Jan/120
Happy New Year, Baby!
This time of year reminds me of new beginnings, and all that we have to look forward to at Mid America Horse Rescue. As I've Said to our volunteers, 2012 is our year, baby!
As I look back, I think of the lives we've touched, including the lives of several special horses.
On Aug. 4, 2008, we saved three pregnant mares at a Fairmount Park paddock sale. Rapid Presence, aka "Rae Anne," was scheduled to deliver last. As her belly grew, so did our love for her.
Since I have yet to experience the birthing process, I was hoping to witness the arrival of each of our new babies. For three weeks, I slept in the tack room to ensure I was there for their births. Baby No. 1, aka "Pea," arrived the first night I wasn't on duty, January 31, 2009. Baby No. 2, aka "Belle," arrived while I was on a work trip in Phoenix, May 12, 2009.
Naturally, I stationed myself in the barn for Baby No. 3 as soon as I returned home. I had gone from beautiful accomodations at the Biltmore Hotel to sleeping on a 900-pound hay bale. But the miracle I was about to experience made it all worthwhile!
Thankfully, when Rae Anne's labor began, I was on duty! I immediately called the staff and our incredible veterinarian, Dr. Allen Mueller.
At first, Rae Anne paced, but finally, she laid down in the stall to give birth. My first sight of her foal began with a shiny black hoof, followed by two long, slender legs and a beautiful dark head. Positioned feet-first, this little fluff of life looked like a diver about to cut through the water.
Dr. Mueller stayed on the phone coaching us through the entire birth. The foal was big compared to his mama. With the front legs out and the head clear, the shoulders were next! We worked with the mare's contractions, but passing the shoulders was presenting a problem.
I had a soft, clean cloth and was removing the sack, clearing the nostrils and ears, massaging this little baby and waiting to see any signs of life. Dr. Mueller suggested slightly rocking the foal to help the shoulders clear and we did just as he said. As soon as the shoulders cleared, a baby BOY slid into our arms. But he wasn't breathing.
His little purple tongue hung limp from his mouth. With his eyes still shut, I cradled him, whispering to him, willing him to breathe. We reached beyond the foal’s lips and tickled his roof of the mouth to trigger the sucking reflex. In that moment, our baby boy gulped in his first huge breath, popped those beautiful brown eyes open and looked me straight in the eye.
To feel the rush of life flow into a living creature's body for the first time, to be the first living creature this little boy ever experienced made me cry like a baby! It moved me to my core. I will go through the rest of my life understanding how rare this occurrence is. My respect for God's creatures, and respect for the gift of life could not have been more deepened.
Now at the dawn of 2012, our baby boy, Troubadour, just turned 3 (according to Thoroughbred registry it was January 1st...but we know his REAL birthday is May 19th).
Troubadour is loved unconditionally and will never know a bad day in his life. He will never have to face the possibility of slaughter like other racehorses. Instead, he was given the gift of life by Mid America Horse Rescue. This year, he will flourish even more as he begins his training program.
2012 is our year baby! Happy Birthday Troubadour and our other babies at the farm!
Happy New Year and many blessings to all. Please come visit us and watch us grow!
Jul/090
Before this Day (”AKA” Daisy)
Daisy was donated to us by Vinny's trainer as well. We don't have a ton of information but we do know she was still racing and is a gorgeous, gorgeous 4 year old grey filly. Daisy has a slight disability; she has lost one of her eyes. She is learning to adjust to seeing out of one side. She is the most adorable creature around and loves for everyone to love on her, give her carrots and attention. We will give Daisy some time off and then start training her as a riding horse. She will need a special person who understands her special needs. If you are willing to look at Daisy for adoption please contact Mid America Horse Rescue! She needs to learn her new owner and her new home will be with her forever. Since she is a filly whomever adopts her must agree to our contract of no more racing and no breeding. This is one special girl for one special person! If you are willing to assist us with feeding and training Daisy please visit the How to Help page.
Jul/090
City Girl (AKA “Cee Cee”)
Cee Cee was purchased at the Fairmount Park Paddock sale on Saturday, August 24, 2008. She was born on February 3, 2004 by Slew City Slew out of La Tour Jete. She is a gorgeous 4 year old bay filly with a small star that is an absolute sweetheart! CeeCee will not be raced or bred so her future adoptive home must agree to these terms. She is looking for a forever home that will love her, groom her and give her every opportunity to fulfill her great life. She has been started in her groundwork and is available for adoption now.
Jul/093
Sweet Home (AKA “Sweetie”)
This lovely mare fits her name. She was purchased at the Fairmount Park Paddock Sale on August 24, 2008. Again, there were 4 killer buyers present and we were standing between 2 who were bidding on Sweetie and the other pregnant gals. We had to bid a little higher ($100 over the starting bid price) to ensure these girls were brought to a safe environment. Sweetie was born February 22, 2001 and is a big, beautiful chestnut mare with a large star with a white stripe. Her sire was Western Playboy and her dam was Home First. She is one of our gals in the maternity ward and is due to foal in April of 2009. Sweetie is not available for adoption until her foal is weaned from her side and she has had groundwork training. We will keep you up on her pregnancy and her future baby. She will be available for adoption only for a non-racing, non-breeding owner who will understand and honor this agreement with Mid America Horse Rescue. Please visit the How to Help page on our website to help feed Sweetie and her future baby while they prepare for their new and terrific lives.
Jul/091
Just Josh (AKA “Josh”)
This super sweet energetic 5 year old gelding is quite a looker and again one of our favorites! He has a very playful personality and is our barn comedian. He was born on April 9, 2003 by Canyon Run out of That's A Sara. Josh is a darling chestnut with a arrowhead shaped large star. He is a little body sore right now and is enjoying his time off learning to be a horse again, running with his pasture mates and engaging in water fights over the water tub. He will probably make a great sport horse with his athletic ability, great brain and sweet demeanor. He is available for adoption now to a well qualified home. Please contact us if you are interested in viewing Josh and starting the adoption process! Please visit the How to Help page if you would like to assist us with feeding and training Josh! Josh says come visit, bring carrots and apples and most of all THANK YOU!!
Jul/090
Little Red Ferrari
Little Red Ferrari was living with a family who had tried to address her chronic cribbing problem but could not get it to stop. They contacted Mid America Horse Rescue to tell us about the problem, they had vet care for her and did not know what to do. We had to make a space ready to take Ferrari in. We are addressing her cribbing issue with making sure there is nothing she can chew on, removing a round bale holder that she sucks air off of (she is better just having a pile of hay available to her without any type of holder), beet pulp/grain mix as her teeth are pretty worn down. She is 8 years old and a real sweetheart. Please come see her!
UPDATE:
Folks as you can read Ferrari is a special needs case. She was given to us by her owners who loved her dearly but just did not know how to deal with her chronic cribbing problem. She is on the road to recovery though. Since she came to us September 16, 2008 we have already seen her gain 5 pounds, yea Ferrari. We have blocked off every possible item she can crib on and have given her almost 24 hour attention/care with our dedicated team at Mid America Horse Rescue. She has been started on a deworming program and we are gradually increasing her feed. She has a sparkle in her eye this week and has made friends with 2 older Quarter Horses that were former trail horses who are in the same program as Ferrari. She is grateful for their company, her feed, the love (she is super affectionate and loves attention) and the second chance at her new life. Ferrari will be with us for a while but we welcome all visitors for her, all feed donations, all time donations, etc. Will you help us with Ferrari? If so, select the How to Help page to help as she goes through her recovery. Interested in volunteering with Mid America Horse Rescue and getting to know and help all of these horses? Contact the Mid America Horse Rescue for information. Thank you so much for your help and keep reading as we continue to give you horse updates!
Jul/090
Cry Baby Jenny (AKA “Jenny”)
Jenny is Sweetie's best friend and is 14 years old. She was purchased at the Fairmount Park Paddock sale on August 24th and we were her only bidders due to her age. With her size she was looked over pretty good by the killer buyer but we were again standing between two of these guys and they did not try to pick her up fortunately. Her birthdate was March 23, 1994. She is a big, beautiful chestnut and looks like Sweetie's twin. Her sire was Roscius and her dam was Special Sunshine. Jenny would prefer to wait to be adopted with her best friend Sweetie if you would consider keeping these two girls together. We will start groundwork with Jenny soon. She is very sweet, affectionate and intelligent. She will be available to a home that agrees to never race or breed Jenny again and will give her a lifetime of love and happiness! Please visit the How to Help page if you would like to help feed Jenny and assist us with her training as a future wonderful riding horse!
Jul/090
MaryAnne
MaryAnn is one of Ethel Marie's family that came to us without a name, or any other information. Our staff named her MaryAnn. Please contact Mid America Horse Rescue for a visit and how you can adopt MaryAnn. She would love to meet her new forever home and to learn to become a family pet. Please visit the How to Help page if you will help!
Jul/090
Meredith
Meredith just joined us in the group that Daisy and Vinny came with. She was recently weaned from a foal by her side so she is a former broodmare. This lovely grey lady's information regarding age and pedigree will be updated as we find her paperwork. She is a sweetheart and has not had much riding experience. We will begin groundwork on Meredith shortly. We are giving this new group of girls time to become whole again and enjoy some sunshine and friendship out on the pasture. Meredith was destined for slaughter so we thank her person for choosing to go with Mid America Horse Rescue instead of her other option! Would you like to add some sunshine to Meredith's day with supporting her? If so please contact us regarding her possible adoption (again only for a non-breeding, non-racing home) or if you choose to assist with her daily feeding and care please visit the How to Help page! Thank you!!
Jul/090
Gipson
This is one classy gentleman. Gipson is a wonderful, dark bay gelding. We are obtaining his papers so as soon as we do we will have his age, pedigree, etc. What a sweetheart though! The vet is coming out to look at Gipson's knee, we are hoping he is sound but want to make sure he doesn't have a chip. He is another recent addition that everyone has fallen in love with. We will keep you updated if Gipson is looking at surgery and whatever information we may share. He would love to have some visitors bring carrots or apples, he loves to be groomed and petted. He was destined for slaughter for the Farmington, MO auction a week ago, but when Gipson's very kind trainer saw us pull up with a trailer load of rescued horses and when he found out where they were going, he asked if we had room for just one more. We told him of course we did and Gipson joined Mid America Horse Rescue. Gipson is now in a safe loving environment where he will be given all the chances he needs for a new life and a new career. These horses have been the "star of the show" and once they no longer earn a living not a lot of thought is given to what will happen to them next. Will you help Gipson prepare for his second act? If so, please visit the How to Help page. If you would like to be considered as Gipson's forever home please contact Mid America Horse Rescue for a visit and the paperwork that will be necessary to complete.