Feed 106 horses

Earlier this summer the owner of two senior horses and a senior burro passed away, leaving no one to care for these equines. They were rescued by County of San Diego Department of Animal Services. Given their advanced ages, close bond and medical conditions, Animal Services asked us to provide them with a forever home.

The mare, in her 20’s, has a number of melanomas. These are common in grey horses. Our veterinarian also suspects she has an allergy to fly bites. We are addressing this with topical medication and a fly sheet.

The gelding, thought to be at least thirty is visually impaired. Our veterinarian believes he has lost most, if not all of the vision in his right eye. He has likely lost at least a portion of the vision in his left eye. This vision loss has greatly enhanced the bond between these two. The gelding appears dependent on the mare for comfort and confidence. Unfortunately, they require dramatically different diets so we have to keep them separated. The gelding’s teeth are worn out. He can no longer chew hay enough to derive nutrition from it, so he is on a soaked pellet diet. We hope that we will soon see him gaining weight.

The burro is thought to be about twenty-nine years old. He is settling into life with our senior burro group.

During this time of unprecedented feed costs, we were only able to offer these two senior horses and burro a forever because of your on-going, generous support. We are grateful to each of you for supporting our efforts to provide life-long care for senior equines rescued by Animal Services.

In our last update we introduced you to four horses that arrived on October 16. Tootsie Roll and Lil' Girl, two sisters, arrived from San Bernadino County Animal Care and Control. They were part of a terrible neglect case. Tootsie Roll had been diagnosed with laminitis and Lil' Girl was said to have significant behavioral issues. Coco and Petey came to us from a neglect case with County of San Diego Department of Animal Services.

We are so happy to share that all four horses are doing well:

• Tootsie Roll's feet have recovered well. Ex-rays showed thin soles and we discovered remnants of large abscesses that would have been painful when they first occurred. The therapeutic shoes put on while she was at the shelter helped provide critical support and she is now pain free.
• We suspect that Lil's Girl's behavioral issues might have been the result of being stressed at the shelter. We have not seen her being aggressive toward people or her sister. In fact, these two girls are now sharing a corral and doing well together. 
• Coco quickly gained weight at the ranch once we increased the number and size of her meals to amounts appropriate to a horse her size. This sweet, mellow girl definitely enjoys her meals. In fact, we have had to transition her from her weight-gain diet to a maintenance diet before she gained too much weight. As a result of arthritis, she is on daily pain medication which has significantly increased her comfort level.
• Petey had the most weight to gain of all four horses. While cold winter temperatures often slow down weight gain, but thanks to his warm, waterproof blanket, Petey is looking much better these days. What we love the most is seeing him dance and prance each morning as we bring him his breakfast. He is one happy boy and the volunteers love him.

We are so grateful for your support of our Feed 1006 Horses Project. Feed prices are going up across all our feeds. We purchase our Bermuda hay by the half truck load. This month, the cost of that half load increased by $1,000! Your support is making such a critical difference in the lives of the horses and other ranch residents we care for. Thank you!

On October 16, thanks to an amazing team of volunteers, we were able to help four horses in need through their Adoption Partnership with two counties, San Diego and San Bernardino.

Two mares, Tootsie Roll and Lil’ Girl were both rescued from severe neglect by San Bernardino County Animal Care and Control back in July. Tootsie Roll was diagnosed with laminitis so no one applied to adopt her. It was determined that Lil’ Girl’s behavioral issues made her unsuitable for adoption to the public.

Petey and Coco were part of an on-going County of San Diego Department of Animal Services neglect case. While both are significantly underweight, Petey is considered emaciated.

As we continue Tootsie Roll and Lil' Girl's recovery and begin the long recovery work for Petey and Coco we are feeding all four horses a lot of food, more than any other horses in our care. Thanks to your support of our Feed 106 Horses project, all four of these horses will have plenty of food to eat.

We look forward to featuring these four horses, fully rocovered in future reports. Thank you for making their new lives at the sanctuary possible.

Since our last report, we have added two new equine residents to the ranch and. Your support of our “Feed 106 Horses” is a significant part of how we were able to say yes to both of these special horses in need of sanctuary.

Cinnamon arrived on May 27, but her story began in 2014 when a group of horses was living on a large property in Julian. Following a fire that burned the fences the horses began running lose on National Forrest land. A local woman was called in to help catch the horses.

The San Diego Humane Society took in two emaciated stallions and the woman who helped catch the horses adopted one of the mares, an American Saddlebred named Cinnamon. Now, seven years later the property the woman kept Cinnamon and her other rescue horses on was sold, leaving Cinnamon at risk.

We are honored to work with County of San Diego Department of Animal Services to offer this shy, twenty-year-old mare a forever home.

On May 13 Johnny arrived at the ranch. Johnny is a nineteen-year-old American Quarter Horse. He served as a U.S. Border Patrol agent for 12 years.

Johnny is described as an amazing field horse, but untrusting of people, because his prior owner was very heavy handed. He is very fearful of being tied. Border Patrol suspected he was often punished when tied, early in his life.

He will tie, but is nervous and has pulls back if he feels threatened. Border Patrol recognized this behavior early on in his career and were able to help him along and work around it. That says so much about the quality of care he received from U.S. Border Patrol!

Johnny has a bad tooth (#209). The tooth may require a very intrusive surgery. Currently Johnny is being treated with antibiotics and they are working well. But his nervous demeanor and tooth issue made it challenging to find an approved retirement placement for him. We are honored to be providing Johnny with the forever home he so richly deserves.

Please join us in welcoming Johnny and Cinnamon home! Your generosity is what allows us to provide a forever home for 106 equines. Thank you!

Thank you for your generous, on-going support to feed our horses, along with our miniature mules, burros and mustangs. With a monthly food bill of over $10,000 your gifts mean everything to our commitment to provide our residents with a lifetime of care.

Even though we’re located in Southern California, the sanctuary is located in the mountains at nearly 4,000 ft. elevation. So, winters tend to be downright cold. Our weather includes heavy rain, hail, sleet and snow. High quality feed ensures that our horses retain healthy weights and stay warm during these cold months.

Now, the mud has dried and the spring flowers are blooming. With warmer temperatures our horses have begun shedding their thick winter coats. Thanks to the feed that you provide our horses, their summer coats are coming in glossy and sleek.

As we travel through the various seasons at the ranch, our gratitude for your generous gifts remains constant. Thank you for making the forever home of Tir Na Nog possible for our horses and other equines.