It's not until looking back, that we realize how much we get done in a short amount of time! June was a very busy month. On June 17th we held our Stable Haven Open House and 2nd Anniversary Celebration. It went amazingly well and we are so grateful to everyone who attended and who helped with the event. See the event photos.
The funds raised from the event were used up very quickly on much needed repairs, veterinary bills, being able to intake and transport four new rescue horses, and the rest went on hay and feed. One of the first things we did with the funds, was to bury water pipes and attach short hoses so that we can fill up our water troughs much more quickly and safely. Dragging a huge and heavy hose around the rescue with volunteers and horses is not only extremely time consuming, and hard work, but can also be a safety hazard! Above left is a picture of one of our new hose setups, and below are new rescues Diamond, Black Betty and Runaround Sue!
In June, we also had a great moment with our little 29 year old rescue, Moose. He came in so emaciated and weak, sad and depressed. After getting back into shape again, and learning how to trust humans once more, we put a saddle on Moose to see if he could be ridden. It turns out that he is an awesome little riding horse. He is now getting gentle exercise and even goes on a short trail ride once in a while. See the video of Moose's transformation below. We are looking forward to see what July holds and are currently planning a couple of new and exciting events so stay tuned for details on those!
Moose's Miracle Video
We could not do any of this without donations from the public. If you wish to donate to Stable Haven visit www.stablehaven.org and click the 'donate' button. Thank you.
Gracie is a favorite with all of our volunteers. This week we focus on her, and two of her biggest fans.
Katee: We start with Katee (pictured left with Gracie). She is 14 years old and lives in Port Orange, FL. Most Saturdays you will find her at Stable Haven, quietly grooming a horse, or showing a new volunteer the ropes. She is very helpful, polite, kind, and has seen us through many ups and downs over the last 12 months. Not only does she help with the horses, but she has jumped in on many occasions to help out the family who run the rescue, from watching the kids, to being a great support during medical emergencies and more!
When asked what her favorite part about volunteering is Katee said "To see the change in the horses from when they come in, and how much better they look after they arrive. It feels good to be part of that.".
Judy: Our other volunteer spotlight this week is on Judy. Judy has been helping out at Stable Haven for around a year now as well. She puts in many, many, physical hours every week, and has coordinated other people to help out putting up gutters, shelters, and has been very generous in personal donations to the rescue. She truly loves the horses and their best interest is what is at the bottom of her heart.
Asked what her favorite part about volunteering at the rescue, Judy replied, "I am very compassionate, and I see value in what others throw away, or see no use in. Like these horses...people throw them away like a piece of trash, but I see them as something wonderful and want to give them the love they deserve.". Gracie is one of Judy's favorites, but she is also forming a bond with new rescue Whiskey (shown with her in the picture above right).
Gracie: 30 year old Gracie came to us in May 2011, close to death. Her recovery has been a slow one due to her age and poor state on arrival. She has always been very lively and full of energy, she has great spirit and is bursting with character. Yesterday we finally tried a saddle on her and she was wonderful. Katee and Judy both got to be there for the moment, and were the fist people to ride her (just for a minute or two, we are taking it VERY slow) since her recovery and see the fruits of their love and care. It was a magical moment, the type that keeps us going here at Stable Haven. Thank you to everyone involved and all of our supporters. See Gracie's transformation video below.
One of our most shocking cases at the rescue, was Chanel, who came in with a body score of 1 (Backbone, ribs, tail head, pelvis, bones of withers and shoulders are prominent and no fat can be felt). In addition, Chanel had severe diarrhea and we really thought we might loose her. Foxy, (in a similar condition) who she came in with, sadly died a few hours after arrival. It was touch and go for many weeks. She needed a special diet, plus dietary supplements and veterinary care. Her weight gain was very gradual. In some cases, horses gain weight very quickly after arriving, but with an older horse like Chanel, who had some underlying medical issues, it can be a long and slow process. People will often comment "why is this one not gaining weight" on some of our old girls. The fact is, they are getting the best possible food and care we can offer, but weight gain just doesn't happen all that quickly in some horses. In addition, when they are this weak and thin, we have to feed them very small quantities of food at a time at the beginning or it can make them extremely ill. This also adds to the time it takes for them to recover.
Chanel's Recovery
Chanel in April 2012
However, slowly and surely she did improve, and 9 year old Harmonie started to form a bond with Chanel and help in her care and recovery. Harmonie groomed, fed, and loved her, and now that hard work has paid off. Chanel still has some weight to gain, but has improved dramatically, so much so, that Harmonie has been able to start riding her. This helps Chanel build a little muscle tone and also exercise her joints. Harmonie had lost her confidence a few months ago after a couple of quirky riding experiences (as happens from time to time!), but Chanel has helped her gain her confidence back.
Harmonie says about 27 year old Palomino quarter horse Chanel, "She has helped me get my confidence back and enjoy riding again; and being ridden and loved, has given Chanel a reason to live". A big thank you goes out to Kaylie of for helping Harmonie with some lessons, and also who made Chanel's awesome blinging tack (from Tack by Kaylie)!
See the video below of Harmonie riding Chanel. We'd say that's another success story for Stable Haven and the horse angels!
Friday, April 20, 2012
Dolly & Cachera
Welcome to Stable Haven Horse Rescue's new blog. We hope to use this as a way to tell stories and keep our fans and supporters up to date with some of our latest happenings. This week Dolly and Cachera arrived. We have been busy tending to Dolly's wound. She came in very skinny, and with a leg injury (probably caused by wire fencing). With a wound like this, we need to pay special attention to clean it and re-dress it every day. Horses with cuts are often susceptible to a condition called 'proud flesh' or infections if wounds are not taken care of properly. It is looking much better now, as you can see (below right) but it was in a shocking state before, and had required stitches. The lady who rescued Dolly and tried to help her, and got her into our care, is very grateful to all the horse angels for making this rescue possible with their donations.
Dolly's Wound
Also, we got news this past week, that one of our horse angels, is going to help us reach our goals of new corral board fencing, to replace much of the wire fencing we have on the property. As you can see from Dolly's injury, wire fencing is not the safest option, however, we have not had the funding to replace it as of yet. So our challenge is, any corral board that one of our horse angels purchase, our donor will match it, up to the value of $5,000. We call it the Corral Board Challenge! Donations can be made at www.stablehaven.org, just be sure to write 'corral board' in the purpose when donating online.
So far our horse angels have donated nearly $500 which means our donor will match that $500 so we are already up to just under $1000! Let's keep this going!
We hope you enjoy this new Blog. Be sure to subscribe to it and share with friends! Thank you.
