First pasture turnout of the spring!
Chance demonstrates that multitasking means bucking and farting, while his friend Summer demonstrates her version of multitasking…laying down and eating.
Buckwheat — Rest in peace
We lost a dear old horse last night. Buckwheat, who came to SAFE back in 2007, had another episode of colic and was humanely euthanized. We don’t know exactly how old he was, but he was well into his 30s. He will be missed very much by his foster family and everyone who loved him. He was a very special horse who had a profound effect on everyone who cared for him. Our gratitude and thanks to the…
Maggie videos
Brittney has been asking Maggie and her volunteer rider to do a lot of transitions in the warm-up to get her focused. She is getting better and better!
River video
What a difference a couple of weeks makes! Wowza! Andrea reports that River was super on a recent trail ride and is better (and happier!) in the outdoor arena than the indoor. Take a look:
Assessing Bucky B Lucky
Bucky B Lucky was returned to SAFE nearly two months ago. His previous adopter had many ups and downs with him, but in the end, returned him to us citing behavioral problems including rearing under saddle and striking on the ground. From the information we were able to gather about his time as an adopted horse, it seemed that for the most part, he was well behaved while in steady training and…
Kai Update and Video
SAFE Trainer Brittney Stewart has had the opportunity to work with Kai a few times now, and she’s pretty pleased with what she’s seen from him. He’s very green, of course, but unlike many of the off-the-track thoroughbreds she’s ridden, she finds that Kai listens to her seat and outside aids, so he obviously got a good education from his first trainer, Cam Reeves. Cam was also successful in…
Strider Update
Strider has apparently had issues with pressure sores on his fetlocks long before coming to SAFE, and no matter how deeply bedded his stall, the small sores persisted. Recently he’s developed some proud flesh at the site of one of the sores on his hind leg, and so Brittney has been making a valiant effort to treat the problem. This involves a daily routine of unwrapping his bandages from the day…
From the Horse’s Mouth: Chip Update
If you follow Honeycutt’s blog, you know that he shares a lot of secrets about horses and their interactions. Today’s update on Chip comes straight from the horse’s mouth… Today I am thinking a lot about friends. I have two good friends who are Jay and Chance. Jay has been my friend for many, many years, and Chance is a newer friend of mine. When you see us you will know that we are friends…
An important part of the process
Rehabbing a horse is a labor of love, and watching the amazing transformation that each of our horses goes through is the reward for a lot of hard work! There is so much that has to be accomplished before a rescued horse is ready for adoption, and so many people who play a role in turning that horse into a “good equine citizen” who will have a home for life. Today as I watched Chip getting his…
Brandii Bask — Adopted!
We are just delighted to have another adoption to announce this week! First we bid a happy bon voyage to our dear Charmeon, and now we get to do it again for Miss Brandii Bask! Congratulations to the one and only Kitti Lile who opened a place in her heart and her home for Brandii as a foster mom but decided to make her a permanent addition to the family! Tie her up with a bow because Brandii…
Two new additions to the SAFE Board of Directors
Since its inception in late 2005, SAFE has been an organization that has grown and evolved a lot over the years. SAFE’s Board of Directors is a dedicated group of people who volunteer their time and talent to oversee the day-to-day operation of the rescue as well as its long-term vision. As the organization grows, its management team must also grow. We are delighted to introduce the two newest…
Goodbye Beth, and good luck!
With today’s announcement of the two new members to the SAFE Board of Directors, we must finally come to terms with the departure of a treasured member of our group, Beth Amberg. Beth broke our hearts last year when she announced that she and her family would be moving to Thornton, Colorado where her husband had just landed a terrific new job. Moving to Colorado meant the end of Beth’s tenure on…
Charmeon: Adopted!
If you’re a fan of Dutch Mills Farm on Facebook (and if you’re not, you should be!) then you already know the incredible news that we have for you today: Charmeon is adopted!! Congratulations and a huge, happy thank you to Helga Roberts, who came to the realization that her life would not be the same without Char in it. We are overjoyed that Char has found herself such a wonderful home, and we…
Setbacks for Jewel
Jewel has been making great progress with the help of her foster mom, Janelle, but she’s had some recent setbacks that have us a little worried. Janelle recent adopted an older gelding from NWESC, and brought him home to join Jewel and her daughter’s pony Lucky. Jewel took an immediate dislike to the new horse, and began displaying some extreme aggressive behaviors toward him. In particular, she…
Hello Skye!
Kat videos
Kat under saddle with volunteer rider Casey:
Welcoming a new horse to SAFE!
We have a new horse to introduce to everyone today. His name is Kai (pronounced Kye) and he is an 8 year old dark bay Thoroughbred gelding who raced under the name Santorini Island. He’s a gorgeous beast…here he is meeting Strider for the first time yesterday: Kai might look familiar to those of you who also support Pony Up Rescue for Equines, and that is because he was originally…
Sleeping ponies
If you listen closely at the beginning, you’ll hear Sunny nickering in his sleep…
2013 Q1 Impact Statement
New Horses Intake Date: February 20, 2013 Bucky B Lucky (returned to SAFE) Placed Horses Louie Tilly Euthanization none
A slight change in scenery for April
April used to occupy the first stall & paddock in the main barn at SAFE Harbor, but recently, after some re-shuffling to accomodate a new intake, she took up residency in the covered paddock next to the Indoor Arena where we originally kept Strider. It’s a good size area for a single horse, but because it doesn’t share a fenceline with any of the other paddocks, some of the horses don’t…
Checking in on Bucky B Lucky
Stopped by SAFE Harbor this afternoon to visit Bucky B Lucky, who is looking as handsome as ever. He’s tough to photograph because he just wants come up and say hello! I got the best photos from outside the fence! After his photo session, he got to enjoy a little bit of hand grazing on the new grass growing just outside his paddock fence. A nice visit! [gallery columns=“2” link=“file”…
Strider’s Best Buddy
Strider and Bucky B Lucky have been close friends since Lucky arrived at SAFE Harbor last month. Lucky is a big boy, but Strider makes him look like a pony!
Miah video 3/27/13
Miah had a great ride today with SAFE trainer Brittney Stewart. This video was taken after she’d been ridden for about 35 minutes so she’s a little bit tired but still going nicely!
River Training Update
River continues to make good progress with trainer Andrea Lucianna. Here is a video of his first ride in the “big arena” taken on March 19 2013: Andrea has started cantering him under saddle, but just in short stretches for now. We’ve decided to extend River’s training with Andrea another 30 days, and we hope that some additional time will help him gain more confidence under saddle.
March Volunteer of the Month: Heather Evans-Keliher!
It’s time once again for Volunteer of the Month! Please join us in congratulating our March recipient, Heather Evans-Keliher! Heather can be found at SAFE Harbor Stables on Mondays and Thursdays helping with feeding and farm chores. You will recognize her by the friendly smile and trademark braids popping out from under her ball cap. Heather started with SAFE over year ago, and was barely…
Sasha is looking for a new home
Due to some recent changes in her owner’s life, former SAFE horse Sasha is now looking for a new home. She is available as a SAFE-Assisted placement, which means that SAFE will be overseeing her adoption while she remains in the care of her current adopter, who has provided us with a wealth of wonderful information about this horse, as you will see below. Sasha has been given the very best care…
April training update
April is being ridden on a regular basis by SAFE volunteer Kyranny and the two of them are getting along fabulously. April has shown some resistance to going forward when being ridden but SAFE trainer Brittney Stewart worked her through most of these issues. Happily she’s moving very well for Kyranny! Brittney would like to take April out on some trail rides, in hopes that April might make a…
Lucky Update
Lucky and Brittney, enjoying the sunshine today at Safe Harbor. Brittney reports Lucky has been super so far and is several rides into his rehab. Lucky will receive 30–60 days of one-on-one time with Brittney before we make him available for adoption. So far, with consistent, no-nonsense, handling by an experienced handler Lucky is right on track to be available for adoption again soon.
What’s new with Chip?
In order to make room at SAFE Harbor Stables for the return of Bucky B Lucky, we decided to give Chip a bit of a vacation and send him to the farm of SAFE’s Executive Director Bonnie Hammond, home of the infamous Honeycutt and Bonnie’s two OTTB gelding’s Jay and Chance. We felt it would do Chip some good to spend some time with some other geldings and have an opportunity to work on his social…
Jewel Update!
A terrific update from Jewel’s foster mom! Thank you Janelle for taking such wonderful care of this filly! Just wanted to let you all know that Jewel has been doing really well. She has calmed down tremendously and is not spooking as easily, especially with being touched. Yesterday, I went into the barn to let the horses down to the pasture and she was laying down in her stall. She let me come…
