Our Farm Inspector is a Goat!

Pebbles the Inspector!

Getting things ready around the farm makes some animals take notice. What was going on here? 


We were going to paint the picnic tables  so we turned them over to paint the underside hoping to make them last longer. Your donations are needed to buy food and hay and pay vet bills for the horses. We really don't want to spend any extra money on picnic tables so we try and make everything last as long as possible. One of the volunteers replaced some rotted wood so we were ready to start painting. 

Pebbles and Goliath

Along comes Pebbles, a very nosy goat who appointed herself  'Picnic Table Inspector'. She knew something was going on and she needed to make sure we 'humans' knew what we were doing. Right behind Pebbles, was Goliath, the Chihuahua, who Pebbles appointed 'Vice Inspector' of picnic tables. 


Pebbles didn't have a mother to teach her so I am guessing she was born a genius. She was found by some city folks who took her to a wildlife sanctuary in Stone Mountain, Georgia called AWARE.  The family thought they had found an abandoned baby deer. It was a good rescue on their part. They wanted to save this little innocent soul and got involved. AWARE called and told us the mistake, it is a baby goat not a fawn, and that they do not do farm animals. One of the AWARE volunteers brought Pebbles to SaveTheHorses Farm and she quickly became a favorite to all visitors. 


We 'humans' have an election coming up in  a little over a week. Zillions of dollars are spent on campaigns ads, truths are told, lies are told and we 'humans' have to make major decisions and pick our leaders. The world at the rescue farm is not like that. These animals take it upon themselves to 'get the job' done when they see a job needing help. No campaigning, no voting, no money spend. They just appoint themselves and take over.  They are leaders!  

Pebbles watching over Roy

When our retired Carriage horse, Roy, was having some physical problems, Pebbles was there to make sure he was safe. 

We 'humans' learn a lot from the animals here are the farm everyday. 

SaveTheHorses.org is a all volunteer, non profit organization that cares for unwanted horses and farm animals. A no-kill shelter located in Cumming GA.

A Horses Destiny is Our Choice

Destiny, a Craigslist find

Craigslist posts has free and inexpensive horses needing new homes everyday. Some horse owners are willing to dump their horses to the first person with a horse transport trailer who shows up. Where is the horse going? Some people don't care, just take it away and they are free of their responsibly. A horses fate is in our hands if we are willing to help. There are people who can walk away from an animal in danger. There are those who find a way to help. 


One local family was looking for a horse when they came across this big mare. Destiny is a Percheron mare that a family saved from Craigslist. She was very thin, had bad feet but she was not the horse they needed for their little 6 year old. They couldn't leave her behind. They didn't feel she was safe where she was but they didn't feel they were knowledgeable enough to make her healthy. Instead of walking away, they found a solution. They brought Destiny home and called SaveTheHorses.org and asked for help. 

Destiny loves carrots. Sandra is enjoying feeding her treats. 

 We have gotten many malnourished many horses and changed their lives. It was a 'yes' we will come and get her when this family called. Destiny was a handful, hard to handle and pushy on the ground  She is big and strong, surely not a 6 year old child's horse. Destiny needs to gain a few hundred pounds to fill on each rib and get strong enough to carry a rider and become healthy. After a month of good nutrition, plus good farrier work by Mele Miller, we moved her to our 100 acre grass pasture in Chickamuaga Georgia. She can gain weight and get her body exercised and build muscle on that big pasture.  

Destiny getting love at Chickamauga

This family still wants a perfect horse for their 6 year old. We have a 'yes' to that too. Caraway is a 20 something Appaloosa mare.

Caraway

 She came to us through animal control a few years ago. It didn't take us long to find her a home. She was adopted to a 10 year old boy named Wiley. She was a perfect, gentle horse for Wiley because he was fragile from the brain cancer that was he was fighting at the time. It was in remission and Wiley spent many hours with Caraway. They were both gentle souls and loved one another. Within 2 years, the cancer overtook Wiley and he passed away. It was so heartbreaking to be involved in this. How can this happen to a child? Life is so unfair. I am so grateful that SaveTheHorses could make Wiley's life happy even for such a short time. Partnering a special boy with a special horse is such an honor. 

After Wiley's was laid to rest. his family knew Caraway could give another child the love she gave Wiley. They were right. Caraway is now the constant companion of that little 6 year old , Meg, and she is making another child smile everyday. 

Caraway and Meg

Rescue is many things. Rescue is everything. It is a fragile circle that rescuers live within. You all know and join in that circle even though we know it can bring heartache and pain at anytime but the moments of joy make it all worth the efforts. 

There is a home for every horse. It takes time and effort and compassionate people like you to keep a rescue running and helping more and more horses. 

SaveTheHorses.org 

This Piggy Needs a Piggy Bank!

When I pulled up at animal control, they were already closed. It was Saturday after 5. They had called and asked SaveTheHorses.org to please take a young potbellied pig. I understand employees want to go home but I hoped someone was around. I walked around toward the back of the building and saw an Officer I recently picked up two neglected horses with. He opened the door and one of the ladies was holding this cute little piggy in her arms.  

He quietly sat in the basket all the way back to the farm. He was in instant hit with all volunteers and visitors. 

Kressa loves Junior

We have a wonderful white pig who came from Fulton County Animal services several years ago. He is aging and is having a harder time getting up to eat. Sometimes, we have to help him up. His name is Arnold Swartzenhogger. Everyone wants to know what we will call this new little guy. I think in honor of old Arnold, we should call him Junior, Arnold Swartezhogger , Jr. People come and Junior oinks at them, especially when you have Cheerios. He is like a little vacuum cleaner. You put Cheerios in your hand and his little snout wiggles and poof, they are gone that fast. He was doing well until one of the little visitors didn't close his gate and he thought he's go on a farm adventure and disappeared. He was lost. When the volunteers discovered him missing, we organized a search party! After searching in the barn, for what seemed like hours,  he was found burrowed in the shavings in a back stall. Most of the horses were out in the pastures enjoying the great weather so we didn't think they hurt him. He walked fine. He seemed very frightened and just trembled when we put him back in his piggy area. We left him alone so he could relax again. Later he ate a little fresh food and seemed to drink extra water but nothing too much to worry about. The next morning he still wasn't his Cheerio loving self. Everyone came and held him gently, cuddling him like the baby his is. He seems to enjoy the attention but still was acting lethargic. It was now Sunday so any veterinarian charge was going to be an emergency call but he needed some help.   After examining him, the vet said his temperature was low. He gave him some antibiotics and anti inflammatory medicines and told me to keep him warm tonight. No real answer but he slept comfortably. 

Dr Kim Parker and Junior

After making an appointment with a Roswell veterinarian, I took him to  Dr Kim Parker, who, after an hour of examining him,  discovered he had a broken jaw. She made an appointment for yet another veterinarian who is more familiar with pigs and will do surgery today, Oct. 16th. She said it would be a two hour surgery. From examining him, it looks like two fractures but she didn't want to sedate him unnecessarily so she will xray him before she the surgery. Of course, sedating any pig is dangerous. Please she a prayer for our little guy.

Since the surgeon is 20 miles away, they said I could leave him but I decided to bring him home. I wanted to love on him last night and make sure he had some nutrition and strength for the surgery  We need to give him every chance. 
I have him some oral vitamins along with soaked Cheerios with bananas. He slowly ate it out of my hand. His little jaw will feel much better after today. 

We don't have the answer as to how he broke his jaw. Only a few horses were in the barn. Could it have been a donkey or one of the goats? It could have or he could have gotten caught under a stall or or something. At least we know the problem and it is solvable. Costly, yes. Three vets and a surgery. He needs a big piggy bank, literally! 

If you can help fill this Piggy's piggy bank to pay the vet bills, please help.
Thank you. 

Horses, Horses, Horses in Need!

Jake ~ Arabian horse weighting 752 pound

I take a deep breath, turn on the computer and get ready for a conflict. Not a day goes by that that phone calls and emails come in begging for help to save a horse. The conflict is how I can help without actually taking the horse myself. I read on...This horse is at animal control and will be euthanized if rescue not found. Another horse has nowhere to go because owner lost farm and will be foreclosed on in 5 days. Oh, how I wish this owner planned for their horse welfare before it got this close to the eviction. Then a young  untrained horse is placed on Craigslist. The owner just doesn't care about the horse any more and  is giving away to the first person who shows up. That could mean kill buyer. Free horses can be sold for a per pound price for meat. How many colts, healthy and unhandled because they have not been gelded are being given away every day. A person acquires an ungelded horse, hoping they can make money with a stud by breeding. The horse is not quality breeding stock, nor does this owner have experience with a stud horse because it is nature who makes this horse react badly. It is a stallion. The owner realizes he can't profit so the horse is placed Free. That means a certain danger of slaughter. This free horse will cost $200-300. just to have him gelded. Then training starts.  More money! Instead he is sold per pound for meat for human consumption. 

Some of these horses are out of state. Many are at big auctions where they are brought in and caring horse lovers bid to save them.  They surely are in danger of slaughter. That is really another costly problem. Gas prices are skyrocketing, that means transport costs and health certificates across state lines are an added expense  Getting the lowest bid to transport could actually cost the horse to become ill or even die because an inexperienced hauler may not stop to rest or give the horse adequate care along the route. There are starving, needy horses in my area. It is just heartbreaking to read these stories day in and day out.

SaveTheHorses if full! We have 'time-share' stalls now. With winter coming, more horses will need to be in stalls. I will help the next horse by blasting out the information and finding a home or at least foster home. 

Jake when he arrived

Then, I read another email about an Arabian that was losing weight. The email said he was 6 years old and was ride able. I told myself, we will help find him a home. He is 6 years old, we can surely find someone who would love a young Arabian gelding who just needs some weight on him. He is sound. When the next email came with pictures, I thought  the words 'losing weight' was far from what was wrong. He was going to die soon if I didn't bring him here now. He needs several small feedings a day to get him up to weight and health. I made arrangements to pick him up and met with the owner. He told me Jake has always been fat on grass in the past. They had a beautiful home, beautiful pasture and a skinny horse. Then he told me Jake is 26 years old. 

Very underweight

Now the story made a little more sense. Jake needs grain. He can't eat grass, his teeth are bad. He can't even eat hay unless it is chopped hay. I don't know why the owner waited until Jake was so thin. They said they dewormed him. I was also given a bag of Triple Crown Senior just purchased to give Jake. Jake loved it so we put some in a bucket for the trailer ride back to the rescue. It was a 30 minute ride. I parked and walked back to the trailer to open the door and get Jake out. He was peering out looking at where he was. He gobbled the Senior food so fast he choked. His food was coming through his nose. He could not get the food down. It was stuck in his throat. Dr Duvall Mohoney was at the barn in a short time. Two hours later, and a mess all over the ground, it was nearly cleared up but it was time to stop and not stress him any more. She had to slowly insert a tube into his nose and slowly work it down to the blockage. He had a quiet night. Dr Duvall Mohoney came back in the morning and the tube went all the way down to his stomach. That meant it was cleared, no more choking. Now we are careful to give him small portions of wet food and chopped hay. Jake really needs a sponsor until we find a him a permanent home. We are not a sanctuary (though we hope to have a sanctuary some day) but we keep horses as long as we have to. We do not euthanize for space. We are totally funded by donations, no government funding. We use the space wisely and do everything we have to to keep the horses healthy and safe. 

Jake with Todd

It seems we have more questions than answers. Why didn't Jake's owners call a veterinarian or ask someone who may have horses for suggestions, I don't know. It does not matter now but it made me come to the conclusion that horse owner need more education. 

We are planning on classes for horse owners and non owners, anyone interested.  Please let us know your ideas, interests, what you think is needed most. You all have supported Save The Horses in every way. Please help us again as the horse lovers you are and let's make more horse owners more knowledgeable. We need to hear from you. 

Adopt~Foster~Volunteer~Donate 

www.SaveTheHorses.org

All Volunteer   Come Join Us.

A Lil' Hump Of Love!

'Eh, Why don't you put that horse down?', someone said to me in disdain.'

Why? I answered. 


Most visitors to the Save The Horses rescue farm see beyond the disabilities, They look into the heart and souls of our horses.

The lady asking me about the little horse was referring to Lil Humphrey. 

This Miniature horse came to the rescue a few years ago as a 4 year old. He came from a local breeder. I guess the breeder thought he shouldn't breed Lil Humphrey because he may breed that hump into another horse. Good thinking! At 4 years old, his hump was still growing. It looks like Kyphosis or Scoliosis that humans get. It was worrisome watching his hump get bigger and bigger. We surely didn't want it to cripple him. Finally when he turned 5, it stopped where it is. The vet said we should not have him gelded because his organs at being pulled in different directions internally and Anesthesia could be fatal. I sure do not want stallions here but he is an exception. I would never forgive myself if we decided to geld him and he died during the anesthetic. I didn't want to have to isolate him but I couldn't have a stallion causing havoc either.

Right about that time, we took in, Rowdy, a little mini gelding with some dwarfism. He was sent down from an auction in Pennsylvania. Lil Hump and Rowdy became best buddies. They both love to play and run. 

They look as though they are playing rough but they never hurt one another. They are both favorites of many who come to the farm. Horses do not judge another horse by how they look. These guys prove that everyday. 

Humans can learn so much about relationships from horses. Horses 
keep you honest. I tried to add this video 4 times .. unsuccessfully so please click here and ENJOY! I think you will agree, he is not aware of any disability. 
 https://www.dropbox.com/s/5v33pzxsispaagb/2012-09-13%2020.19.36.mp4

www.SaveTheHorses.org

105 How Many More?

What does a home made brand with a number 105, on a horse's hip mean? 


This is what I think from my experience with this type of mare over the years. It means there were many more horses than her at the Premarin farm she was living at. I shouldn't really use the word living, I should stay existing at. An average Premarin farm holds 200 mares and has 2 workers. The mares stand in straight small holding areas for over  6 months a years or more, unable to move forward, backwards or lay down. They also are hooked to a catheter so the urine is collected continually. They are given 1/3 of a normal water intake so the mares are constantly thirsty. This make the urine mare concentrated.  Did I mention these mares are pregnant? Yes, Premarin is PREgnant-MARe-urINe. PREMARIN! 

No way for a horse to exist 24 hours a day...and pregnant.( from Premarin.org)

This drug has been used for woman with menopause symptoms since the late 1940's but it was never tested until the early 2000. In 2002, a landmark Women's Health Initiative  (WHI) study provided compelling evidence the hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is linked to breast cancer, ovarian cancer, lung cancer and other diseases including heart disease. After this study came out, the Premarin use in the USA dramatically decreased and the market was flooded with these mares and foals. 

This article was in the AJC 1/2/2004

Drug maker's cutbacks send 20,000 horses to auction block
Bill Hendrick - Staff
Friday, January 2, 2004

A decision made in a sterile, glass-and-chrome pharmaceutical
laboratory in New Jersey might affect horse barns in Georgia and other states.

Pills produced by Wyeth Pharmaceuticals that use chemicals
extracted from the urine of pregnant horses to ease menopausal symptoms for
women have come under fire in recent months, causing the market to crash.

The drop in sales has forced the company to decide to cut its
horse herds, leaving at least 20,000 horses at risk for slaughter.

An auction of hundreds of these horses is being held Saturday in
Roanoke, Ala., just across the Georgia border, 26 miles from LaGrange.

In July, federal researchers said hormone replacement therapy, or
HRT, was potentially harmful to tens of millions of post-menopausal women who
had taken the drugs.

And later, a study of Prempro, another drug that uses ingredients
from horse urine, was halted earlier than scheduled. Researchers found the
chemicals seemed to increase risks of breast cancer, stroke and blood clots ---
outweighing the benefits of lessening colon cancer and osteoporosis.

The result: A significant decline in orders for Prempro, from 3.4
million to 1 million, and a crash in sales of Premarin, a top-selling HRT drug,
from 6 million to 3.5 million, said Natalie De Vane, spokeswoman for Wyeth
Pharmaceuticals of Madison, N.J.

The company's sales of HRT products dropped by 33 percent, to $1.1
billion, in the first three quarters of 2003.

In response, the company has fired some of its horse ranchers.
Wyeth used to contract with 400 ranches in Canada and North Dakota, but within
the past month, it has cut that number by 25 percent.

That leaves a national glut of horses for sale --- not nags, but
healthy animals whose owners "milked" them for urine.

Farmers are trying to sell the excess female horses, called mares,
and their babies, called foals, because it costs too much to feed and graze
them.

De Vane said the company is trying to help the ranchers find "good
homes" for these horses. And equestrian experts say most of the animals are
strong and suitable for adoption.

Quarter horses are the most common breed found on Wyeth's ranches.
The next most popular, Percherons and Belgians, are said to be valued for their
gentle dispositions. Most of the horses up for auction are between 3 and 8 years
old.

Even so, horse activists say the reality is most of those horses
are not going to find homes, and are instead likely to be slaughtered.

The Humane Society of the United States said that "equine
sanctuaries and rescue group facilities are already filled to capacity" and
can't absorb an influx of thousands of horses. "Most of them will inevitably end
up at slaughterhouses," according to a statement released this week.

Cheryl Flanagan, who runs a group called Save the Horses in
Cumming (save thehorses.org), and Shana Wingate, who heads Just in Time Equine
Rescue in Douglasville (groups.msn .com/wingatefarms), are concerned that if
horse lovers don't show up at the auction Saturday in Alabama, most of the
animals will end up dead.

The women say they are planning to buy some of the horses and put
them up for adoption.

Both women operate nonprofit groups aimed at saving horses from
early deaths and are part of a network of similar organizations nationwide.

But Don Green, who is running the auction and is owner of Roanoke
Stockyards, does not believe the adult horses are in danger.

"I don't think one will go to slaughter. They are well-bred. Some
will be bought to ride," he said. However, Green added: "I don't think you'd
want these for a pet, or a child. You're not going to find any Seabiscuit."

He expects 400 or so horses will be sold for prices between $500
and $1,250.

Green does acknowledge that the foals are at high risk because
they are not immediately useful to riders or ranchers.

The controversy could also stretch across the ocean, to the china
plates of European restaurants, where horse meat is served.

Europeans have been buying more horse meat since mad cow disease
was discovered two weeks ago in the United States, Flanagan and Wingate said.

We managed to get publicity on CNN, ABC and CBS, too. Every horse at that auction was bought by a caring person. There are usually about 40 people attending the auction but it was over filled with about 350 people. They even had to put a TV outside so people could see. Horses went for $750 - $3500. The auctioneer was from TX and he told me earlier in the week that he planned on taking most of the mares to TX, I am sure for meat. There was a full running horse slaughter plant near him. That motivated me to do even more. 

Some of the foals we cared for until they were released. 

The market was also flooded with PMU foals. We took in 26 youngsters in June of 2004 to help another rescue, AC4H. The foals were coming from a PMU farm in North Dakota en route to Florida.   Over stuffed in a trailer, stressed from the ride, they all had the Strangles virus. They stayed for over 4 months in a quarantined area under the supervision of GDA. 

Now Back To Destiny!

Sandy giving Destiny some loving.

She was saved more than once. She was saved from a PMU farm sometime in her life. She ended up as a Craigslist post. There may have been a few years in between that were good or bad. 

 A family wanted an older safe horse for their grandchild. They saw the Craigslist ad and went to meet #105. She wasn't at all what they expected. She was big but very underweight and a bit strong to handle. Surely not what the grandchild could handle at all. The owner assured them there was someone coming who wanted a plow horse. She could go to work and earn her keep.  They couldn't turn their back on her though so they took her home. They called SaveTheHorses looking for help. I picked her up Saturday and she already has some cheerleaders! She needs a special diet to gain some weight and lots of love which she has no trouble getting here at the rescue farm. I did bring a sweet older mare, Caraway,  to the people who took in Destiny. The grand daughter may fall in love with Caraway or may want Destiny back when she's healthier. We just want Destiny safe and loved. 

Are horses born with a destiny? Are they destined to be slaughtered? To be someone's loving pet? To become a work animal without love?  I am afraid their lives are ruled by chance. She is a lucky one saved by a kindhearted person who couldn't walk away from her. Can we change the destiny of horses? Yes, we can. Together we can change the destiny of the horses we come in contact with and support. 

Adopt!
If you can't adopt, Foster.
If you can't foster, Donate.
If you can't donate, Volunteer. 
If you can't volunteer, educate everyone about the 'destiny' of horses and how it can go wrong without caring , compassionate humans like you helping in some way!
Thank you for all you do!


www.saveTheHorses.org 

 

Roy At Peace

I went out Saturday night to feed Sweetie like I do every night. I like to know she is OK before I go to sleep. She is 34 and if she falls down, she can't get up without the help of our sling and tractor. While I do this, Roy, Annabelle and whatever horses stayed in the barn also get an extra helping of feed and treats. 

I have been doing this for a few years now. Since Roy had his spinning problem in late September of 2010, it has been even more important. Roy walked out of the barn late that night, walked about 20 feet from the barn door and started spinning to the left. He couldn't stop. I eased him into the covered ring since it has a sand base, I thought if he falls hard, at least he would land on soft sand. I stayed with him. I was happy he slowly eased himself down. He laid there for about an hour and he looked very comfortable. He then got up walked away and several times a day for the next few weeks, he would start to spin again. I have a vet come out who said she believes he injured his hip. We gave him anti inflammatory medications for a few days but no change. I asked another vet who thought it was heart syncope causing it. As it slowed down a little, Roy learned to lean against a pole to not spin and keep his balance. Another vet came out and thought it may be a brain tumor. He said Roy is not a good candidate to go for an MRI and sedating him could kill him. I felt like this diagnosis may be the closest to the problem because he only spun to the left and he developed a small spot on his left eye. They vet said the spot didn't have any thing to do with it but I truly believed it did. So now if he does have a brain tumor, what to do? How can we fix it? The vet gave me some antibiotics and little hope.  

Roy laying in the sun napping next to his old girlfriend, Sapphire. 

So many people knew Roy, he had been here 8 years. A big, golden Belgium draft horse stands out in everyone's mind. People came from everywhere to say good bye to him. We were facing a decision so hard to make. Picking a date and time to die, to end a life. We all work so hard rescuing horses is to save their life. This part was the saddest thing anyone could do, a decision not taken easily. It weights heavy on your heart. 

A volunteer, Libby, told me she was giving a dog the spice, turmeric, which has been known to shrink tumors, and suggested I try it on Roy. How could it hurt? What was there to lose? It was actually hope, hope it could help Roy live longer. We started with a tablespoon and eventually increased it to 6 tablespoons a day. It worked like miracle. Roy's spinning slowly stopped for nearly two years. Turmeric gave us more time to love Roy. About  a month, ago, Roy started to walk and turn around a little more often. I did increase the turmeric and prayed it wasn't happening and getting worse. 

You can see where Roy was circling.

I saw a few more signs of Roy spinning. It not have been noticed by anyone else but I saw places in the gravel where Roy was spinning. I pointed it out to some of the volunteers, I think in my heart, I was preparing everyone, including myself, that this was close to the end. 

Early this morning, I walked into the barn to make sure Sweetie was OK. I saw Roy laying in the shaving pile, his favorite place to rest. He looked comfortable. I did notice his eyes were opened. I walked over to him, waved my hand in from of his eye. no reaction. Then I called him, he couldn't hear well anymore so I was louder and louder. I patted his leg and moved it, still no reaction. Was Roy gone? I was not grasping this at all. I walked all the way back into the house and I kept thinking, he is just sleeping. My mind was recalling Roy's almost 10 years at the rescue and all the people who love him. I had to go back in the barn to confirm my crazy thoughts.   I was mistaken, yes, I surely hoped I was. 

Sadly, I was right. Roy had died peacefully in the place I have seen him lay down for many years. He was gone. 

Albert being comforted as he lays on tarp covering Roy's body.

Everyone is sad but we all agreed he died in peace. He was given a cross to be buried with, he was given love and blessings by everyone. We will buy him this afternoon in a nice place where he can look over the farm. Our heart aches for Roy but it also aches for Albert, our Nubian Goat. He was Roy's stall mate and companion for many years.  Roy was covered with a tarp in the barn.  Albert is laying on the tarp, almost on Roy's lifeless body. Albert is going to take this hard. He cried for his blind horse friend, Stevie Wonder, over 6 years ago when Stevie died at UGA. Albert mourns. Albert stood outside the barn and cried for a few months, crying for Stevie. I know it will hurt all the volunteers to know Roy is gone but will be so hard to see Albert mourning along with them. 

This is a blog from when Roy started spinning. 
http://hrrf.blogspot.com/2010/09/roy-september-27-2010.html

Our banner with our lovely Roy.

Rest In Peace Sweet Roy. 

www.SaveTheHorses.org