It hardly seems like a week

I have kept myself busy all week, tried not to think about it (except every time I go to the barn) and I have not talked about it (except to Chelsea...once)...I have written my blogs and tried to sound upbeat...but today it is bothering me. Yes, Junah. I had high hopes for him. I guess I have high hopes for every horse we take in...but this one was right up my alley...tall, bay, handsome...TB...everything I look for in a horse. Have you had a look at my horses? All bay, all geldings, all
17H or more...I must be looking for something in some sort of kharmic way...over and over again I chose the bay gelding.

hmmm...kharma...interesting concept.

you know how sometimes you think about one thing and that thing leads you to another?

me too.

Ending a horse's life is a big deal to me and I wrestle with the right and wrong of it. On some levels, I hate to be the decision maker on whether something lives or dies.

But on another level, I feel that "someone' has to do and decide the right and rational thing.

Life effects life. Think about it.

Compassion is our only true recourse...especially if you believe in kharma and probably even if you don't...I am not sure that I believe in kharma...but I like some of the philosophy...(I love the word philosophy)...say it out loud a couple of times!...anyway...If I know that my actions cause or bring pain, and those actions, in return, come full circle back to me and affect my own happiness or well being...wouldn't I then I find myself more careful in both my word/deed/actions? Well, you would hope so...wouldn't you? Wouldn't that help us all?

Anyway, I am sort of rambling and feeling a little melancholy...I like to think of myself as being compassionate and simply passionate about things I love....and I think most people would tell you I was.....particularly with animals. I often get asked why I do horse rescue.....and I always reply I love horses but it is more than that with most of us who do this.....we get something from it that we need.....the ability to nurture, fix, love, help....however you may describe it.

I told someone yesterday that the rescue helps needy horses and needy souls...people's souls...everyone should get something from it...it isn't just the horses...A volunteer feels needed or has the ability to give something to someone or something...or a volunteer is a young person who has the opportunity to learn something new or make new friends...or a volunteer is a lonely older person who feels suddenly needed/wanted/useful...we like to help those people too...and they are helping us in return. Rescue is a huge labor of love...I feel like I have gotten the best present in the world when I see a horse who has come through the wringer, into our hands and comes back to life before our very eyes. It is one of the best feelings in the world to me. I want to pass it on to others.

I love that starfish story...I don't remember all the words...but essentially it goes...there is a man is walking the beach at low tide and there are thousands upon thousands of starfish laying stranded on the beach and the sun is high in the sky...he is walking the beach slowly, picking up a starfish at a time and throwing them back into the sea...a second man walks up and says "what are you doing?"...

the first man replies "throwing these stranded starfish back into the sea"...

the second man says "but there are thousands of them, what difference does it make...you can't save them all"

the first man replies, "It makes a difference to this one" and he throws one more into the sea...

That story is powerful to me, I hope it is to you.

We say goodbye to Junah

Thursday P.M.

A nondescript day that starts much the same as most other days...we feed, we clean, we go to our real jobs.

At 3 pm I leave my office to come home to the farm because it is time to say goodbye to our precious boy Junah. The backhoe came last night and dug the grave.

A quiet time, no fan fare, no hysterics. I feed Junah a full measure of oats and throw him some hay, pat his face...feed the others and fill water tubs. Then I go and sit with Junah in his paddock. I sit on the large hay bale, he eats and comes and visits me every now and then. I observe and study him...wanting to see something that can put a stop to what I know is coming...some miracle of sorts. What I see is a very ataxic Junah. He played hard yesterday along the fence, even had a few bucks and his body is paying for it today. He buckles his legs under himself a couple of times and stumbles. He picks his hinds up and swings them in a circular motion. My miracle is not going to happen. I know we are doing the right thing but wonder why the "right thing" seems so hard?.

I wait and listen to the quiet...Junah crunching hay...birds singing...a crow scolding in the distance. I am not going to cry...I won't...not right now.

The vet comes up the driveway, my heart sinks a little and I swallow hard......time is up...I go to meet him and direct him to the upper paddock. Just the two of us and Junah. Junah is very suspicious of this new person and blows/snorts his displeasure. I snap a lead on him and take him out by the grave. I pat him and tell him he is brave and such a good boy...he gets a tranquilizer and he visibly relaxes. I stroke his nose and ears, give him a kiss, tell him to not be scared...and then the vet administers the final syringe of what will take Junah away from us for good.

It is over in less than a minute.

I sit with him for a long while, then we cover him until the tractor can come. I walk the vet back to the front...say my goodbyes and thank him.

I walk up the back road to the neighbor and ask if he can come now...but he is eating dinner and so we must wait a little bit. I walk back down to the farm and I sit with Junah again. I pull the cover back and away from his head...I am still struck by how beautiful he is, even in death....and then I close his eyes, pet his face and I cry. He was so young and so short changed.

Chelsea and I have loved him probably more than he was ever loved in his short life...and so did Hana, his guardian angel.

No more pain, no more discomfort...you don't have to be scared anymore Junah...rest in peace. I hope you are running like the wind somewhere beautiful.

Love,
Rosemary and Chelsea

Special thanks to my vet and the kind neighbor and his wife who brought the tractor down to bury Junah..the wife stood with me and it was comforting......and also thanks to Jerry for digging the grave. Sandy, thank for the tremendous effort on Junah's poor feet...you worked miracles on them.Chelsea......thanks for your time, your heart, your love for this boy......I am sorry we couldn't "fix" him....if love had been the cure.....we surely had enough to go around.

Monday up and at 'em again

Up early and to the barn, check waters, feed, chat with Page as part of our morning ritual.

I checked the bunnies and sadly one bunny is missing....no where to be found. The remaining bunny is active and now has his eyes open, I suspect he will be out of the nest with his mother tomorrow or the day after. Mother probably knows best about how to care for and raise her young. I am merely an interloper in her scheme of things. Hard to keep your hands off a baby bunny......so cute, so tiny.

Off to work and I call Chelsea on the way in, as we usually are driving to work at the same time for almost the same hour. We talk about Yukon, we talk about Rio and then we talk about Junah for a little while. We both get quiet and then try to talk about something else.

Finally at work, check emails and there is an email from my mom......"are you missing any hay?" Am I missing any hay???? HUH? The rest of the email reads that the neighborhood bald eagle has swooped down and grabbed hay, at least several times this morning. I had no idea that eagles wanted hay and I would like to suggest that he get the less expensive stuff out in the field. I email her back and tell her to take a head count of the chickens and the two barn cats.

Later I make the arrangements for Junah for later in the week and I feel very sad. People are good to us and we have offers of help for that day. A friend is coming with his backhoe and another friend will come to stand with us. The vet will arrange his schedule.

My mom calls later and says a doe is wandering the property.......she says the horses are mesmerized. I bet they are....

Up to Costco to get my new glasses and I get a spinach salad while I am there....of course you have to buy a VAT of it and so I take it back to share with my employees. Really good..it has black olives, pasta, spinach and parmesan cheese with a tangy dressing. I love pasta...but even I can't eat a VAT of it.

The end of the day comes, I drive home, talk to Chelsea again......make plans for our meeting tomorrow afternoon. Feed horses, lock cats in, check to make sure chickens have not been eaten by the eagle........then go and check the bunny.......he is fine, still no sign of the sibling. ...too bad.

tomorrow is another day.

Sunday morning

Winston playing with feeder

Junah

hammy

I slept hard last night and got a late start this morning. I had a long day yesterday. Fortunately, Page was on time and got everything done before I got there....I am lucky to have her. That meant that I got to do the good stuff, like hand out carrots and apples.

Yesterday, during the tractor work, a bunny nest was disturbed and one very tiny bunny found. He did not have his eyes open yet. We had him in the barn for a while but decided it would be best to try and reunite him with his mother. So we put him back near the nest spot in some hay and then hoped for the best. I checked on him this morning and he seemed fine, but then I found his litter mate.....dead ..and then a little further and I found another litter mate, very, very cold and still breathing a little. I knew he was too cold and so I picked him up, then called Page....."here, I said....put this bunny in your cleavage"...."he needs body heat"....Page never batted an eye, she put him under her shirt while I searched for any more bunnies. We saw the mother bunny dart off.

I made the decision that we should take the cold bunny to the my mom's house and warm him, perhaps give him a little warm milk with a syringe....so off we went. We had to pass through Beaver's paddock and he wanted to see what was going on, so he nosed us and then seemed to know that Page had the "bundle"...so he bit her. Beaver wants in on everything and he gets mad if he is cut off. We got out of there and went to my mom's house....heated a little bit of milk, put a drop of honey in it, put it in the syringe and I took the bunny and fed him a little. Then we put a wet rag into the microwave, heated it, placed it in a ziplock, wrapped it in a dry towel and placed the bunny on top of it (in a plastic bowl)...dramatic results...the bunny visibly improved and his color looked better.

Now, I know that little creatures are incredibly hard to hand feed and returning to mom is always best...so after observing him for about twenty minutes, I decided to put him back into a nest with his sibling rabbit. I trudged back through the pasture and into the woods, found the "hay" nest that we constructed for the other baby, and gently placed the other baby with his sibling. I then tightened the nest around them and deepened the nest, then built up the sides a little.
You always wonder if you are doing the right thing.

I went back to check on them about twenty minutes later......both bunnies were warm to the touch and moving and squeaking a little.

I have done what I could and I will hope for the best.

The horses LOVE the new hay and they have cleaned up every bite....then they beg for more.

Yukon is settled in at Chelsea’s and Junah was settled this morning. Junah is very intrigued by Beaver and Beaver makes threatening faces at him and rushes the fence at him. Junah just stares at him, like "what is that?"

We moved Hammy to the bottom paddock, so that he will have less to crib on....and then maybe burn less calories and just concentrate on eating.

It is overcast this morning, relatively cool...but I expect it will burn off and we will have a beautiful afternoon like yesterday.

I have yard work to do..laundry to do, dogs to walk...groceries to buy...and I still have farm work to get done. Some fence work, paddock cleaning.....and we still need another loafing shed (I love to build those!) It is just time consuming.

The un-stallion will be home and we will need a shed for him to call his own.

Next week we will take Rio up to a local barn and see how he reacts and handles. Keep your fingers crossed! We have a young girl who loves him. He needs a girl of his own.

Junah comes home to Pony Up North

Saturday...we cleaned stalls, filled waters, mounted a couple of gates, blew the barn aisle out and moved horses around to accommodate the brush cutter and Junah's homecoming.

The brushcutter was brought in by Jason (he is our hero) and he spent all day cutting into the dense brush of the woods, so that we can make an extra paddock for the evil Beaver pony. We are so thankful for the hard work and effort! The brushcutter will now allow us to enlarge the arena and make a new paddock for Beaver.

Meanwhile I went and got Junah from Chelsea's, so that we can have him buried at the farm. He deserves that. I also took Yukon to Chelsea so that she can put him on a diet and exercise program, as apparently I am unable to get any weight OFF of him! He traveled without a fuss and when he got to Chelsea's, he simply unloaded and went onto the pasture and started eating...such a low drama boy he is. Then we loaded the very handsome Junah into the trailer, he loaded fairly well after a little coaxing...he has come to love Chelsea and wants to please her, so he is fairly willing to do what she asks him. We shut the divider on him and then hit the road. He was a pill for about 10 miles...kicking and moving, swaying the trailer like crazy and I had a few thoughts of turning around. I don't mind my trailer being kicked but I did worry about him falling or scrambling. Fortunately he settled down and we got home, unloaded him and let him explore the paddock and arena turnout.

I have not spent a lot of time with Junah, even though I was the one who "nodded" and brought him into the fold. After I got him home today, his physical disabilities became very obvious. He cannot lay down. He was sweaty and he really wanted to roll, but he simply cannot lay down. ...he tried and he tried. He squealed his displeasure, he pawed, he got on his knees...but he could not lay down. My heart sunk and tears welled up. I have not had to spend time with him,I spent time with him the day he was picked up, but he went directly to Chelsea's... I have not really fallen in love with him like Chelsea...but I did today. I was hoping for a miracle of sorts. I thought I would drag my feet on the euthanasia. I talk a big show...but my heart is perhaps more fragile than most, even if I am not willing to show it. He is so handsome, such a love...but so physically incapacitated. Hard choices, hard decisions...but I remember responsibility and commitment...I remember rational love. This is a time for rational love...and so I will make the arrangements and we will all be there for him, for his last moments, to send him with love and soft words...to a place where we hope he can be free of the physical trappings of this world...we will see him again...on the other side.

I surely figure that on some days, on some level, I am crazy. Crazy to ask for this heartache...crazy to take on such a task.

I will make the arrangements for this coming week. I will steel my emotions to the outside world and I will say that it must be done, no more wishy washy thoughts...we have had a work up...and then I will stand with him,I will thank the vet, I will thank the grave digger... then I will go and grieve by myself. I will cry for a long while and wish I could change what was and then know that I couldn't. Junah, we hardly got to know you before we said goodbye.

hug your horse today.

Our hearts break

The first horse we officially took in as a group........Junah. Big, beautiful, underweight and neglected boy standing forlornly in the Enumclaw auction yard. His owners did not even bother to run him through the auction (they know who they are)......instead they left him to get on the slaughter bus.

He was breezed at the track and he was "going to be SOME FAST race horse" according to a previous trainer...........and then the jockey said "he felt weak behind"..."not right"..."wobbly"......and he was sent home to rest. Thrown out in the pasture, his feet not done, his mane not combed........nobody had time. Then he was given away to another trainer and this person saw the weakness too.....and sent him to the auction yard.......no sale....."just send him along with the next truck."

We went and got him on a chilly, icy day......a little snow remained. He was weary of us. I approached him and looked him over. He was a little lame, but no wonder with those really ba feed. He was wearing a ratty halter and an old blanket. He looked me over and was not sure he would let me touch him, so I ignored him.......turned my back and then he came to me, nuzzled my hands and invited me to touch him. I put a lead on him and led him out to the trailer, where Chelsea and I loaded him. Not too much trouble, just a little nervous....and understandably so.

We took him to Chelsea's and looked him over again. His feet were, I think, the worst we have ever seen. The one front was completely split and the sides moved independently......like a cloven hoof. He was not emaciated but he was thin and his coat was dull, his mane dried out and bleached. He had a wound on his front ankle with a large flap of skin hanging. He was a mess.

He would stay at Chelsea's for the next several months. A big baby.......he just didn't know a lot of things but he was a quick learner. Chelsea put him on supplements, de-wormed him, had his feet attended to and loved on him. He had to stay in confined quarters due to his hooves... and when she let him out the first time a few weeks ago, we saw it.......the weakness. He fell down and scrambled back up, but slowed way down.....quit cantering...was a little shaken.

He has had problems with holding his hind legs up or out and has had to be tranquilized for the shoer.......he doesn't always seem to know where his hind legs are. He frequently stretches one hind leg over and over again. Something is not right. We have the vet out to do an exam and he confirms what we already know in our hearts.... Junah has a neurological disorder. It makes for a dangerous situation for him and for handlers.

We talk about it, kick it around........and our hearts break. A decision is made to euthanize Junah, for his own sake and for those around him. He is a big horse and coltish.....his hind legs are unmanageable without tranquilizer and a couple of patient, willing people to handle him.

He is stunningly handsome. It is hard to imagine doing the unthinkable......but we go back to responsibility, commitment and rational love. We swear to be rational......to do the right thing for the right reasons. Sometimes love hurts us at the very core. Sometimes I hate the hurt that love brings.

We will all be there with him. He will be buried on the farm.

He can go where we hope all horses go........a big green field with other horses, sunny skies and freedom to run.

Chelsea will post later. She is pretty devastated.......she has been the primary caregiver of this boy and has spent hour after hour taking care of him. He has had the good life in her hands at her farm.

Goodbye for now.....
I sleep a peaceful sleep...
you have been my love, my life...
for me, please do not weep.
You will see me in the brilliance of a far away cloud...
or a feather floating on the wind.
It's just goodbye for now.

Hug your horse tonight....

Wednesday

Hamilton improves a little each day. Physically it is hard to see change in a couple of days, but mentally it is easy to see. He calls to us at feeding time and stamps his hoof saying "hurry and get that food to me". He has a little light in his eyes........He continues to be very gentle, good about his fly mask, he moves over nicely when we ask him to so that we can clean around him.

In a few weeks we will give him a pasture buddy, probably Rio as he is kind and gentle.

I was hoping the sun would come out today but it looks like it won't happen..........the weather report says Friday which should make for a nice weekend. A weekend full of chores. The chores don't take a vacation! We still have painting to do, siding to put up, paddocks to clean and we have to move the chicken coop. Chickens are hanging out on my mom's porch and she prefers they go somewhere else. We had put the coop off to the side of her carport when the chicks were little, so that she could keep an eye on them. They are half grown now and we will probably give some of them to a new home as we really don't need 12 more Bantys.

If you didn't get a chance, read TB Friends this morning.......great blog and I love it when the kids write a paragraph or two....like reading a passage from a book that stays with you for a long while. You have to love the honesty, the passion and the sharing of the heart.

Junah has not had his neuro appointment yet, we are all on pins and needles, expecting the worst but hoping for the best. I guess it all works out in the end........someone has bigger plans than we mere mortals.

Page has been a HUGE help this week, as I have been under the weather. She is a trooper that is for sure..........not taking any guff from those Big horses of mine. She has everything under control. THANKS PAGE! And thanks to my mom too for giving the extra feeding to Hamilton.

Didn't someone say it takes a village?!

Rational love

We will have a neuro evaluation done on Junah this week and then we will make a group decision as to what the rational, responsible thing to do should be. We all have time, love and a lot of emotion involved with him. He is a nice horse and willing to try anything if you ask him.

We all wondered why such a horse could be left at the Enumclaw auction yard, not even run through the auction and just left for the slaughter bus. Left in a ratty halter, feet that would make you cringe, unkempt mane and tail, dull coat........just waiting for the bus. No chance.....until Hana called us. Hana is an angel to horses at the sale yard....no doubt about it. She has the biggest heart and the kindest soul.
I want to take a moment and point out that many horses are taken to the Enumclaw auction and left or run through at ridiculous prices.....and they are perfectly healthy, sound, no issues, no problems.........they are just unwanted, unaffordable, or unloved. It is a cruel fate for a large percentage. If you have an old horse and you take them to the auction, you are almost 99 percent sure to be buying them a ticket to the slaughter house. An old horse who has served you well deserves better. The trip that leads to the slaughter house is a road trip to horror.

We are establishing a euthanasia fund to help with humane euthanasia of old, sick or crippled horses for those who cannot afford it. We feel it is the right thing to do.
Euthanasia is the last kind thing you can do for an animal you have loved and it should be affordable and accessible.

We will keep you updated on Junah and what we find out.

Hug your horse today, bury your head and your heart in his or her mane ..........feel the love!

devastating news

Part of me wishes I had left well enough alone and never made Junah a bigger paddock.

After I took the pictures of him grazing the other day he really played hard in his paddock for the first time. Really hard. He was galloping and starting and stopping really hard. At first I was scared, then I started to laugh and enjoy watching him flex his muscles. What an incredible athlete!

Then I saw him take a bad step behind. No big deal he turned and raced back the other direction.

Then he did it again.

It was almost like he did not place his foot flat, almost knuckled over to the front hoof wall. Then the other side did it. If he was not so muscular and athletic with his front end he would have gone down behind. Then his hind end strides got short. Really, really short. There was nothing that looked painful, he still continued to play and snort and all of the veins in his gorgeous body distended with his efforts, he looked amazing. But gone was the beautiful floating trot and collected canter. In its place was a disjointed scary caricature of his former graceful way of moving.

I haltered him and brought him to the barn.

My mind was reeling.

When we first got him Rosemary had played detective quite successfully and tracked down people that knew the breeder and remembered the horse.

They said he had been kicked back from the track for "hind end weakness". We all assumed that he was just a gawky baby that was still growing.

He was a touch lame at Hana's but nothing more than a bit short behind on one side. He had horrific feet, the ground was frozen, and he had been on concrete at the auction yard for days.

At my place he had never been lame. Quite the contrary. He was a beautiful lofty mover and I was so excited to get his feet fixed and get him going under saddle. But he was in a 60ft round pen and had never been able to do anything other than a very collected canter and occasional playful bucks for a few strides.

Now this. I called Dr. Bob DeWard.

I called Rosemary and sent e-mails to the other PUR members.

Then I started putting it all together. The track history, the panicky reaction to us working on his feet was partially due to lack of handling but he had gotten so very kind with everything else and continued to be fearful of giving up his feet. Particularly his hinds.

I felt sick to my stomach.

The next morning I talked to Dr. Bob extensively. We discussed the different things it could be. EPSM, EPM and Wobblers.

With the history of weakness 3 years ago it is unlikely he has EPM. It would have advanced and he would have muscle wasting. He does not. He also would never have been able to collect himself enough to perform the beautiful collected canter he could do in my round pen.

EPSM is also unlikely as his diet is extremely high in starches and he has never showed signs of tying up or muscle tremors.

Wobblers fits. It is a narrowing of the channel that the spinal cord sits in. When a horse aggravates this area when exercising the resulting inflammation causes the spinal cord to be compromised and it most often manifests itself in hind end weakness. The diagnostics are expensive, laying them out under general anesthesia and doing a serious of radiographs with dye to track where the spinal cord is pinched. The resulting diagnosis is not very helpful as there is no known treatment that can make them sound. There is a surgery that can help a bit with some horses, but it does not render them rideable.

Yesterday Junah was reserved when I turned him out. Gone was the scary weakness in his hind end but he was not his usual fluid self. He had short strides and did not do anything more than wander and graze.

This morning he was a bit better and more "normal" in his gaits.

This too fits with Wobblers. As the inflammation fades so do the symptoms.

We are trying to decide what is best for the horse now. It will not be safe to put a human on his back. It will not be safe to have his feet done without laying him out flat to trim him every 2 months. This alone could aggravate his condition.

This is very difficult for me. I watched him follow my husband like a puppy this morning. Andy would stop and pet him and Junah would follow. As a joke my husband walked in a circle. Junah followed with his nose on his shoulder. Watching made a huge lump in my throat and my heart ache.

I have euthanized many animals over the years. You do not have a bleeding heart for geriatric animals and not face this reality on a fairly regular basis. But Junah does not have debilitating arthritis or geriatric disease. He is a young beautiful horse with a scary neurological condition. But he looks perfectly healthy.

It is very hard to consider his fate.

Junah grazing in new paddock

Junah enjoying the grass

New fencing redux

Rosemary and Page were not the only ones re-fencing for PUR horses this week. I must confess my own re-fencing was far less impressive and I had the help of my husband's strong back so I am sure I feel less exhausted than my coworkers!

Pony Up South(I think I see a new farm sign coming) has been housing Junah since we picked him up from his safe home earlier this year. He was saved from the kill pen by Rosemary, but the snow and ice prevented her from picking him up right away. His original caretaker was a wonderful person named Hana who was a brave soul and WALKED him in the snow and ice on the road to her farm and kept him for the first few weeks. She is a brave woman!

Some of the main challenges with Junah are obviously #1 his feet, #2 his lack of handling and #3 his lack of trust in humans. -We have made huge strides with all of these.

His feet are hopefully just one shoeing cycle away from a regular 1/2 set of shoes without the advanced system that he is currently in! This is due to the dedicated work of out farrier Sandy Craig and our vet Dr. Bob DeWard. Look for pics of both and links on our website soon. I have to say both are ridiculously camera shy and getting pics of them may have to wait until the new Hubble telescope is in place in space and we can get them stealthily!

His lack of handling is getting better all the time. He is a gentle soul and wants so desperately to be a pocket pony but just has no frame of reference for the most mundane tasks. Blanketing, fly masks, picking up his feet, all were major hurdles for him. I really want to whap whoever left him in a field to his own devices for years right in the head!

He has a lot of trust in my husband and I now, but truly takes trust one person at a time. The funny thing is he actually is probably best for my long suffering very non-horsey husband who never ever asks him to do anything other than wear a halter and go to turn out or dinner in his stall daily. Watching this gentle giant wait patiently and lower his head while my husband fumbles with the halter is pretty heart warming. I, on the other hand, am the one who asks him to do scary things and this occasionally sets him back in his trust of me.

I will say I am very surprised at what is no big deal for him.......deworming- could not care less, he was given tetanus and West Nile vaccs last week and never flicked an ear, big scary trucks driving right next to him and trailers coming to load compost are completely not an issue. In fact he marches to the fence line to say hi and see what is up. He is an interesting creature for sure!

Back to fencing.......

He has been in my sand round pen to facilitate his hoof healing for months now. The sand and special "clog" shoes allow him to not have a lot of pressure on his hoof walls and keeps them from splitting again until they grow out. His healthy hoof wall growth is well past the 1/2 way point. The downside to this is he is a young 17hh TB who needs to unwind those legs for his mental health. A 60 foot round pen is not enough room, nor is there any grass other than my husband and I hand grazing him. I do not have any of what I would call TB safe fencing on my place. Field fence and New Zealand wire has been very safe for my herd, but I think Junah needs a more visible barrier for the first time he unwinds.

Yes, I am a chicken at heart. Rosemary says I just need to turn him loose and close my eyes, he is not dumb and he will stop behind the same fences that safely hold my 16hh horses. I just cannot do it.

I did have a brainstorm this weekend though! I have been replacing the old rotten post and rail fence around the barn with horse mesh and hotwire....very safe but it would allow him access to the barn, tractor implements etc.......not good. Saturday I was looking out there feeling sorry for him and it dawned on me. With my husbands help we tore apart the round pen and attached the panels to the horse mesh posts making an area the size of a small arena, and best yet there is GRASS for him to graze on.

I did what Rosemary said and turned him loose and closed my eyes. No sound of thundering hooves.......hmmmm I peeked through my fingers and there he was happily, quietly munching on grass. What a good boy! Then he took my breath away. He arched his neck and broke into the most lovely floating trot and then into a smooth collected canter.......

This is a special horse!

news!

We were contacted by the IRS and our 501c3 status is approved. We should recieve the letter this coming week!

This weekend we are re-fencing the paddocks. We purchased wooden posts today and have a tractor coming tomorrow to auger the fence post holes. We have thirty to start with and more coming in the future. No more metal fence posts.........too dangerous, especially with big horses who like to stand on their hind legs and play.

It was a gorgeous day today ........Page and I cleaned paddocks this morning and swept the barn out. I cut Ollies mane and combed out his very long tail. He looks more like the old show horse that he is rather than a wild mustang off the range. No matter...he is the most handsome horse I have ever had.

We have big plans to paint the exterior of the barn and the inside too.....we have a very small barn for right now...but it works......we use every inch of it. We have a microwave and a table and a drug dispensary area. We think we can do without the table and maybe put a bench in where we can easily put our boots on and maybe use it to rest between chores!

Mud dried a little today and next week we will begin the de-mud process with the paddocks. Gravel, road fabric and timbers.......voila.......no mud.

We must also re-roof Beaver's shed. It really looks like non professionals did it and well, truthfully.......non professionals did. ...Page and I. I mean.......It IS functional, it doesn't leak but it does look odd. Did I mention that Page hammers nails like a girl? LOL.

Church (the Holsteiner) let himself out of his stall the other night......there was really nothing for him to get into, but he turned everything over and nosed his way through the trash, left us several piles of poop. He met Page when she came to feed in the morning but obediently went into his stall when she asked.

So much to do on the weekends, we must write a list and prioritize it and reprioritize it as the week progresses. Things change that is for sure.

In the next week, we will bring Junah to the north farm and take Rio to the south farm. Junah needs to use the arena to stretch his Thoroughbred legs........keep your fingers crossed that he keeps his shoes on!

We had a good week of volunteers who want to help.......we have an offer of training for Junah and another offer of grooming and ground work for Rio.

We really love Rio. Such a great horse in so many ways.......he has blossomed at our facility....he is friendly, calls to us and loves to be groomed now.

We have an offer from a local vet to treat our fosters at a great price for dental floats and health checks. More on that later ........we love to give credit where credit is due!

Have a great week.......do something meaningful for yourself or someone else!

A big day for the big baby!

Junah, our six year old, 17 hand rescued Thoroughbred, was ignored in a field for most of his life and, as a result, can be quite reactive and behaves very much like you'd expect from a two year old! He learns to deal with things but you always have to be on the alert and very reassuring when introducing him to something new.

Also, from his brief experience at the racetrack, he seems to have learned to fear that he will be ear twitched, so handling his ears is not his idea of a good time. Given that he is 17 hands and we are not, we have had to teach him a "head down" command but sometimes he forgets that when he is frightened. However, when he is scared, he responds well to being distracted from his fear and asked to do something different, so the "head down" command is often effective in re-engaging his focus.

Today is a warm, sunny day and the flies are out in force. Poor Junah was enjoying a morning snack of grazing on the lawn, but his face and eyes were covered, so we decided the time was right to start teaching him about fly masks. We weren't sure how far we were going to get with this lesson, but hoped we could at least rub the mask on his face and start introducing him to the scary noise of velcro pulling apart near his head. So, that's how we started out. He got the mask rubbed over his face and we spent some time attaching and detaching the velcro so that he could get used to the sound. He wasn't thrilled but we have learned that carrots conquer a great deal of uncertainty where he is concerned, so Chelsea worked with the mask and I stuffed little bits of carrot into his ever-willing lips.

All was going well so we decided to carefully ease the mask over one ear. You can always tell when Junah is nervous because he starts to hold his breath. When he relaxed, we slipped the mask back off. We repeated this process several times, with plenty of carrots and kind words, until he seemed ready to move on. Finally, we carefully eased the mask over his "bad ear" and he did just fine! We attached the velcro and let him go.

He made a few half-hearted attempts to shake off the annoying thing on his face, including kneeling and scrubbing his face on the ground once, and then resigned himself to this new development and proceeded to start inhaling his breakfast hay. Another successful step toward being a well-mannered horse who can find a great home!

Welcome to Pony Up Rescue for Equines!

Welcome! We have started this blog to give us a way to update everyone on our rescued horses, how they are doing, and our events and activities. Pony Up Rescue was formed in early 2009 and we currently have three horses, of which two are ready for adoption.

Rio (shown at left) is an 11 year old gelding who we were told is a Trakehner cross. He is a sensitive, well trained horse who knows a lot and needs a quiet, knowledgeable rider to perform to his full potential. Rio has had a rough couple of years in the wrong place, so he would really appreciate all the comforts of a show home!

Gossip Girl is a 10 year old POA mare, just under 14.2 hands, so she is a large pony. Gossip is easy to ride and tolerant. She longes well and is fantastic on trails. She isn't at all spooky in new places - we rode her last week with someone practicing motocross across the street and she did not even blink. Gossip does need work on her canter and finishing for the show ring, but her sensible and easygoing disposition would make her an ideal Pony Club prospect.

Junah is our rehab horse. A true seventeen hand stunning dark bay, he was rescued just hours away from slaughter. Junah was neglected and his hooves had not been trimmed in years. He lives at Chelsea's house and she has been busy teaching this very big baby that it is okay to trust humans to lead him, groom him and handle his feet. Junah is making great progress and while it will still be quite a while before his hooves are rehabbed enough to start training him under saddle, we think he'll eventually be a wonderful dressage prospect for the right person.

Our rescued horses live with our board members - please e-mail us if you think you may be interested in meeting one!