A Horse Rescue Organization
Invest in rubber matting for your stall(s). This matting is initially very expensive but will reduce the amount of bedding needed, save time and money, and reduce the size of your muck heap. If you live in a colder, harsher climate, you may need to replace the matting every ten years, but in milder climates it will last for years beyond that. (The rubber matting in the stalls at Sky Ranch is fifteen years old and still in great shape.)
This guy is sweet and handsome…he has put on enough weight that we’ve had to cut him back a bit on the alfalfa cubes! That’s good news.(Digger and Starlight eat soaked cubes in addition to their senior feed because they don’t have good enough teeth to chew hay.)
Starlight, our newest resident, is adjusting very well. She is a sweet natured mare and has gained 75 pounds since her arrival. We are so glad to have her here at the ranch. Some minor health issues seem to have resolved themselves, and she seems content as part of the herd.
Her “backstory” of abandonment is a little different. A horse owner went out to feed her horses and found an “extra horse” in with her horses. Creative abandonment? After advertising brought no one forward to claim her, she went to animal services. Now she’s at home at Sky Ranch.
You can save money by curbing your impulses. Even though you may want the thing that you want this very moment, it may not be the best way to save money. Is the item really necessary, or simply something you could do without (e.g. “Do I really need another halter and lead rope in a different color?”). If you in fact do need something, do some research and find out the best way to spend your money. While considering the base cost, also look at quality, longevity, and any further discounts that may be available.
And as always, never try to cut corners at the expense of your horse’s welfare.
A lot happened here last week. Our beloved mare, Spirit, died suddenly, and we will be missing her for a long time. On a happier note, two days earlier, a new mare, Starlight, came from San Luis Obispo County Animal Services to live at Sky Ranch. She’s guesstimated to be about 30 years old. She was abandoned and left to starve. The other horses in the barn are fascinated by her, and she seems to be adapting well to her new home. As you can see from the photo, she needs to put on quite a bit of weight, and we’re working on that with soaked alfalfa cubes and senior horse food. Starlight has a good appetite and seems very glad to be among other horses again.
In Buddhism, it is said that life consists of 10,000 joys and 10,000 sorrows. I think they are onto something. Loss and its accompanying sorrow are inevitable, especially when caring for older horses. But then there is the joy that comes in getting to know a new horse and giving a her a forever home.
We are thrilled to have Starlight here.