Otto Enjoying Summer
Sunshine, soft, fluffy dirt and playing with friends are the best reasons to lay down for a nap…everyday…several times a day. It’s usually the position Otto is in when our volunteer photographer visits the property. (Thanks Kristina!) He can’t be bothered to get up unless it’s to blow kisses. Otto spends his days…
Training Update: Rae
Rae, who was born at SAFE in November of 2018, has blossomed into quite the nice mare! This summer she has been in regular work in preparation to meet adopters — when she’s not out grazing with her buddies Nova and Valentine, she’s in the round pen going over trot poles and learning to guide off of her rider’s leg and respond to their seat, among other things. Check out a snapshot of Rae’s…
Ruckus is Adopted!
Ruckus was one of five horses surrendered to SAFE in 2016 after their owner passed away unexpectedly. He and his friends came to SAFE in good health, but with very uncertain futures. Ruckus quickly became a volunteer favorite, and we delighted in the way this tiny horse conducted himself among his much larger herd mates, each of whom clearly adored him. He was adopted fairly quickly in April of…
Training Update: Rope work with Esme
Esme has had a busy summer, spending much of her time learning to wear a saddle (some days, it’s easier than others) and drilling the groundwork basics on the regular. One big hurdle for Esme has been getting comfortable with the rope touching her — her back, her legs, even the area where she already knows the saddle goes. In the video below, Terry works with Esme to help support her through…
Gabby Meets the Halter
Trisha has made such amazing progress with Gabby, that we got behind on sharing her last milestone! Here you see Gabby realizing a halter is no big deal.
Tilt is Adopted!
Tilt was adopted in March 2021 along with another horse friend, Valentine, a 16 year old sweet chestnut mare, but due to unfortunate circumstances, both made their way back to SAFE. Tilt was only back at SAFE for a few short months before catching the eye of one of our Alumni Adopters, Julie. Julie adopted Jewel back in 2017 and was just across the park from SAFE. Both regularly participated in…
Montana’s Mountains and Valleys
Rome wasn’t built in a day, and the same applies to the education (or re-education) of some horses. Montana’s arrival at SAFE coincided with the end of summer last year, where we were spending lots of time picking up fallen apples from our trees and starting to think about stall assignments for when our herd started coming into the barn at night. Montana then was a nervous, snake-necked gelding…
Alumni Update: Aiden
Maeve and Copper (formerly named Aiden) in a July 4H gaming show. What a photo!! Next stop for these two is the Pierce County and State fairs!
Training Update: Edward
In addition to his work under saddle, we have been spending some time sending Edward over trot poles to aid with strength and conditioning. It is always a treat to watch the floaty way horses move over poles, and this handsome boy is certainly no exception! Check it out at https://www.youtube.com/embed/GHTajUXXruQ
Cramer Making Strides
Cramer has made some huge strides (but with legs his length, maybe it’s just a normal stride for him) the last several months here at SAFE. It wasn’t all that long ago that he was first learning to walk from paddock to round pen, a relatively short distance that once felt like miles. Now, his resume includes participating in a Joel Conner clinic alongside Lexee N, being turned out in a herd…
Hooves of Glass
Remember when Darla blew an abscess, way back in January? The shockwaves of that are still being felt all the way now in August. There was a sweet spot a few months back where she was sound, and we thought that we were in the clear. But it was not to be. Shortly after we got Darla back into regular work, she came up lame again. That same hoof again, the dreaded left front, was still proving to…
Rodeo Fundraising Results
Written by our volunteer, Debbie Meyer. As you may have heard by now, this year’s Heart of the Horse fundraiser was a huge success, raising an all-time high of $320,000! Most of that money was raised at the Heart of the Horse Barn Party. However, contributing to the overall total was the online Silent Auction which brought in over $18,000 and the results of the volunteers’ Sweethearts of the…
Handsome Horse Modeling School
Horse, or hat model? These days when he’s not wearing a saddle, Artie Shaw entertains with displays of handsome stoicism to rival any fashion week editorial. I jest, of course – a hat perched atop his head is not a common look for Artie. And while I’ll be the first to admit it’s quite a delight to play dress up with a handsome little horse, the fact that Artie allows such childish…
Welcome, Pomme and Dolly!
Sometimes, the rescuing begins before horses even arrive at SAFE. When the horses now known as Pomme and Dolly were first seized by animal control, they were in rough shape. Pomme, a 25-year old sorrel grade mare, had the concavity between rib cage and spine that is indicative of the lowest body condition scoring numbers, a ratty coat that had not fully shed out, lice infesting her deadlocked…
New Horses, Sebastian and Bijou!
Sebastian and Bijou were found abandoned at the Tree Farm in Arlington. Snohomish County Animal Control posted publicly searching for their home, but after no one came forward, they were released to SAFE. Bijou is a 10 year old Quarter Horse mare who is very sweet and may have been a riding horse in her past. Her hooves are very flat and we hope to schedule a visit with the farrier soon to fit…
George: One of the Guys
George is one goofball of a gelding. His curious nature got him his name, and he lives up to it every day. But this tendency to dive head first into the world can get him into a bit of trouble, especially by his horse-peers. George isn’t always the most receptive to what his equine friends are telling him — responding to subtlety is not his strong suit. This means that on occasion, George will…
Dental Day for Montana
It took a while to get here, but Montana had his first dental this week. Getting a sensitive horse like Montana OK with being haltered and caught is one thing, getting him to the point where he is OK with the rigamarole of a dental float is quite another. It means a stranger approaching him to sedate (it would be so nice if we could speak a common language with our horses, one where they would…
Echo is Adopted!
After catching the eye of Brittany at the June Joel Connor clinic, she went home and told her family about this sweet pony. They gave SAFE a call and we talked about where Echo was in her training and the work needed to help her. We all agreed they were capable to helping her reach her full potential. One of the big reasons that allowed us to be comfortable with her leaving so soon after coming…
Mac is Adopted!
Mac headed to his new forever home in mid June. This confident gelding followed our staff right up onto Jerre’s beautiful trailer. He was great on the ride home and was slowly integrated with his new four legged girlfriends. Which was a perfectly drama free introduction! His new person, Jerre, has done a wonderful job with him and has a great feel. She understands his troubled areas and has a…
Tiva is Haltered!
Our Operations Director, Terry, was able to halter Tiva for the first time here at SAFE, just last week. What is not shown in this video is the preparation in getting to this moment — the hours that were spent with Tiva in the round pen getting her to hook on, roping Tiva and going through the first pages of Buck’s ‘Red Book’ with her, the first touches at the end of the lariat rope on her face…
August Volunteer of the Month: Trela Herman
We are extremely thankful Trela found SAFE. Her hard work, dedication, positivity and “up for any task” attitude is priceless and we couldn’t do it without volunteers like her. Learn a little more about Trela below. HOW AND WHEN DID YOU FIRST GET INVOLVED WITH HORSES? As a child, I grew up in Indiana and my family had a few horses, cows and chickens (but I was so young, that I don’t think that…
Our Annual Auction, Saturday July 23rd!
The property is abuzz with staff and volunteers preparing for our annual auction, Heart of the Horse Barn Party, this Saturday, July 23rd. We are excited to host the event on SAFE’s property after holding it virtually the past two years. Even though it’s a sold out event, there is still time to be involved and help support our horses. Silent auction items are available to bid on and will run…
Sparky-ing Joy
The novelty of meeting new horses as they come through the gates of SAFE never gets old. The horse person in all of us lights up with every new arrival — each new equine could be the very first one we’ve ever met, considering the way we act. And not to say that the sense of joy and wonder isn’t always present when our new residents become a bit more tenured, but acclimation is bound to…
Valentine on Fox 13!
Our sweet Valentine was featured by the Limelight Pet Project this last Sunday on Fox 13! If you missed it, no worries, check out her full story by watching the video below. Thank you to our wonderful friends at The Limelight Pet Project who help shine the light on hard to adopt pets. They help spread the word about our adoptable horses and provide us with beautiful photos and a wonderful story!…
Catching Eddie
Edward has, as all horses do, an almost preternatural ability to read humans. When I think about a horse like Edward — really, when I give thought to horses in general — I am filled with amazement that they allow us to do even a quarter of the things that they do. So when they test their boundaries with us, I should really be more surprised it doesn’t happen more often. Edward arrived at SAFE…
A Walk With Cameron
One of our long time volunteers, Monique, who walks Cameron once a week, wrote this about him and it melted our hearts. “Our sweet boy Cameron can see us a mile away, Is that a bucket?! Oh, time for my walk! He’s always eager against the gate, messy face nose dive in halter. Um, let’s check out the new kids, look Cameron a new cute mare! Swoop! Head dive for road hay-pull up, our dance as we…
Nyx is Adopted!
Congratulations to our big boy Nyx! Lindsay first made the journey from Oregon to meet Nyx 3 months ago. The two hit it off and the plan was made to continue Nyx’s training for a couple of months before heading to his new home. The training would end with Lindsay riding in the Joel Connor clinic in June at SAFE. Lindsay was a rockstar and did a fabulous job during the clinic! Not only was she…
Daisy is Adopted!
Foster fail alert!! When Daisy headed to foster at Shellie’s home back in February 2021, we didn’t know that she wouldn’t return, but we are happy to hear Shellie fell in love and refused to give her back. In fact, she said she couldn’t imagine life without her so she signed the adoption paperwork. Now she gets to spend her time with Laurence, Shellie’s gelding. The two are very content and…
George, in focus
These beautiful photos of George, taken by Marika Moffitt, Owner of SoulDog Creative (formerly Dirtie Dog Photography), showcase two versions of George — the spunky, athletic gelding moving out in the roundpen, and the observant, brave fellow ready to adventure out in the world. He sure is one handsome guy, and one who will make someone a very lucky riding companion!
2022 Q2 Impact Statement
New Horses Intake Date: April 7, 2022 Bliss (Owner Surrender) Intake Date: May 11, 2022 Ruckus (Returned to SAFE) Artie (Returned to SAFE) Intake Date: May 13, 2022 Ezra (Animal Control) Sparky (Animal Control) Intake Date: May 16, 2022 Echo (Returned to SAFE) Intake Date: May 23, 2022 Tilt (Returned to SAFE) Valentine (Returned to SAFE) Placed Horses Freya Nyx Bliss Echo Daisy Euthanized Horses…
