Homes Needed

So I'm still riding this pity party train it seems. I was just looking through the ads and found two more horses to give away. I guess it's better to try and find them homes now before winter hits. But it's frustrating. In the last couple of days, I've now seen four horses to give away. And two of those four are only FIVE MILES away from the Sanctuary and one of them fits our criteria for coming in to the Sanctuary. It's just so frustrating to have my hands tied, especially when they are SO close! And of the four I recently saw online, they all come very close to meeting our requirements. Anyone up for sponsoring a horse?

I went out last night to take pictures of the horses as the sun was setting. The days are definitely getting much shorter. I am going to struggle to get everything done before the first snowflake. Unfortunately the pasture is becoming nonexistant. The hay guy put three round bales into the drylot and without locking the herd up each night, they still managed to polish off an entire round bale without leaving any waste (and that's without using a net or a ring).

While I was out taking pictures, I realized that something didn't feel right. At first I couldn't place it but then I realized I was missing horses. Oh don't worry. No one escaped. But it is a little weird how your brain will register a change. Of course I knew Ivan and Brego were up in Madison but being out with the herd last night made me stop and think for just a minute on what the difference was. The dynamics were still the same as I make sure to always pair horses up when hauling to a different pasture. Everyone has a best friend (Ivan/Brego, Zeke/Bo, Jim/Maverick, Dude/King, Rain/Chaos, Tommy/Skippy...the mares don't count. Mayhem pairs up with either Babe or Rabbit. It simply depends on who she's in with).

I had to fill water tanks last night and will have to fill them again tonight. This weather is just so hard on the horses. Unfortunately, this extreme heat is really taking its toll on Babe. I'm afraid we are going to have to say goodbye sooner than I had expected. I had hoped it would be a few more months but I have to stop fooling myself. I had hoped that this year would be the first where we wouldn't have to say goodbye to a four legged family member. I'm tired of saying goodbye but I guess that's part of being a Sanctuary. My heart is still tender from losing Queen last September and my Grandmother in March. So the thougth of losing Babe is a little tougher than normal. I guess there's something about these mares that cause me even more heartache than normal. I can't really explain it.

The last forecast I saw was filled with 90 degree temps. I guess we are getting our last bit of summer. I read that in one of the almanacs that we are supposed to get a colder than normal winter. They used the word "bitter". Greeeeeaaat. I hope they are wrong. I'd love to have an open winter. But if we do have a colder than normal winter, we are going to see a lot more horses being sold or given away. I'd like to step up for at least one older horse. I know you're going to get sick of me asking, but maybe I'll wear everyone down. But does anyone want to sponsor a horse? :-)