but I don’t seem to as much in the summer (unless it’s a storm). I don’t want to complain too loudly about the heat because in six months I’ll for sure be complaining about the bitter cold. I guess that’s what makes us hardy (or crazy). I don’t know how long we’ll have this break. I caught word on the radio that the heat will return tomorrow and bring storms.

I’m hoping next weekend will be cooler so we can return to working on the open front/leanto/call it what you want building. We started working on it months ago and the project stalled out with everything else going on. I can’t believe that it’s already mid-July and I’m nowhere near getting everything accomplished that I thought I would get done.

The herd has been hanging out in the leanto or the shade this past week. I haven’t spent much time with the horses to tell you any stories. Hopefully tonight I’ll be able to tell you at least one of my exciting bits of news or possibly yet another adventure.

If not me, who? If not now, when?

When courage is needed, ask yourself, “If not me, who? If not now, when?”

I was reading a blog post about Animal Angels and their investigation, someone put the above in their comment. I thought it rather fitting because that's the same thought I have every time I attend an auction.

Granted I can't always bring someone home, as was the case this past Friday. I felt miserable for not standing up to do the right thing but my hands are tied because of our numbers. Granted, I could adopt out some of the younger horses but will people be mad when I insist that my little fillies NEVER be bred? I guess that's why I'm a sanctuary and not a rescue, although if I go in knowing that a horse I pull from auction will be adopted instead of a permanent resident, I could possibly get that thought through my thick skull and be willing to let them go. But I digress.

I go to these auctions to see what types of horses are there. Because someone needs to be there. Someone needs to remember them. As was the case with Bo and his herd, I was there and remembered some of the horses and could easily identify them because of their beautiful markings (and I have a knack for remembering certain horses). Even if their fate is lost, someone needs to remember them for the beautiful animals that they are.

And if I don't step up and take the few that I do, who will? If I hadn't pulled Bo, Savanna, or Sahara? Who would have? I think possibly Savanna would have gone to a home but in the end she would have ended up back at an auction after gaining weight. Who wants a standoffish mare who cribs like it's going out of style? Who wants an emaciated horse that will take months to return to proper weight? Who wants to take in the old horses and watch them grow old? If I don't, who will?

If I don't put my neck out there and take a leap of faith on these horses, when will I ever do it? Now is the time. If you wait for the best moment, the right moment, when everything is right and the stars are aligned, it'll never happen. It's that same saying -- You live your life while planning your life -- or something along those lines. I challenge everyone to Pay It Forward just once and see how it goes. Granted the return might not be as satisfying at first, but later it will.

Do you have the courage? Ask yourself, “If not me, who? If not now, when?”

Heat Wave

The pictures are hard to read but it shows Excessive Heat in pink. That's right, the entire area is in a warning. And did you notice, not even 8:00am and it's already into the 80s. No wonder I was dripping wet after doing chores this morning. Even at 5:30am it was stinking hot.

The next few days don't look like we'll get a break. I'm a little worried for the horses but as long as they have shade and water, they should be ok.

These temps have burned off what little patience I had and melted my temper. Hopefully I can get cooled off.

I tried to give Babe a bath last night so we could shave her. Ya, that didn't go so well. Gave her a bath at 6:30pm and at 10:30pm I was still sopping wet. Apparently, when the humidity is higher than the temperature, nothing dries. I sort of knew that but totally spaced it. We didn't tackle shaving Babe until 8 or 9pm. We didn't get far before the mosquitoes came out. So poor Babe is sporting a bald spot on her side. We got some of the longer hair but there's a big ugly spot where Mike went to town shaving (it was the only dry spot on Babe by that time). Hopefully tonight we can continue shaving her. For Babe's sake, we'll refrain from taking any body shots of her.

Liar, Liar Pants on Fire

Why can people not tell the simple truth? It's not a hard concept. In fact, it's one of the first things we learn as a child. Do not lie. Tell the truth.

Apparently when people get older, they forget that little lesson. And lying becomes an epidemic when it comes to hores. I learned something new this weekend about one of our horses. I don't always get the history of a horse. In fact, I only get to hear what the last owner did with the horse and that's it if that.

So it happened to be I was talking with someone this weekend and we were talking Thoroughbreds. We joked that we have the slowest Thoroughbred I've ever met. He's not registered, never raced, and I don't have any history. We're talking about Ivan.

We picked up Ivan last year the first of August. We brought him home for $100. I was worried that KB would snatch him up at that price. We were told someone else was interested and they'd been out a half dozen times but never with cash in hand or a trailer in tow. So we brought Ivan home. The only things were were told is that he has cellulitus in his man part, they rode him a couple times, and that the previous owner wasn't caring for him and that she lived in Iowa.

Liar, liar pants on fire. The only parts they had right was the Iowa part and that he had cellulitis (who knows if they actually rode him).

The person we were talking to was Ivan's previous owner.

They named him Ivan. They took him in from a gal who had lost her job and needed to place Ivan. Ivan already had the cellulitis when they took him in. But they worked with him to try and get the swelling down. The gal they got Ivan from had taken him in from someone else who had starved him. It's my theory that the person who starved him didn't bother to take him in and get his man part looked at and that's why he'll have the lasting cellulitis. I'm not sure how long the gal had him or how long the previous owner had Ivan but they gave him away in good faith. I'm not sure if there was a contract or what. I wasn't privy to that information. She gave this horse to someone who said they would keep Ivan.

Liar, liar pants on fire.

Guess what, they didn't. I've been burned with Ivan's lying owner (the person we got Ivan from). They took Ivan to the vet in February to see about the cellulitis but didn't bother to float his teeth. Why would you be concerned about one and not the other? Resell, baby, resell. Who cares about the teeth, people can't see that in a picture. I tried sharing my experience of bringing Ivan home with someone and was put between a rock and a hardspot. I will not work with the people involved (neither the person we got Ivan from nor the person who put me in that bad situation). You know why, because I was taught that if you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all. And I WON'T LIE.

Who knows how many homes Ivan had. I've already counted:

1. People who starved him.
2. Gal who brought him back to health.
3. The people we talked to this weekend.
4. Liar, liar pants on fire owners.
5. Borderlands Horse Sanctuary

And to think, he's already had five homes in nine years and that's not to mention the people who bred him, raised him, trained him, etc. I'm guessing he's had a dozen homes in his nine years before he came to Borderlands. Luckily he's landed in retirement. The funds aren't there to send him to a trainer this year but next year he'll go to a trainers and start from scratch now that I know his history.

Happenings Over the Past Four Days

So much going on and so much to tell you but pictures speak more than words. The problem is, the darn camera batteries are dead…again. So much has happened over the past three days. Ok, for some it might not be a lot but for me (who doesn’t do well with change), lots has happened. I’ll leave you in suspense on a few happenings until I can hunt down more batteries.

Thursday Mike took the truck and picked up six round bales of hay. I’m hoping the hay will last until early fall but I doubt it. Having never fed round bales before (up until this summer), I don’t really know how fast the horses will run through their feed. Feeding round bales is definitely an art-form.

Friday was the terrible horse auction. I’ve been to some bad sales but this was terrible. The prices were ridiculous. I was afraid of what it would be like what with it being an evening sale and high temps. I wasn’t wrong in my thoughts. Most of the crowd was gone by 8pm and that left one or two to buy all of the loose horses. My hands were tied. I cried the entire way home.

Saturday we drove to Alvord, Iowa. I’d hoped to get there before the heat really set in. For some odd reason it was cooler in Iowa than it was back at home. We’d step out of the truck and the heat and humidity would knock the wind right out of you. Luckily we were home by 1pm and hid in the house for the rest of the day.

Sunday we had visitors from Ortonville, Minnesota arrive. I didn’t envy them and their two to two and half hour drive but at least their truck was air conditioned. Before the visitors arrived, we scurried out and put an additional strand of wire on the road/CRP pasture. I wanted to pull the two fillies, Sahara and Mayhem off the round bale to save those for the blind horses. I think Queen has been depressed ever since I put her in with Dick and Rabbit. She likes her babies. I wanted to get Queen back into the road/CRP pasture but she’s an escape artist and knew where the weak spot was in the fence. So Mike also fixed the weak spot. There’s still a ton to do with that strand of wire but at least it’ll hold enough to keep Queen in. Now she’s happily enjoying the fillies’ company and I doubt she’ll try to escape now. When we put the fillies in the road/CRP pasture they did lapse around the trees. They didn’t even go into the actual pasture portion until we put Queen in with them. They were just happy to race around the trees chasing each other. I think they were enjoying the change of scenery.

The entire weekend was scorching hot. Ok, not really scorching hot but dripping wet hot. The humidity is making life unbearable. The weatherman is predicting 95 degrees with a 113 heat index. It’s going to be an uncomfortable day for the herd.

I’m worried about Babe. There is shade in her pen but she prefers to hang out in the sun. I believe she has cushings and hasn’t shed out entirely. She was panting standing over the big water tank. She doesn’t like to be hosed down so I took a water bucket and a brush to her. She still wasn’t thrilled with that option either. Tonight I’m running in to buy clippers to shave her. I don’t know why I didn’t think of that before. I’m sure after one use the clippers will be shot. I can’t afford to buy a really good clippers. Anyone have a really good set of clippers I could borrow? Hopefully the noise won’t bother her. I figure if I put her in front of a fan in the shade and talk to her the entire time, hopefully she’ll be ok with it.

I am trying to decide if I should call the vet today and see if I can get an appointment for this Friday. I was hoping that Dick could enjoy at least a little bit of cooler weather before we have to say goodbye. But looking at my schedule, this Friday is the best time. I don’t want to do it but he’s going downhill. He can’t actually eat any of the grass. He leaves big wads lying around. Any grain I put into him comes right back out as diarrhea or doesn’t get processed at all and runs right through him. It’s simply a matter of calling but I hate having to say goodbye. I know I’m being selfish. I also want to ensure that the previous owner knows what we are doing so he can say his goodbyes again.

I’m hoping that the weatherman is wrong and the cool down comes faster than expected. From the last time I saw the weather, which was a few days ago, we are supposed to have this oppressive heat until Wed or Thur. But then we’ll have heat and humidity return for the weekend. I hope the humidity disappears soon. I’m starting to worry about the horses. Oh for a plush barn with misters and fans for the horses to relax in. I can always dream right?

Epic Fail

Tonight's auction was totally discouraging. The entire auction lasted three hours and was done by 9pm. I cried all the way home.

I took down prices and descriptions. I'll post later once I've recovered from such an epic fail auction.

It's a Rough Life

Some days are just so rough.

Stay cool this weekend!

Struggling

I’ve been struggling lately. Both in getting anything accomplished and in finding positive topics to post. The hot temperatures are going to be here soon. This morning when I went to do chores it was already hot. I’m sure for some my “hot” is their normal but I worked up a sweat just haltering and leading the ponies and Savanna do their pastures. Hopefully the sun won’t peak out of the clouds until later today.

Last night we ran to Tractor Supply to buy fencing materials. Ouch! I wish they’d have a Bag Sale or something. I am always looking at ways to pinch pennies but I may have to figure out another way to pinch a few more pennies. Writing that big of a check for fencing materials hurts. Hopefully we can sneak out in the mornings and evenings this weekend to do a bit of fencing before it gets too hot. Fencing normally irritates me and then add heat, I’ll be sure to turn super mare-ish.

Mike is headed out this afternoon to pick up more hay. We found a second hay supplier. I think these round bales will be easier for us to manhandle because they are a bit smaller. I know it sounds silly but I like having backup plans and having two hay supplies reassures me that the Borderland horses will never go hungry.

I’m hoping to get Mayhem and Sahara into a pasture so they can graze instead of eat and demolish a round bale. Queen is missing her little girls. I had hoped that Queen would pick up weight after she had 24x7 access to pasture. So far that hasn’t been the case. I don’t know if the grass is too stemmy or if she’s depressed because Rabbit and Dick aren’t friends with her. I think she misses her girls. She’s definitely not as vocal as she used to be. I need to work quickly to get the fencing done. I want a happy Queen.

I do need to keep a very close eye on Queen. She was not on my radar for going downhill so quickly. Granted she is at least 33 years old so I am not surprised. I don’t even want to consider the idea of losing her just yet. She’s been a solid figure at Borderlands for a number of years and even more so as I watched her out the kitchen window for the first few years we lived at our current location. I will be devastated when she’s gone. I just hadn’t thought of that possibility just yet. Hopefully when the little girls are with her she’ll pick up weight again and be her normal demanding Queen.

Not much else to report. I’ve been so exhausted that I haven’t messed with the horses much. I can definitely tell the little girls have been lacking in their training. I need to start working with Prize and get him halter trained. He’s turning into one big stinker. Bo told me off last night with a shove to the backside. I believe he was telling me that I need to be out with him and the rest of the herd.

I expect with this hot weather, I’ll be outside giving baths making sure everyone stays cool. Anyone up for a marathon horse bath?

Project Sage and the Reunion

I can't say enough good things about Project Sage. This is an amazing horse rescue. Read the story and watch the video. Horses remember.

http://projectsageblog.blogspot.com/2011/07/reunion-of-rosie-and-maggie.html

A Question For You

Here’s my thought and question to you. I’ve followed the Camelot Rescue (where an auction buys horses for slaughter but allows a group of people to fundraise and pull these horses (after the auction) before they are slated for “the truck” to slaughter. The sale takes place Wed night and the horses must have homes by Saturday morning. It’s a fast and furious pace to rescue these horses.

Unfortunately in the Midwest, this method is not allowed. You are forced to buy the horse during the auction. There is no opportunity to buy a horse after the auction. I would like to follow in Project Sage’s footsteps and raise money to pull one or two horses from an auction, quarantine that horse(s) for 30 days, evaluate the horse, and then adopt him/her out (with the help of surrounding rescues). Think it’s possible to accomplish something like that? The money from the adoption fee would go back into the auction rescue fund and another horse would be pulled.

August is the beginning of the “dumping season”. Kids go back to school, people realize that summer is almost over and we’ll be faced with six months of winter and daily chores. I’m already seeing cheap horses and it’s still prime riding season. What’s going to happen when August rolls around and people begin “thinning the herd”?

There are always cheap/No Value horses that run through an auction. But those same horses require medical care and major training. We would only bid against the killbuyer and could possibly bid on horses that fit someone requirements. Keep in mind every horse will have some type of quirk. It’ll be a matter of figuring out that quirk.

A good friend once said that sometimes there’s nothing wrong with a loose horse other than a bad home (or something like that). It’s been a 50/50 shot of getting an outstanding horse. Take for instance Bo and Savanna. Bo is trained to ride (although we are holding off yet on riding him until he’s back to proper weight). He’s a happy go lucky horse who only wants to please. Savanna is an unknown and most likely only been a broodmare. She cribs something fierce but is tolerant of me bumbling around. She’s not happy go lucky and she’s also mare-ish so I’m guessing that’s why I struggle (I’m mare-ish enough, I don’t need another mare rubbing her mare-ish behaviors off on me). But each horse should be given a chance to blossom. I believe that once Savanna is to the proper weight and not having to take care of a baby, she’ll turn into a stunning girl.

We don’t typically adopt horses. Our program focuses on the oldsters who need a retirement home where they can live out the rest of their life (may it be years or months or days). But there’s too many good horses going to slaughter and we just can’t sit back and watch it happen. There’s a little Pixar movie that I watch sometimes called Robots and there’s a line in it that has stuck with me. “See a need, fill a need.” There is a need to pull horses from the loose auctions. The horses’ only fault is a bad home. Let’s try to “fill that need” and place some good horses in good homes.

So, think it’s possible to fundraise to pull one or two horses? This Friday is the Mitchell Horse Sale, too late to fundraise but I’ll go to figure out standard prices so that we can have a better idea of what we would be dealing with as far as initial cost. Anyone want to come with? I expect it’ll be fairly short. What are your thoughts? Am I off my rocker on trying to tackle such a project? I’d like to hear your thoughts. If you have any good ideas for fundraising, I’d love to hear those too. The more information the better!

Fast and Furious Fencing Needed

My brain must be running on empty. There’s been so much going on that I haven’t had much time to post. Our neighbor has graciously allowed us to “mow” his lawn with some of the horses. He is like me in that I’d rather not have to mow when there’s good grass to be eaten. I’ll admit that I’m a little nervous not having the horses right in my sights but it’ll be good to spare the pasture for a couple weeks. If I can get my act together, I can get a couple horses over to the neighbors by this weekend and keep them there until we go on our family vacation (aka my once a year vacation to rejuvenate myself).

There’s only one hitch. His lawn has no fencing. Lucky for us the neighbor has everything to put up temporary fencing. We went over last night and put posts in and tonight we’ll put the actual fence up. I’m hoping that I can get one or two horses over to the neighbor’s by Friday but the temps are doing to dictate exactly how much I actually get done.

I also need to do some fast and furious fencing on the road pasture and the back pasture. I pulled Queen out a month ago so she could actually eat grass. But she’s not best friends with Dick or Rabbit and she is lonely. I need to get the babies (Mayhem and Sahara) in with her. But two strands of barbless wire will not keep those babies in. So I need to do some fancy fencing work ASAP for Queen’s sake. I think I have everything figured out as to who goes where. I did notice that I need to handle Mayhem and Sahara a little bit more this week/weekend. They are getting skittish. Sahara isn’t packing on the pounds as fast as I had hoped. I’m guessing she’s full of worms so we’ll see how she takes a tube of dewormer. It could be interesting.

I need to prepare for the upcoming heat. It’ll be in the mid 90s this weekend and I’m worried for the horses. The heat is just too much for the oldsters. I need to make a fast trip in to Walmart and pick up a bunch of box fans for the barn and leanto. I’m betting everyone will want some type of air blowing on them. I need to keep a close eye on the oldsters and Rain to make sure they are handling the heat. I’m seeing lots of baths in the very near future.

I realized yesterday that I missed Prize’s two month birthday. His baby hair has really bleached out and he’s losing his hair on his face. He’ll be identical to Savanna when he grows up. Savanna is also fading out. Of the black horses, only Chaos has not faded. Everyone else has faded in one area or another. I also realized that yesterday that Bo has been with us for four months. He looks a million times better than the first day he arrived but he still has a long way to go. I figure he’ll be a hard keeper but at least I’m prepared. He’s still slowly gaining weight every day. I can’t wait to see what he looks like next year after a full year of recovery. I just can’t stop thinking about his terrible fate he would have had to face had Borderlands not been at the auction to pull him. Would he have been rejected by the feedlot, would he have had to stand in a feedlot to be fattened only to face a terrible fate, or would they have accepted him as thin as he was? It’s all thoughts I don’t want to even think about. Bo is too amazing of a horse to have ended up with a fate like slaughter. But each horse has too much potential or training to end up being slaughtered. I’m just glad Borderlands could be there. And with the thought of Bo in my mind, I’m going to ask a question in my next post. Possibly another challenge or really just a question to see if this thought is even feasible in this area.

Project Horses Available (on CL)

Anyone interested in some project horses?

http://siouxfalls.craigslist.org/grd/2459175798.html

two great horses for sale - $300 (south of yankton)

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Date: 2011-07-11, 1:28PM CDT
Reply to: sale-h6utw-2459175798@craigslist.org [Errors when replying to ads?]
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We have two great horses for sale, Daisy is a four year old paint mare she is halter broke but not saddle broke. Ruff is a 13 year old bay gelding he is halter broke, he was saddle broke but has not been ridin in 2 years and he a little skidish, so they will both need to be worked with. We just had their hooves trimed and gave them a dewormer. We just dont have the time that they deserve and want to see them go to a good home where they will get the attention they deserve. They must go as a pair we will not seperate them been together too long. It's 300 for both not each. Serious inquiries only. You must come pick them up, can not deliver. Email or call (605) 660-6696 ask for Dave

Swollen Ankles

Could only do bare minimum for chores. My ankles are swollen and I don't even recognize what's my ankle bone versus what's just swollen. I'll save you the graphic photo. Instead, I'll leave you with more pasture pics. Hopefully the swelling in my ankles will go down so I can get back to actually getting stuff down. I need to get cracking on some fencing to get Savanna, Prize, Sahara, and Mayhem out on the road pasture.

Chaos, Ivan, Brego
Ivan and Brego -- best buds

Brego

Bo

Farley, Gypsy, and Zeke

Phone Call to the Vet

Summer is here. This weekend was tough to adjust to the summer temps. Looking at the forecast, this weekend is going to be even tougher.

This past weekend we didn’t do much with the horses as we were camping and enjoying some much needed family quality time. We ran back and forth morning and night to check on the horses and make sure the water tanks were full. It was in the 90s all weekend, the poor horses are not adjusting to this heat and neither am I.

I need to keep a close eye on Tommy. He wasn’t acting his normal self this morning. I couldn’t really evaluate him like I wanted. I’m in a bit of pain right now. I managed to sunburn my legs and ankles and any type of shoe bothers. I ran through the gauntlet of foot apparel I could try and ended up with my cowboy boots instead of my steels. Hopefully tonight I’ll be able to walk better to evaluate Tom and make sure everything is ok.

I’m worried about Dick. He’s been losing weight. I pulled him from the road pasture to the back pasture but I don’t think he’s doing any better. I’m afraid he’s at his last few weeks. I had hoped that I could wait until fall sometime as is my normal routine for euthanasia. When I realized I couldn’t wait until fall, I had considered waiting until the end of August just before I go on a small vacation. But now that I see him, I’m wondering if I should just call the vet this week. This heat is really going to bother him and he just can’t seem to keep any weight on. Any grain he eats gives him diarrhea. Senior feed and rolled oats go right through him. His body is no longer processing all of the oats. It’s the same situation we were in a couple years back with my beloved Bob. When we first brought Dick home, he looked a little tough but hid it with his winter coat. Now he looks tough no matter what. It’s really just a matter of me making that dreaded phone call. I’ll be keeping an eye on the weather to see when I should do it. The weatherman is predicting 90+ degree weather for this weekend. I’d like to see if there is any relief in the future. I just hate making this phone call. I had really hoped to wait. He’s such good friends with Rabbit. Makes me sick to even think about it. But rescue/sanctuary life isn’t always about keeping them for years and years but ensuring that they are given a dignified death. This is the part of sanctuary life I dread.

Random Pasture Pics

It's a picture kind of day.
Bo with Jim in the background and the pups Farley and Gypsy

The herd out grazing

My Sam Man

Chaos and Dude

Rabbit. She looks 100% better than when we first brought her home. Amazing what food and retiring from babymaking can do for ones body. I'll have to find some before and after pictures to show what 10 months of good food can do.