SAFE Horses
SAFE News and Updates
End of Summer Photos with Valor
Poor Anderson
It’s finally raining again and no one at SAFE is happier about that than Anderson. The smoke and dust in the air this summer have been exceptionally hard on his lungs. We started noticing that he’d cough a bit when asked to canter, so when Dr. Fleck came to do his dental, we had him listen to his lungs as well. Unfortunately Dr Fleck did not like what he was hearing. He prescribed medications to…
Banjo & Finn visit Safe Harbor
Our WONDERFUL foster mom Carrie brought the Finn and Joey for a visit during the last Joel Conner clinic. She had this to report about the experience: The boys both enjoyed their field trip out to SAFE for the Joel Conner clinic! They loaded into the trailer like it was no big deal, and even though neither Finn nor Banjo had been to the new barn before (or left my place for a year, except for…
Making Progress with Mason
Lori has been working with Mason since his arrival at SAFE last year. She continues to chip away at his issues, hoping that he may still become a safe riding partner. For now, all this groundwork is helping him to trust people and be more comfortable in his body. Here is what Lori had to share about him in the clinic last weekend: Today was the second day of this weekend’s Joel Conner clinic. I…
Training & Clinic Update: Tasara
Sweet Tasara is coming along well in her training. She has been working steadily with a saddle on her back for a few weeks now and doing well. She is a very sensitive mare and we are working on helping her relax through the groundwork. There are many things we can do to help her regulate her reactions to things. Helping her get comfortable with increasing and decreasing energy is key to her…
Summer Fun with Sunny & Shasta
What a fun summer we had…and Sunny and Shasta have their own Facebook page now!! Now that all the SAFE horses are settled in at the new barn in Redmond, Sunny and Shasta had the opportunity to get out into the community and make some new friends this summer. A team of SAFE volunteers joined the minis at the Redmond Saturday Market. We had a booth and talked to so many people about what SAFE does…
Anderson Photo Gallery
photos by Jessica Farren
Sophie: Grown up and Looking Great!
Sophie has been doing amazing things with her adopter Julie W. We are so happy to share this great video of them working at the Jaton Lord clinic this past weekend. Julie has done a wonderful job and is raising this girl right! They have a fantastic future ahead of them! https://youtu.be/VHboUTA3rhY
Reber Ranch Day
Sunny and Shasta had such a terrific day yesterday at Reber Ranch in Kent. Reber Ranch has always been such a great supporter of Save a Forgotten Equine (SAFE) and their customers are always so generous. Thanks to everyone who stopped by to say hi, donated items from SAFE’s wishlist for the Fill the Trailer event, and to those who donated money. All of the rescued horses at SAFE really…
Renee at the Joel Conner Clinic
This past weekend was a big success for Renee. We started on Friday by asking Joel to assess her past training and help us formulate a plan for our next steps. He took a look at her under saddle and rode her a little to see how she’d react. All said and done, we have some work ahead of us before she is going to be available as a riding horse. However she showed much improvement at each working…
Getting to know Cali
SAFE Operations Director Terry Phelps has been spending a lot of time recently with the new horses at SAFE. Here’s what she has to share about Cali: This roan mare is really starting to grow on me. She was a bit shy and flighty at first but I’ve found that once she gets past her initial fears she relaxes and her whole body changes. It is taking less time for her to get there each time I work…
Working with Stormy
From our Herd Health Manager and volunteer Melinda: I’ve been working with Stormy regularly for a few weeks now. It’s been a learning curve for both of us, for sure! This is the first blind horse I’ve worked with. I’ve been teaching her aspects of the horsemanship techniques we use as the basis for SAFE’s training program and combining those with clicker training to teach verbal cues. For the…
Getting to know Cosmo
This handsome 13 year old gelding is proving to be a very nice gentleman and is very easy to handle. We were told that he has been started and ridden on trails. All of his medical evaluations have come back clear. His dental float and xrays of his front hooves were both normal with no surprises. Since he has been so gentle to work with I have been doing groundwork in preparation for riding the…
Emmy and Gracie Find a Home Together!
Sometimes timing and patience play a big role in finding the perfect match for our horses. Rebecca put in an adoption application last year, but at the time, SAFE didn’t have the right horse for her. But several months later, we took in a horse named Gracie who seemed like a good prospect for Rebecca. While Gracie moved through her rehabilitation, she got all the medical attention she needed,…
Getting to know Renee
We are starting to get to know one of the new mares at SAFE: Renee. We were told that she’s been ridden before, but we don’t know how long it’s been or how positive those experience were for her. Renee seems a bit “wide eyed” and unsure of it all but she is getting used to the routine at SAFE and learning to trust us. I have been doing some light ground work with her in preparation for saddling…
Adoption Announcement: Harley
We are excited to announce the adoption of Harley! Jennie came out to see Harley and Ruger early on in their rehabilitation. She understood we needed to get them both healthy before we could figure out if they were sound and rideable. Harley moved easily through her recovery and was able to go to Joel Conner’s for a quick training refresher. We knew right away that she was going to be a very…
Getting to know Angel
From the day we met her, this mare has proven to us that she is a fighter who has taken care of herself for a long time. We were told that no one had haltered her in the 15 years she had been on the property. It took us about two and a half hours to halter her for transport but once we caught her, she was very easy to load and manage. When we got home she actually seemed calm, not sweaty or…
August Volunteer of the Month: Kino McFarland
SAFE’s August Volunteer of the Month, Kino McFarland, “seemed to be everywhere at every moment” during the recent benefit horse show at Donida Equestrian Center. “And when she wasn’t volunteering at the show, she had her camera in hand, working on a video to help promote next year’s show,” says SAFE Executive Director Bonnie Hammond. Kino and her video camera have become a familiar sight around…
Farrier day for the new horses
Farrier Daphne Jones came out today to work on the badly neglected hooves of our new horses. She was able to trim all of them, except for Angel, who was very reluctant to have her hind feet handled. Daphne worked with her to get her more accustomed to having her hinds picked up, and will be back out very soon to attempt another trim. The good news is that as bad as their feet looked when we…
Not how a tail should look!!
Poor Nashville and Angel had tails that resembled baseball bats!! With a lot of patience (and a fair amount of Tail & Mane Detangler) we were able to save a lot of Nashville’s tail. The matted clump that was Angel’s tail was cut out.
Six new horses to introduce
SAFE has recently taken in 6 new horses. They were surrendered to us by their owner, who was no longer able to care for them, due to physical and financial set backs. The horses were all in decent weight, but had not received farrier or dental care in many years. Most had extremely overgrown feet, causing lameness and discomfort. Two other horses belonging to the same owner were humanely…
Denton and Phoenix, a band of brothers!
King, who is now known as Denton, was reunited with his good friend, Phoenix, when he returned to Joel Conner’s ranch after being adopted by Lauren and Bryan Engle!! The two are great friends, and their new parents ADORE them. Here is just a small sample of images stolen from Lauren’s Facebook page!!
Ben: SAFE Show August 2017
Ben had an amazing showing at this years SAFE show. Everyday he was more and more relaxed. Lisa has been working hard gaining his trust and supporting him through his anxieties to feel calm and relaxed. He did a great job in the trail course and looked right at home! He even came home with a few pretty ribbons!…
SAFE Horses at the SAFE Show!
Here are just a few of the photos from Jessica Farren of the current SAFE horses that competed at the SAFE Benefit Horse Show. It was a fabulous weekend of competition, and we all had a marvelous time! Click to enlarge:
SAFE Alumni at the SAFE Show
We had several SAFE Alumni come out to compete at the 2017 SAFE Benefit Horse Show. SAFE Alum Bucky B Lucky won the Champion SAFE Alumni award, competing successfully in English, Dressage, and Western Halter & Showmanship. SAFE Alums Owen, Moonshine, and Baxter also came out to the show.
July Volunteer of the Month: Samantha Jacobsen
Native Washingtonian Samantha Jacobsen is being recognized by Save a Forgotten Equine (SAFE) horse rescue as July Volunteer of the Month for serving on multiple chore shifts and helping out at special events, most recently at Redmond Derby Days. Sam has been interested in and involved with horses since childhood. When she was 15, her family moved to Redmond, “where we had about 15 acres and…
Take a ride on Lacey!
Mason goes around the world!
Barn Manager Lori McMasters has a huge place in her heart for Mason, and spends lots of time working with him on the ground in preparation for returning to saddle work when he is ready. (And only when he is ready — he will tell us when it’s time!) Lori built this bridge from pallets for SAFE’s work-in-progress trails course, and she demonstrates just one of the ways that the bridge can be used…
Clinic & Photo Update: Jessel
We got a chance to see Jessel recently when Joel brought her along to the June clinic. We were amazed to see how well this youngster is going under saddle — it only goes to show you the value of good foundations and a proper start! She had her moments — testing Joel, or deciding she should be done for the day — but overall she was very pleasant and well-behaved. Jessel is smart, talented, and…
Beautiful Dottie Belle
Diana sent us these photos from a recent visit with Dottie. Stunning!
