OUR GRACE
I saw this photo of Grace the other day and I couldn’t believe my eyes!
Look at Amazing Grace now!!
Let me help you with this refresher… Grace was our Bucket Fund babe for the month of September. Our Group raised the most ever for this poor, starved mare. Giving to her was so wonderful because we could watch her fill out daily. It was as if we were putting coins in a real horsey piggy bank that was actually getting fatter as the funds grew! And, since so many starvation cases don’t have a happy ending, this one was especially dear to my heart because she fought against all odds. This horse should not have made it…
Grace before, the skinniest horse still alive.
OMG! Did Darla (Strawberry Mountain Mustangs) and Ms. Grace (she had a will to live…) do a great job or what?!
From this...
If you don’t know Grace’s story, you can read it here. Basically, the poor mare was left with a few other horses who wouldn’t let her eat. Her owners did nothing so Grace gave up. When she was seized by Animal Control, no one thought Grace would live. She was the skinniest horse still alive; a .5 on the Henneke Scale. That’s bad. Real bad.
To this!... in just a few months.
But lookey at her now!! Wohoo! Give her some groceries and she’s a whole new mare!
If you click here, you can watch a news video about Grace. And, if you listen really closely, you can hear Darla’s teeth chattering!… It gets cold up there in Orygun (I lived there so I can say that…)!
DIXIE
Well, not so good news for one of our Stocking Stuffer horses, Dixie. I just wrote about her on Sunday. Her story is linked here.
Dixie, waiting to be rescued, calling after Theresa who visited for the first time.
Anyway, she was rescued because she was all alone in a field, very skinny with no shelter and she was coughing. Her owners had her for 18 years but didn’t want to mess with her anymore. So, this very sweet mare was brought to BHFER to be nourished and loved. In the few days so far, she has blossomed, gained some weight, stolen hearts and found her true love in a gelding named Prince.
Dixie's cough is worse... they are giving her every medication known to help this condition.
All was looking good… except her cough is becoming worse. The Doctor was out today and here is what Theresa said:
“Dr. Ryan came out to examine Dixie today – she started coughing over the weekend. Her temperature was ok but her HR and RR were elevated. A CBC was done. We will be starting her on an AeroHippus aerosol inhaler system as soon as it arrives – it should be here tomorrow. She has also been started on antibiotics. She also gets Dex and Ventipulmin. Dr. Das is coming to work on her on Wednesday. Dixie could use prayers.”
So, if you were thinking of donating to Dixie (and receiving a certificate to give as a gift…), please click here. With all the medical expenses, Dixie could use a helping hand or a sponsor.
Dixie and her new love... Prince.
HOW DID HORSES STOW ON BOATS LONG AGO?…
Originally, today’s post was going to be about how horses traveled on boats long ago.
You see, I was reading the book, THE SOUL OF A HORSE which was just given to me. One of the chapters describes horses on a Spanish ship which ran aground and the horses fell off of the boat and swam to shore.
That was interesting to me… and the way the author described the stowage totally peaked my curiosity. He used the term, “sway”. It felt as if he was suggesting that the horses were in harnesses in their stalls or whatever containment areas they had back then. Hmmmmm. So, I went a huntin’ – Google huntin’.
But, I found nothing.
I swear. I tried every which way to come up with the correct search keywords and NOTHING. Goose eggs. I even asked Hubby how to search for what I wanted. He suggested I key in “early vessel livestock transportation”. Sounded good. Nothing.
The horse looks to be in a hammock type sling...
I still have no idea how they transported horses back then. But, I do know that the death rate was 50%. And, the other 50% generally got eaten after they survived the trip… Hard times. It wasn’t until way later that the seamen figured out how to live off the land and not the horses. Anyway, the success of the horse in sea travel was tied to man’s ability to survive and create better methods, obviously. And, things got much better for the horse just about the same time that sea travel became more luxurious for the human as well..
I have no idea why I couldn’t find much information. Maybe all the voyagers were just so dang tired that they didn’t want to remember any of it — ever. I have no clue why there was no documentation. Of, if there is, Mr. Google was keeping it to himself. All I got was this one measly photo… which really isn’t that measly – I quite liked it. You can see that the horse is in a hammock-like swing contraption. I’m sure his feet touched the ground but I’m guessing this swing made it easier for him to maintain his balance without slamming into the walls of his stall.
The second photo doesn’t help much since it is from 1940 and fairly recent. But, I thought it was cool so I put it in anyway…
GABRIELLE SUTTON, equine nutritionist
When Norma started suffering laminitis yesterday, I immediately thought of Gabrielle. So, I contacted her and we chatted. I was reminded how much I respected her wealth of knowledge and plethora of detail in the food/chemical/mineral arenas. You can read my previous post about her here.
She came to my ranch last year to help with Aladdin. I followed her around like a puppy with a notepad. She could look at a horse and tell me what I needed to start feeding and what I needed to stop feeding. At the end of the visit, she had all 14 of my horses on their precise and particular diets. It was manageable and easy to understand — because it all made so much sense.
I still have her hand written instructions laminated on the barn refrigerator. I swear. I also follow her worming schedule (way less invasive) but that is for another day…
Click here to go to her site
Previously, Gabrielle was a human nutritionist. She has since moved to equines and now has a large team of Researchers, Naturopath, Nutritionist, Veterinarians, Agriculturist and Consultants who are available 24/7. Love that.
Anyway, while we were chatting, she told me about her FREE (Yay!) webinar.
Now, I’m not a big webinar person because I don’t like giving out my email address to people who are selling things… However, I signed up for hers immediately. It is on Dec 6th, 7pm Central Time. Here is the link to register and the info. If you are at all interested in equine nutrition and equine food/health relationships, you should sign on to be a part of this. They are taking potential topics from all that join so this is possibly your chance to get that nagging question answered!
Here is the info:
Webinar
Tell us what you want to know and become a Member of the KAM Equine Learning Circle
Join us for a Webinar on December 6
Space is limited.
Reserve your Webinar seat now at:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/671602770
Would you like to learn more about what can be done to help your horse with ulcers, EMS/IR, lameness, hives, colic, allergies, back pain, hoof problems, arthritis and so on? Do you struggle to determine the best nutrition for your horses and become completely overwhelmed by the vast array of feeds and supplements available? What about issues like conditioning, saddle fitting, shoeing, dehydration, long travel, legal use of supplements, teeth floating and the many other questions you need answered?
Join the first FREE webinar on December 6th at 7pm CST and participate in an “all around” Equine Wellness session that allows you to submit your questions and top picks of topics to be covered in the upcoming webinar series starting in early 2011.
Starting January 10th, every other Monday night at 7pm CST, KAM Animal Services along with staff Veterinarian Dr. John Hanover and guest “experts” will hold an educational webinar on various equine health topics that are important to anyone owning and caring for horses. These will be MUST KNOW webinars!
Each webinar will get into detail with topics that will help you help your horse. By you becoming an “Equine Learning Circle” member, you will become more knowledgeable and will be armed with the information you need to keep your horses healthy and happy.
The “Equine Learning Circle” topics will be expanded from KAM’s very popular “Tips of the Week,” which has been posted every Monday on www.dressagedaily.com, www.horsesdaily.com and www.horsesinthesouth.com.
Take a moment to visit KAM Animal Services website where all recent tips that have been published can be found.
Title: Tell us what you want to know and become a Member of the KAM Equine Learning Circle
Date: Monday, December 6, 2010
Time: 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM CST
THAT’S IT FOR TODAY! Thank you for reading and if I knew what I was going to write for tomorrow, I’d give you a snippet here. But, right now, I have no idea. Doh!
INSTANT KARMA DO-GOODING!
Instant Do-Gooding. Click here!
HELP WITH PAYBACK!! Donation Gift Certificates are here! Yup, if you donate to help Tullie (the burned horse), Gump (the ugly horse), Dixie (the starved and sick horse) or the Wild Mustangs/Burros (the gathered horses), you can now get “A Donation has been made in Your Honor” certificates to give as gifts! You can use them for coworkers, family, friends or in lost pet’s names… Yay! For Instant Karma, click here! Your donation will immediately turn into a certificate for you!
HORSE AND MAN is a blog in growth… if you like this, please pass it around!
November Bucket Fund - Help the Gathered Mustangs! Click here!
