BEFORE WE BEGIN:  WE ARE ORDERING BITLESS LG BRIDLES TOMORROW (FROM GERMANY).  IF YOU WANT ONE, PLEASE LET ME KNOW ASAP VIA THIS LINK.  YOU CAN READ TESTIMONIALS THERE FROM THE OTHERS WHO HAVE PURCHASED THIS AMAZING (IMHO) BRIDLE!

THE PAIUTE ORPHAN FOALS’ TRAVEL AS TOLD BY THE ONE WHO DROVE THEM…

Our Bucket Fund this month is for the Paiute Indian Reservation Orphan Foals who were run through the Straight to Slaughter auction in December.  In case you wondered how they became sudden orphans, well… their Mothers were stripped from them and run through – first.

So, here you have 22 newly and horrifically weaned orphans, screaming and frantic, headed for the same fate.  Luckily, an equine angel was given word from a proxy that these babies were in the feedlot, waiting for auction.  She grabbed her wallet and phone and set about saving these wild babies.  And, she did.  She bought them all on a wing and a prayer.  She begged for some time to find housing and they gave her 24 hours.

She did it.  The equine angel found a place to house these babies while they awaited transport to the open arms of several Rescues who agreed to take them on very short notice.

So, the babies sat in their temporary digs, being fed, watered and cared for, but they had no shelter…

(These babies are not wild mustangs but rather wild reservations horses.  The Indians let their wild horses breed freely and then cull the herd as commerce.)

THE STORM

December had epic storms everywhere including California and Nevada.  The babies were in Nevada.  Their new homes were in California.  Between Nevada and California is a very large mountain range which was under blizzard conditions.

THE BENEVOLENT HAULER

As you heard me tell the initial Bucket Fund story earlier (linked here), the weather was horrible and the babies were in an open lot without cover.  They needed to be transported out of their temporary holding pen and driven to the Rescues that agreed to house and care for the babies until forever homes could be found.

The only break in the weather came Christmas night and over the next day.  So, even though it meant an interrupted holiday, the long hauler from Emergency Animal Rescue packed up his riding shotgun buddy (wifeypoo) and they hit the road.  Together, they drive 500 miles to get the foals and another 700 miles to distribute them – in one day.  Not only that, they agreed to haul these babies knowing that they had never been handled.

A WORD ABOUT THE TRAVEL

The benevolent long-hauler wrote about this adventure and sent me his missive.  I have cut and pasted a bit of it to share with you.

He references “the Grapevine”.  Oy.  The Grapevine.  Every Californian knows this and most of us gulp when we hear about going over it in the winter during a storm.

Let me tell you, as one who travels from Southern to Northern California often, the Grapevine, which divides the two, is the Gauntlet of Interstate 5.  It separates the men from the boys, the cream from the curd and the healthy cars from the not so healthy cars.  If your car has any issue, that issue will become front and center on the Grapevine.    Truly, once you are over the Grapevine, you always give a huge sigh, whether you mean to or not…

Here is his excerpt:

Using the barn that had a thoroughfare, we were able to chute the foals directly into the trailer with very little problems.  Remember, these are wild mustangs.  You don’t walk up to them, put a halter on and lead them to the trailer.  Using their natural instincts as a herd animal, once you get one going, the rest follow.  So they all crammed themselves into the trailer and settled into their respective spots. We said our good-byes and headed south towards Bakersfield where we were to meet up with the two rescues from Lake Isabella and Phalen.  Shirley (Equine Angel) had set this up to help save time and distance as well as wear and tear on the animals being in the trailer for so long.

Meeting at the Bakersfield Veterinary Hospital (Large Animal Facility) and had to unload all the foals into a makeshift corral so we could cut the three foals for the High Sierra Wild Horse Sanctuary and the three for Under the Angels Wings.  This took some doing as these foals didn’t want to be separated from their herd so each time you tried to get a couple into the smaller pen, they all wanted to go,  So after about 2 hours of this we finally had them all separated.  We then had to load the remaining 6 back into the EAR trailer.  Again, we bid everyone farewell and safe travels and back on the road again.  It was now getting to be into Monday evening so we decided to get something to eat before heading back out on the road towards Morongo Valley in the high desert.  Luckily for us, there was a Wal-Mart shopping center just down the road so we had plenty of space to park the truck and trailer and found us a couple of restaurants to get something to eat before heading to the next destination.  So we drove a few more hours until we came to the Serenity Center at Xenophon Ranch.  Of course, along the way we had to come down the Grapevine.  Now for those of you who have driven the Grapevine you know that it’s a long, slow uphill trek.  But coming down is a fast paced 18-wheeled roller coaster.  This makes for a white knuckled trip with a trailer full of horses and tractor trailers zipping past you.  But we made it down and on to easier highway driving.

So finally, very late at night, we arrive at the Xenophon Ranch.  The residents are still awake and have a round pen set so I can back the trailer up and, again, unload all the horses out into the ring.  She had a smaller pen with an entrance and she was willing to take the first two who went in.  That happened relatively quick so we had some time to walk around their ranch and see the various animals that called this place home including the ostrich and the buffalo.  So now we’re on our final trip heading to Villa Chardonnay – Horses with Wings in Temecula.  We arrive near sunrise.  The final four foals are weary of the adventure as are we.  The gateway to this rescue is very narrow and the location of the pasture takes a bit of maneuvering to get the trailer set up to unload our tired travelers.  But they are all finally home.  So we embark on our last leg of this journey, getting ourselves home.  We’re tired of being in the truck, we’re tired of being chased by a trailer, and we’re tired of being tired.  But within an hour or so, Cheyenne will be home as will I and though it was a long hard ride; we got these foals a new lease on life which is, after all, what we do.

HAULER TAKING PICTURES?

OK, you tell me how many long haulers that you know of who would take a photo of the horses they are transporting?  Uh, exactly none that I have ever known.

So, I have to hand it to this gentle soul.  No wonder he heads EMERGENCY ANIMAL RESCUE.  This kind-hearted man took at least 10 photos as the babies were being corralled and driven onto his rig.

What hauler does that?  I received the following photos from him.

THE PHOTOS

I’m so enamored with these babies… especially the grey foal who looks directly into the camera in almost every shot.  Look at these photos!  He’s looking at you in every one!  That kills me!  I’ve asked the equine angel to find out where he/she is and to tell me more about him so I can tell you.    He or she must be a real smartyhorse…  ;)

I am also in love with the two with the blazes.  The first one’s blaze looks like a rubber chicken to me.  Do you see that? I wish it reminded me of something else… except that “Chickybaby” or “Hensome” might be a good name as long as she was a girl.

The second one looks like a stingray – you know, the kind you see in a tide pool at the aquarium.  If this one was a boy, “Sting” would be very cool.  Or, “Ray”.

I will do my best to find more about these and ALL of the babies.  They have settled a bit in their new temporary homes so I am hoping to glean some information from their caretakers.

You can tell that they have just been weaned and that Mom is nowhere in sight… look at their faces.

BUCKET FUND

I know these babies are now safe from slaughter.  But, they need upkeep and food and care and training and love to make themselves into good horse citizens for lifetime adoptions.  Yes, they are cute and from an unusual gene pool – but that doesn’t guarantee they will be adopted.  They need handling, training and manners.  I would like us to help these orphan foals with their room, board and education.  This is our ‘scholarship package’, so to speak…

Let’s give these abruptly orphaned foals a meaningful second chance.

Please help support these babies through the Bucket Fund!  MANY, MANY THANKS.

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