Why we should have a Razzie Awards for horse sale videos!

When video cameras were invented, everybody in horses was thrilled because you could finally show how a horse performed on your web site or send someone a video or the digitized file. Finally, something to attract that long-distance buyer without the person actually having to travel to your farm to see the horse for sale or stallion!

Sadly, some folks have completely missed the point of video.

See Zeus stand.
See Zeus walk around the round bale.
See Zeus...boy, he's dirty, isn't he?

So what? What about this is supposed to make anyone think "wow, I'd love to plunk down $3000 for Zeus. What a great stallion prospect!"

Now, while you obviously can't have riding video of a yearling (yeah, I know, but you shouldn't), I see plenty of other sellers who have managed to create videos that would pique my interest if I were looking for a horse of that type.

Here's a nice one. The AQHA yearling is clean and his mane is done. He's shown moving around both directions at a trot and lope, in a well maintained round pen with even footing. He's a good mover and he seems to be a pretty laid-back guy - there's no head tossing, irritated/annoyed body language or other drama here. Watching this, I can easily envision this guy as a competitive pleasure horse.

Here's another nice video. One thing I really like about this is that the titles have been used to provide important information of interest to a buyer - so even if the video gets passed around all the information is there. She's in a large, safe arena so I'm not being distracted, as I often am while watching sale videos, worrying that the horse is about to hurt itself or get tangled up in something. This filly is wearing her winter coat, but the focus is on her movement and that is being very well displayed here. The only thing I might have added would be some stills from summer to show what she looks like shed out.

As I've said before - it's just like selling a car. You are going to get a lot more buyers and for a better price if it is clean and tuned up. I don't want to hear anybody whine about how their horses are not selling when they show us a dirty yearling circling a round bale - for $3000. Whatcha smoking?

Three cheers for the British Horse Society!

British Horse Society launches "Think Before You Breed" Campaign

"The horse market has slowed down and rescue centres and sanctuaries are full to bursting. With an estimated 1.35 million horses and ponies in the UK, there are simply not enough experienced and knowledgeable homes to cope with our current equine population. The BHS is urging everyone involved with horses to think very carefully before breeding a foal and adding to the problem. "

"BHS Welfare Senior Executive Lee Hackett said “You only need to visit one of the lower end horse markets to see the impact of equine overproduction – poor quality horses and ponies going for less than the price of a good night out. Our welfare officers have many distressing stories of where these horses end up and I’m sure it’s not what their breeders originally intended. "

Lee, that's EXACTLY the reason I started this blog! Going to all the low end auctions and seeing all the CRAP out there that should NEVER have existed in the FIRST place! Sad little horses that were going on the killer's truck as weanlings, yearlings, two year olds, three year olds...no training, no chance at a life. A few years stuck in a field somewhere with minimal care and then, boom, off to be a Frenchman's sandwich. 100% AVOIDABLE MISERY!

However, I think the decline of the global economy has changed things from when I started the blog, two years ago. Originally, I believed that breeding high quality horses was fine - now I've had to rethink that position due to the stunning rate at which normally responsible individuals and families are losing their jobs and homes and ability to support their horses. Even with high quality horses, now is a good time to downsize or temporarily suspend breeding programs. If your mares are healthy and reasonably young, giving them a year off will not end their reproductive careers. Waiting to see what happens before you make more horses that will require homes is just good common sense.

I just don't know where this is going to end. Like many people, even the experts, I didn't correctly predict how bad our economy was going to get and now I'm very doubtful that it's going to get any better any time soon. This is the worst things have been in my lifetime. We truly have a disaster on our hands and many, many horsepeople are affected. The days when you had to be a lazy slacker to be unemployed are gone - these days, many educated and hardworking people are finding themselves out of a job. I suspect a great many people will have fewer horses or decide to have no horses at all in the next few years. The trends may not correct themselves until many years in the future.

One of my oft-said and always controversial statements is that horses are a luxury item. They are. Yes, I love mine too. Yes, I think they are essential to my psychological well-being. But bottom line, they are a luxury item and when people are hard up for money, the luxuries fall by the wayside. You could breed the best horses in the world and if there aren't enough people able to afford them, they won't sell. Expect hay and grain to get more expensive. Mark my words, it's not going to get cheap again. Please start forecasting and planning for your horse business just as you would any other kind of business. The luxury car dealers are all bracing for a hit - make sure you are, too.

So as the BHS says - just think about it. Strongly consider riding, not breeding or greatly reducing your breeding, until we see things swing back in a positive direction. I may be an old cynic but I know that no politician is going to wave a magic wand and fix this. We're in deep, we're in for the long haul, and we'd all better hope for the best, but plan for the worst.

I've heard of barefoot trimming but barefoot grooming?

No, the horse's ass isn't in the foreground of this picture. It's Mommy, bending over on the left, who proudly posted this snapshot with the following description:

"I was out side grooming my 3 girls today and Joseph wanted to help.And he loves playing with the baby so I gave him a brush and a way he went.This will be Josephs first horse he breaks on his own."

ooooooohkay...

So let's see. Joseph there is what? Two? Maybe three? He has apparently not mastered controlling his bladder yet but is outside in a pen with a loose foal, barefoot and grooming it on the ribs with a plastic curry. I don't know about you, but my well broke adult horses have been known to look askance at me if I touch their ribs with a plastic curry. Foal might be resting his hind left or he might be contemplating kicking the annoying plastic-curry-wielding creature at his side.

I guess we could progress this out to the future and worry about a 4 year old breaking a 2 year old or a 5 year old breaking a 3 year old (since this will be "his first horse he breaks on his own"...wonder who is gonna get broke there?), but I'm not sure Joseph is going to make it that long!

Pictures like this make me want to beat the parent in the head with a Pony Club manual. Again, it's not a stuffed toy. It's a 300 lb. unpredictable baby prey animal with sharp little hoofies. It is inches away from turning your child's foot into bloody hamburger, if not knocking him down and doing the same to his face. This isn't cute. This is negligence. If you're a loving parent - and I'm sure you think you are - get him some boots, some jeans, a helmet and a 25 year old pony!

It's breeding season...time for another auction report!

Here's what it all comes down to: If you aren't certain that YOU can afford to keep it for a few years until the economy improves, don't breed it. I don't care what it is anymore - demand is down and I don't think that's going to change anytime soon. Until we have a better idea what is going to happen, this really would be an excellent year to just skip breeding and focus on training and showing what you have. Not to mention that is the best way to drive up the price of your existing inventory!

So, another auction report - this one from Ohio.

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Thought you might like to see a Feb. 21, 2009 auction report from OHIO. This area has alot of Amish so most of these horses are broke to ride and drive. You have the opportunity to hitch them before the sale and drive them on a track behind the sale barn. As Spring approaches and the Amish need draft horses to work the fields, their prices go up as noted in the above average prices for them right now. ( Back in the early 80's, you'd expect to pay $3500 for a grade gelding broke to work the fields and woods.)

It is interesting to see how few of these horses were actually bought by a kill buyer. It's easy to tell who is buying because the KBs horses are called out by number when they are sold and are not Coggins tested as they leave the ring. In talking to a KB before the sale, he said they don't want to buy anything under $850-$900 because, as he said it, it costs the same to kill a pony as it does a horse.

Pretty sad to expect to pay more for a set of new shoes than the value of some of these horses. All, but two were in excellent shape, and most very well broke to drive, and often to ride as well.

Cute overo pinto mini - $180

Pony, broke to ride & drive - $170

NICE (show quality) Quarter Pony mare, ridden in by small child - $270

Pony, rides & drives - $140

Welsh Pony, nor broke - $80

Quarter Horse/Pony cross, well broke - $50

Pony, white, very well broke - $110

Morgan, six months old, can be registered, very cute - $110 (sold to KB, very sad, but hope he bought to resell.)

Pony, B&W, rides and drives, 6, mare - $150

Reg. Halflinger mare, 11, in foal - $175

Halflinger mare, in foal , 12, broke to drive - $100

Halflinger mare, 3, broke to drive - $90

Halflinger mare, 1, $70

Halflinger, gelding, 2, broke to ride & drive - $130

Black and white, fat, mare, rides & drives - $350

Nice looking gray mustang - $70

Very nice mini donkey, in foal to mini horse - $160

Very nice Halflinger, gelding, 4, broke to ride & drive - $330

Halflinger, 5, broke to ride & drive - $250

Large Appy pony, 6 - $75

Small black, QH, 3 - $50 (sold to KB)

Nice black Morgan, 22 - $135

Fugly black mare, sold with saddle and bridle - $175

Chestnut, gelding, 15, broke to ride - $200 (sold to KB)

Belgian mare, 3, not broke - $600

Belgian mare, 10, not broke - $200

Belgian/Halflinger cross, 9, broke - $650

Belgian, geld, broke - $600

Reg. Belgian mare, broke - $250

Belgian, grade, 3, thin - $65 ( sold to KB)

Belgian, gelding, 5 broke - $100 ( sold to KB)

Percheron, lame, gelding, 5 - $100 (sold to KB)

Belgian mare, 5, broke - $270

Belgian, 10, broke, bad leg - $55 (sold to a home)

Reg. Belgian, mare, 2 - $125 (sold to KB)

VERY NICE Hackney cross, b&w, gelding, drive in by small child, - $150

Another one doesn't bite the dust!

So, the economy's in the toilet, half the people I know are out of work and life is scary. I think it's time for a happy ending story and fortunately I received one in my e-mail this week! Cheree decided to go to the New Holland auction this Monday and her story is not an unfamiliar one. I've edited a bit for length but the important parts of the story are there.

"My day was off to a rough start before I even left the house. I set my alarm for 5:00 am, but didn't sleep a wink, I was up all night tossing and turning, just dreading the day ahead of me.

I was looking for an Arab, luckily for my new guy, there were none in sight... I walked the aisles over and over again.... looking at all these poor horses... Some of them nice, some very neglected, too thin, cuts, scars, and a lot of draft horses....I saw a young filly, who was obviously scared to death with her eyes bugging out of her head, pull back on her tie, as something spooked her, she was pulling back and going crazy trying to break free, and some people came and took a cattle rod to her rear, and scared her even more, and she finally reared up and flipped over cutting her back up.

It wasn't long before the horse I was meant to save chose me to save him... His number was 388... he was a gorgeous 16 hand bay thoroughbred. He turned around as much as he could and starred at me, locked eyes, and held it for a good 30 seconds or more even, without reading too far into, his eyes most definitely were pleading for my help... He was so nice looking, I thought for sure he'd be out of my price range, he was the nicest horse at the auction, and the locked eye contact touched me, as all the other horses were either too busy biting and kicking each other or so scared the kept their faces buried in their hay... This one was special.

Five minutes later my friend Rita arrived and I took her to see him... and he was gone. Never being to New Holland before, I am very confused... "Where could he have gone?" "The auction didn't even start yet?!" Rita new where he had gone...he was in the kill pen... purchased privately by a meat buyer before the start of the auction.... We found the broker who brought him to the sale and proceeded to find out which dealer bought him and if he was in fact in the "pen."

We met much resistance to say the least. I had five good ol' boys at once telling me "You don't want that crazy son of a bitch, that horse will hurt you, he is CRAZY!" "I'm not gonna sell you that horse, he deserves to be slaughtered, that crazy son a bitch got loose in here, and it took five of us to catch him, we had to rope that crazy a$% horse, you do not want that horse!" I politely asked and stated "what makes him so crazy?" "If I got loose at a scary auction like this, I would run too and you could bet no one would catch me!" I then asked "is this crazy horse broke to ride?" They said "yes, he's a real nice riding horse, BUT he's crazy as sin, real head shy won't let you touch his face, if the wind blows he'll rip our arms off, again lady, YOU DO NOT WANT THIS HORSE!"

Rita and I then walked back to the kill pen, and there he was... with about 25 other horses, he was more scared than any horse I have ever seen in my life, he was bleeding slightly on the face by his left eye, and has been kicked in the cheek and was all puffy, his eyes were big and blood shot, he was so scared... I gave him a treat through the bars and he snatched it up... I walked away with Rita... we were very sad....as we were walking back to the barn... the reality set in and I realized, that I had given that horse his last treat... the last treat he'll ever have.... How can I let this happen to such a young, beautiful and so called "crazy" horse??? I couldn't.....

We headed back to the barn to find the meat dealer who had his fate sealed... Rita was coaching me along the way.... I was scared to death to have to go head to head with the meat dealer trying to make a deal for a horse I know he didn't give a damn about.... Rita stood back, and I approached the man pointed out to me.

He said "You're back? You still want that crazy horse, don't you?" I said "What do you want for him?" He said "How much you really want him?" I said "It's not about how much I want him, it's about what he' worth, how much?" He said "500.00" I said "NO WAY 350.00", he laughed in my face, and said AND I QUOTE "Shit no, I'll get more to slaughter that SOB, they'll give me at least 700.00 for a horse that size, then he raised his voice, his face got really grim and mean and said "NO DEAL" I looked over to Rita, she was holding up three fingers as to say "No more than THREE HUNDRED" and I agreed...I walked away.... (FHOTD in: Good for you, Cheree. We don't really help the horses when we let these guys take us for much more than the horse is worth)

Rita and I looked at some other horses, but I couldn't get it out of my mind... The locked eyes earlier, the scared eyes in the kill pen, did I really feed this horse his last treat? I decided I would approach him (the meat guy) again.... He had a smirk on his face this time, but was still very mean....I told Rita my plan was to poke holes in what the horse was worth, by asking it's age, and is he registered, etc.... I walked up to the meat buyer who is standing with the broker who sold him the horse... He laughed at me and said "back so soon?" I said "How old is this horse?" Broker said "5" I asked if he was registered broker said "should be, he got a lip tattoo, he's off the track, they don't race sh*# horses, although this one's crazy, and that's why he's here." The meat dealer then said "You got cash? I said "yes, but not 500.00", he said 400.00" I said "350.00" he said "375.00, let me see it" I took the money out and put it in his hand and he said to me "now look, you gotta go get the horse out of that pen, I ain’t goin' in there with all those other crazy horses, and I ain’t touching your crazy ass horse, and when this horse hurts you, I don't want you comin' up to me next auction cryin' about it, it's buy at your own risk, and you just did, ( as he shoves the money in his pocket) now go get your horse out of my pen, and good luck to you, cause you're gonna need it!" I then heard him mumble under his breath as I was walking away “crazy ass broad."

Rita and I went back numerous times to check on him to make sure some auction worked didn't throw him back in the pen, by accident... I eventually got so paranoid, I went back and made a sign that said "SOLD! DO NOT LOAD THIS HORSE" When I went back there to put the sign on his stall, I noticed three more kill pens, three total, all full.... There were such nice horses in the slaughter pen, some had brand new blankets on, new halters...I wonder if their owners knew what happened that day at the auction, and where they were headed... It was hard... to say the very least.

I slipped in my pen with the new "crazy" horse, that "won't let you touch his face" and in less than a minute, I was scratching inside his ears, took his halter off to adjust the size, put it BACK ON... The horse although still very stressed, was as good as could be, his eyes softened, he listened when I spoke to him, he let me rub his face, and feel the lump on his cheek where he was kicked, I brushed him with my hands, feed him treats.... Rita walked back and said "Yeah, he seems reallllllly crazy doesn't he?" We both laughed, he surely wasn't crazy....The kill buyers thought he was a "crazy SOB" because he escaped at the auction and was running for his life, he didn't want to be caught, because he has a will to live!! To me and Rita, that's a smart horse fighting for his life, not a dangerous one...

I confirmed my address with my shipper, and I waited until most of the kill pen horses were gone to make sure they didn't try to sneak mine back into the herd and take him! I headed home.....My new OTTB was about 45 minutes behind me... he arrived, safe and sound... The most defining moment for me was when he stepped off the trailer and was heading toward the barn, and I was leading him... he let out this huge **sigh** and his eyes became as soft as they possibly could... He relaxed almost instantly.

I led him back past the barn to the QT round pen, and put him in there, I went and got a blanket, tied him which the meat buyer and broker who sold him said COULD NOT BE DONE, "YOU CANNOT TIE THAT HORSE HE'LL TAKE DOWN THE BARN" I tied him to the fence of the round pen, and brushed him and put his blanket on, and he was wonderful, I put medicine on the cut by his eye, wonderful....He didn't even threaten to drag me, pull me, spook at being tied up.. He is very certainly NOT a crazy horse. I have named him "Nic" short for "Nic of time" because I literally got there just in the nick of time to save him….

The next day...We found out who Nic is, he is "Jazzercised"off the track with some small earnings of 9700.00 He had 20 lifetime starts, placed 2nd in one race and 3rd in another... and that's it... His lip tattoo reads G25589... He is home and doing well. He has bonded with me so fast (faster than any horse I have ever had) that I am certain he knows I have saved his life, he runs to me in the pasture and lets out a huge whinny at the sight of me. I love him to death, and will not be re-homing him. He is grateful and I am in love....

My angel Rita, tracked down the last recorded trainer/owner... Kelly Bailey, by
calling the Maryland breeders assossiation for racehorses. She said "I am looking for Kelly
Bailey, about a horse named Jazzercised. Kelly called back almost immediately, excited
to speak to Jazz's new owners and ready to tell them all about her baby, his history,
what he likes, what he does not like, etc... The news Rita was about to deliver would devastate
her, and it did....

Rita gave Kelly the short version of what happened at New Holland, Kelly was
heart broken, distraught and shocked, she couldn't believe it..... She told Rita she
would call me at 8pm on her break and she did, at 8:00 sharp last night my phone rang... There
was a very unhappy, and heartbroken woman on the other end of the line. She allowed me
to share Nic's story, I could hear her crying when I proceeded with details of the kill
pen, and seeing Nic AKA "Jazzie" in there.... She was horrified to save the least.. Kelly
is also a huge anti slaughter supporter.. she saves horses from the track herself... so how did
this happen???

Kelly worked for the man that bred Nic, he had the most beautiful racing ranch
in Maryland, 100 acres on the water of the Cheseapeake Bay, she raised/trained
Nic from a baby, the man, who was a multimillionaire passed away, and had a huge herd
disposal, the horses sold for major bucks... except Nic, no one wanted him because he was
a 3 year old gelding, not yet started on the track... so she took him home to her
ranch... Nic didn't have the mind of a racehorse, she said he was too people friendly and too sweet, and not at all competitive... she decided though, that Nic was too nice of a horse with
too much potential to be a pasture pet, so she took him to a prestigious Dressage farm,
who are known for getting Thoroughbreds, not cut out for racing from the track, training
them dressage and selling them to fancy, big money homes. She took Nic to this woman,
and told her to try him for a few days... the woman loved him, thought he had tons
of potential for third level dressage and bought him for 5,000 with papers in
October/Novemeber of 2008 according to Kelly.

Shortly after, a friend of Kelly's who works with her at the track in Maryland
started doing some work with this dressage barn that Kelly sold Nic to. Kelly told her friend
that her "Jazzie" was there and asked how he was doing... The friend mentioned that
"Jazzie" had been sold to a supposedly "great home" two weeks ago... Kelly felt good, and was
hopeful about his future as a show horse....No need to worry or ask questions, right?
Wrong..

After receiving the phone call from Rita and then after talking to me, Kelly
knows that Nic did not go to a good home, but that he was dumped for slaughter... she hung up
with me and called the dressage barn... She told the woman she sold Nic to, that he was
pulled from the slaughter pen at the New Holland auction by a woman looking for a save
that day... The woman said "That's too bad" and proceed to say, that Nic just wasn't
working out for her schooling program, and that she had GIVEN him away for free to a guy
whose daughter had just lost her horse to colic and wanted a three day eventing
horse... RED FLAG #1- Who pays 5,000 for a horse and then GIVES IT AWAY??? And Kelly had a buy back clause, so why wasn't she given the option of buying Nic back???? Kelly
then asked WHY Nic wasn't working out for her schooling program, the woman said he was lame
in the back legs... RED FLAG #2... He was lame in the back legs, yet she gave him
away to a three day eventing home, where they JUMP horses??? AND if he was lame, wouldn't
this woman call Kelly and say "Hey you gave me a lame horse, I want my 5,000 back"
????? Nic is not lame, I watched him rip around the pasture for hours yesterday and he's
doing the same today.... No sign of any lameness at ALL. Obviously she is lying.... here
comes the next big RED FLAG.... Kelly tells me that she is heading over to the dresssage
barn to go get Nic's papers for me asap... I said "They still have his papers?" They do...
Okay... so let me get this straight... This woman paid 5,000 for a horse a few months ago, and
then GAVE IT AWAY to someone she didn't know, because he wasn't working out for her
schooling program, because he was lame, so she gives him to a JUMPING HOME, who
wants to do thee day eventing, which you need registration papers to do, which
she did not send with Nic, because SHE KNEW he was going to auction and did not want to
be traced back to the horse..... Kelly was very upset, as we pieced this together
she knew the woman was lying to her, and was upset that the woman didn't seem at all shocked
or upset that Nic was in a kill pen in PA... obviously this woman never called
Kelly like she promised she would to come get her horse back, IF THINGS WEREN'T WORKING OUT...and never gave her the option of buying Nic back as agreed upon in her buy back
clause... why not? That will remain a mystery....

Kelly offered to take Nic back from me right away, but I said no. I assured her
he is safe here and I am going to be keeping him forever, because he's very special to me,
and he is my first true, blue, slaughter save, straight from the pen, it means too much to
me... She was happy at that, and is coming to visit him, registration papers in hand.

It was confirmed today, that Kathy Hargess of Equilibrium Horse Center in MARYLAND, sold this horse to a meat dealer named Rich Lowe, who then traded the horse for some hay to a meat dealer that sells direct to slaughter. Many people have stepped forward since hearing Nic's story to say this is not the first time, nor the last this woman will lie her ass off and continue to dump more horses, very nice, very undeserving horses... I think she should be exposed!

FHOTD back in: No problem. Now she is! And thank you for saving Jazz, he is ADORABLE!

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This week, I had the honor of helping deliver another ex-racehorse Theycallmecolonel, to a truly wonderful foster home that may turn permanent in the future. Colonel is a multiple stakes winner whose knees show how hard he ran. You should have seen his face when I led him back into the sort of elegant barn he grew up in, and I hear the look on his face when he heard the crinkle of a peppermint wrapper again was priceless!

That's what makes it all worthwhile. Keep up the good work, all of you who are out there doing this, and if you can't do it hands-on, please shoot a few dollars to those who do. $3 buys a generic dewormer, so every little bit helps and counts!

Update: Oh Canada! You did good!

Press release dated yesterday from the British Columbia SPCA:

Owner of McBride horses charged with three counts of animal cruelty

February 24, 2009. For immediate release.

Frank Mackay, the owner of two horses abandoned in McBride, B.C., in December 2008, has been charged with three counts of animal cruelty, following a BC SPCA investigation. The charges include two counts under the Criminal Code of Canada and one count under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act.

The dramatic Dec. 23rd rescue of the three-year-old mare named Belle and the 14-year-old gelding named Sundance made national headlines after volunteers spent a week shoveling a one-kilometre trench through the snow to save the abandoned horses. The BC SPCA took the rescued horses into care in late December and determined that they would not be returned to Mackay.

"We placed the horses in temporary foster care where they received ongoing veterinary care until they were ready to be adopted,” said Shawn Eccles, the BC SPCA’s chief animal protection officer. He noted that the horses were malnourished and were suffering from rain scald and other medical issues as a result of exposure to the freezing temperatures. “Earlier this month they were placed in permanent homes in Prince George and Kamloops.”

Frank Mackay makes his first court appearance in McBride on June 12th. If convicted of the charges, he faces a maximum fine of $10,000, up to five years in jail and a prohibition on owning animals.

The BC SPCA is a non-profit organization which depends primarily on donations to carry out cruelty investigations and to provide care for nearly 40,000 abused, injured, neglected and abandoned animals each year. If you can help, please visit spca.bc.ca/help for details.

For more information: Shawn Eccles, Chief Animal Protection Officer, BC SPCA, 604.709.4668; 604.834.7856 (cell); Lorie Chortyk, General Manager, Community Relations, 604.647.1316; 604.830.7179 (cell).

The BC SPCA is a non-profit organization funded primarily by public donations. Our mission is to prevent cruelty and to promote the welfare of animals through a wide range of services, including cruelty investigations, emergency rescue and treatment, sheltering and adoption of homeless and abused animals, humane education, advocacy, farm animal welfare, spay/neuter programs, and wildlife rescue and rehabilitation.

FHOTD back in: I am so happy to see this and we definitely have everybody who complained about the outrage of this successful, educated man leaving these horses to starve and die. There are certainly cases where ignorance or lack of monetary resources contribute to abuse and neglect; however, this clearly was not one of them. I doubt I will ever think justice has truly been served unless he is assigned to shovel the driveways of all of the people who dug out his horses BY HAND in the MIDDLE OF WINTER but this is definitely a step in the right direction!

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For the Seattle area folks:



Save A Forgotten Equine, a rescue that gets my highest recommendation, is holding a fundraiser art show on Sunday, April 5, 2009 from 2-7pm at the Abbey Ballroom on the corner of 19th & Fawcett in Tacoma. There will be great food and lots of opportunities to both shop and help horses. Facebook Page. If you're local, come on down!



Another great update:



Remember the Thoroughbred mare in California with severe white line disease who had to find a home or she'd be euthanized? Well, she found one that got her the good farrier care she needed and now they've been able to start riding her again. She is sound and doing fine and they plan to offer her for adoption as soon as her hooves are 100%. Huge kudos to her adopter and their great farrier for a wonderful job saving this young, beautiful mare!



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lVGDiPEXE0s&feature=channel_page



Still working on the videos - I have to see if I can upload them straight from my phone or something. They're pretty entertaining - I'll keep working on it!

Choo Choo! Another "sanctuary" train wreck!

(Warning: dead horse pictured at link)

http://calcoastnews.com/news.php?viewStory=172108

A husband and wife team of internationally known environmentalists, paid handsomely to oversee a San Luis Obispo County sanctuary for infirm animals, has ordered the accelerating slaughter of many of their wards.

Former and present employees of the Dancing Star Foundation claim that its top officers, Michael Tobias and Jane Gray Morrison, intend to focus on endangered animals. They say the pair has commenced the systematic elimination of aged and infirm farm animals under the foundation’s care, contrary to the foundation's purpose.

Tobias and Morrison have reportedly told employees that economic issues prompted the kill policy."

No, really? You took in a ZILLION animals and now you can't afford them? Well gosh golly gee, who thought THAT could ever happen? I'm sure that happened overnight and you had no warning, right?

"Officials claim they investigate possible adoptive families before releasing the animals. Employees state that animals are handed over to anyone with a trailer. “Employees and friends in utter desperation are allowed to adopt these animals without any paperwork or inspection of the living conditions of where these animals are going,” an employee said. “These employees are making $9 an hour. They can barely feed themselves. It is total chaos.”"

*headdesk*

I've never had a problem with a rescue euthanizing unadoptables, particularly if they're dangerous to handle, but DON'T LIE ABOUT IT. When you portray yourselves to your donors as a LIFETIME SANCTUARY, then you do not have this right. If you mismanaged it so badly that you're in trouble (gee, the original founder didn't run it into the ground), then you should be turning it over to someone else who's a better manager than you, not just killing everything.

"Both Evans and numerous employees noted that while foundation officials are firing staff and eliminating animals, they are spending funds on the construction of new barns and upgrading existing facilities.

“They built a new barn for $120,000 then killed the animals in the barn below,” Rowley added. “They are building shelters with no limits. However, they are putting down the animals with health problems and the older ones. You can see were the money is going.”"

And now they want to just get into endangered animals? Shit, everything's endangered when it lives THERE!

Unbelievable.

(Apologies to those of you waiting for the secret video from this weekend...you know who you are and it is coming but I have had video format difficulties and it will take more time than I have this morning.)