Food Bank for Horses

We know that there are many horse owners out there who want more than anything to keep their horses, but when hard economic times befall them, they may feel that they have no choice. How do you decide between feeding your family and feeding your horses? You can’t; your family will always come first. Understandable, but is there a way we can help you with your horses?

HEART of Tucson

Yes, there is. HEART of Tucson, our favored rescue in the Tucson area, has a program called “Pay it Forward.” The whole idea of paying it forward is to accept the help that is offered to you now, and, then, when you are back on your feet, perhaps you can “pay it forward,” by helping someone else who needs it.

Participating feedstores in the Tucson and Marana (AZ) areas will accept your donation for a voucher to buy hay or feed for HEART to distribute to horse owners in need. The feedstore will notify HEART, who then comes and picks up the feed and distributes it out to the horse owners in need. HEART acknowledges that

Everyone goes through low points at some point in their lives and sometimes an extra bale or so will help keep their horse/horses going until they can make the next paycheck. So many people find themselves having to do the unthinkable and send their horses to auction, which may ultimately send their beloved pet to slaughter.

The “Pay it Forward” program is designed to meet this need. Isn’t it better to help people keep their horses rather than to have them lose them to legal intervention after starvation becomes evident?

I’d like to believe that most people do not want their horses to starve and this program can help them through the rough times, while cutting down on the work the rescue might need to do. If there is no program like this in your area, contact a local rescue to see if they can get it going. Imagine how many horses can be saved before rescue organizations have to become involved. Do your part with what you have.

Equine Arthritis

Recently, Paco has resisted picking up his hind feet for me to clean them when we’re grooming. At first, I thought he was just being a little stubborn since he had previously gone through a repertoire of barn sour behaviors which seemed designed to persuade me not to take him out for a ride.

I finally figured it out: his resistance has nothing to do with not wanting to go; his rear legs are stiff and probably sore, even though he is not lame. He is, after all, twenty-three years old. When he does offer to pick up his foot, he really just slides it back a little, keeping the front edge of his hoof on the ground without flexing the hock. I have to bend down further to pick it up myself with very little help from him. He is more willing to do that with the right hind foot than the left one. I don’t force the issue. I figure the sandy desert trail will scour that hoof out pretty easily when we ride.

Speaking of the desert, where winters are mild, nighttime temperatures can be brutal. In fact, we had a hard freeze last night, leaving ice in the waterers, and hoses frozen stiff. After the sun comes up over the mountain, generally the temperatures rise quickly and riding in the desert is lovely this time of year. But I worry about the cold nights and Paco’s comfort and what I might do for him. Very few people blanket their horses here in winter, and a blanket probably wouldn’t provide sufficient warmth for his legs.

Fortunately, the vet was at the barn last week, just about the time I had experienced this equine epiphany, so he checked him out and agreed that it appeared he had arthritis in his rear legs and was probably experiencing stiffness and some discomfort. We’ve begun him on injections of Legend, which we’ll do every three months. So that’s a start. Yesterday, he got new shoes and the farrier remarked that he could tell he was stiff. In fact, when he tried to pick up the left rear foot, Paco pushed it straight out behind him and up, surprising the farrier who lost his balance a bit as he had expected the flex.

Click on the picture to go to the Whinny Warmers website

In searching the Internet for other ways to help relieve his discomfort, I discovered a new idea called Whinny Warmers (www.whinnywarmers.com) and briefly considered getting some for his hind legs on these cold nights. Basically, they are identical to the leg warmers dancers use; because they are not wraps, but more like socks, getting them on and off would be even harder than getting him to pick up his foot for cleaning. I’d have to force him into the flex for the time it takes to get them on every night and off again before riding. I’m not sure I want him to go through that.

This morning, I took him out for a walk before grooming and tacking up for a ride, and I think it made a big difference in getting him loosened up and a little warmer. He cooperated with his right rear foot, but not the left. He did very well on the ride, exhibiting no signs of stiffness.

Hopefully, the Legend will have a positive effect, and I’ll continue him on his senior horse supplements which have ingredients for joint health. Finally, I’ll need to be alert for any signs of pain or lameness that might arise.

A Second Chance

Chance when she first arrived at HEART

When she was dumped at a local stable and brought to HEART of Tucson back in early July of 2009, you wouldn’t have given much for this sad little Arab mare’s chances of survival. She was almost a skeleton, with bad teeth and a belly full of sand. When horses have nothing else to eat, they will ingest sand in great quantities, raising the risk of a serious bout with colic.

Little is known of her history, but the vet determined her age at somewhere between 18 and 22 years. Her medical screening proved that she had no illnesses, no parasites, no physical reason for being so thin except for the evil, low-life who had starved her mercilessly.

She was unbelievably thin in July

She had no name, so they called her Chance because of the second chance she would have with Judy and Mark and the wonderful people at HEART.

One of the volunteers, Claudia, became Chance’s sponsor, providing for her care and giving her the kind of loving attention she needed. 

Now, just a little over four months later, Chance has made a remarkable recovery. And she has a new name: Amani, which is Arabic for prosperity and hope. Her health is much improved and she’s beautiful again, thanks to the dedication of Mark and Judy and Claudia and all of the volunteers who made such a difference for her and others like her.  

Chance has been transformed from a skeleton into a beautiful girl.

One can not underestimate the impact that organizations like HEART of Tucson has on  abandoned, neglected, and abused horses. Sometimes Judy and Mark  and the volunteers are working 24/7 bringing in rescues, rehabilitating them, or locating foster and adoptive homes where they will be well-taken care of.  

If there is a local horse rescue that you can become involved with, don’t hesitate. There are any number of roles you can play at or for a rescue. They always need folks to come by and socialize with the horses, helping them learn to trust humans again; they need help mucking out stalls, grooming the horses, repairing and maintaining tack, and dozens of other jobs. Just ask. You won’t regret it.

Hock and Fetlock Sores

Ever since Paco and I have been a team, we’ve struggled with hock and fetlock sores. For a boy of his age, you’d think he would have built up some toughness along the way. But he’s a tender-skinned sort of fella; like the princess and the pea, he probably feels every pebble in his enclosure. He has scars on his fetlocks and on his right hock from getting up and down on the sandy, desert surface. No shavings or bedding is used, as it would simply blow away in a desert wind or spiral upward into the sky on the first dust devil that passed through.

Scars alone would be okay if they just stayed scars, but getting up and down over and over on the same side  just aggravates the problem, often scraping the skin off and opening a wound that needs to be treated. When the sores are raw and bleeding, I have to pay close attention to treating them and protecting them from more severe damage. Sometimes I’ve been told to ignore them and they’ll eventually get better on their own. But I find that hard advice to follow. If a sore is continually scraped and bloodied, how can it get better? And I worry about infection.

French Green Clay is used to prevent stall sores.

Finally, though, when the sore is no longer bloody and angry looking, I discovered the ultimate way to protect against continued open wounds. It’s called French Green Clay, a clay facial mask I got from www.iherb.com. My vet told me about it, and I’ve found it does a great job of protecting the scars from getting ripped open over and over.

I mix it with a bit of water to make the clay and then mold it over the scar and allow it to harden. By the next day, it’s rather disintegrated, but easy to brush out of the surrounding hair, and it has done the job. The scar remains just that–a scar; it’s not a newly opened wound.

It really works. I don’t know if I’ll try it as a facial sometime, but it sure does create an effective “coat of armor” for Paco’s sores.

Used Tack and Your Local Horse Rescue

Paco's high withers in January '09

Interesting how tack just seems to accumulate and then fall into disuse after a time.

When I first got Paco, I had a devil of a time finding a saddle and blanket/pad that would work for his very high withers. In addition, he was out of shape and had deep hollows below his withers. I experimented with a variety of saddle pads, looking for one that would conform to his out-of-shape shape and still work after he got into shape.  I waited quite a while on the saddle, bringing home a number of different models from Kip at OK Feeds, in Tucson, before I found one that fit well.  Finding the right pad AND saddle was tough.

I think I have it now, and even though his back has filled out nicely with regular exercise, I’m still adding a little padding behind his withers. In the meantime, I was left with two saddle pads that didn’t work. They’ve been taking up space in my tack locker for far too long. So out they go, into a pile of used tack that I have collected from several of the boarders and ranch owners at Spirit Dog Ranch and Pusch Ridge Stables. The donations will go to HEART of Tucson (www.heartoftucson.org) for their used tack sale on the 28th of November.

Even if your local rescue doesn’t sell the tack for a fund raiser, they may be able to use the tack with the horses they are rehabilitating. It’s a small thing to do and it can make such a difference to horses in need. Find a local rescue that you want to work with and clean out that locker/barn/stall/back porch/shed–wherever the tack accumulates.  You’ll feel better and the rescue horses will benefit from your generosity.

Dressage and Horse Abuse

I just read the most disturbing post at Fran Jurga’s Hoof Blog.

I’ve watched dressage competitions on TV and on occasion locally, but I’ll never be able to watch such a competition again without considering the abuse that these horses might endure for the sake of trophies, ribbons, and cash prizes.

I knew that, in dressage, the horse always carries his head down with his mouth close to his neck and assumed it was for some aesthetic purpose–perhaps giving the horse a posture that dressage enthusiasts believe is pretty. Or maybe it has to do with keeping the horse’s body compact, while the focus is on the feet and legs and how the horse moves through the routine.

Through Fran’s blog, though, I’ve learned this is called “hyperflexion.” She says:

FEI [Federation Equestre Internationale] rules discourage what is called hyperflexion, rollkur or “bite the chest”–riding with the horse in an overbent neck and head position for a prolonged period of time.

From this, I assume that in the shorter duration of a performance during a competition, hyperflexion is acceptable, even though it might be uncomfortable for the horse. The  bit used with the double bridle and curb rein to achieve this posture flattens against the horse’s tongue and cuts off blood circulation.

The horse, Watermill Scandik, shows the effects of prolonged hyperflexion (Epona TV image)

Fran links to a video shot by Epona TV, an independent equestrian network, at a practice session for a recent European competition in which the horse is “schooled” for two hours, possibly more, in this posture. You can see the horse’s tongue, quite blue,  hanging out of his mouth.

You also see the rider lean down and stuff the tongue back into the horse’s mouth and then continue to practice. Neither the rider, Patrik Kittel, nor the schooling ring steward, who should have been aware of this egregious breach of FEI rules, seem to care one whit for the horse’s well-being.

Fran also references a book, Tug of War: Classical vs Modern Dressage, and a DVD, If Horses Could Speak, both by German veterinarian Gerd Heuschmann, in which he ties this practice to musculoskelatal injuries and general unsoundness of dressage horses. You can see a clip from the DVD on Fran’s blog or YouTube.

Apparently, Epona’s video has sparked an uprising among horse enthusiasts who are calling for the banning of this practice. Read more in Necks, Lies, and Videotapes at Epona TV.

 

Riding in the desert

I suspect that few people outside of Southern Arizona know how beautiful the Sonoran Desert is. Most assume that because it is a desert, it must be all “dust and rocks,” as one of my east coast friends described it.  She, along with anyone else who hasn’t been here, is missing the point.

Jeannie and Janis riding in the western slopes of the Santa Catalina Mountains in Tucson, Arizona

The Sonoran Desert is a heavily vegetated desert with lots of trees and scrub, as well as unique mountains to color its landscape. Most people can look at the picture on the left and refuse to believe it is in the desert.

But our desert is unique. And beautiful.

There is something quite spiritual about riding in this desert. It doesn’t matter how many times we have traced the same trails, each ride is an individual experience and one we’d love to be able to capture and re-live again and again. Unfortunately, we have to settle for the next beautiful and different experience in this beloved countryside.

Poppies and lupine abound in the Spring around the ruins of a trapper's cabin in Catalina State Park

Also, most would reject the notion of a flowered desert, but we have some of the most beautiful wildflowers anywhere. If the winter rains are good, we have astonishingly beautiful spring flowers, and if the summer monsoons are generous, our summer flowers brave temperatures in which most others would be gasping for air and water.

Even in summers like we have just experienced–hot and dry, not enough rain to nourish even the ubiquitous pigweed–we have ridden in our desert. Riding out on a well-loved horse with good friends or in the solitude of an early morning, when it’s just you and your horse, nothing can compare. The desert speaks to each of us in its own way and for our own understanding.

Buying the Calendar

Besides buying the 2010 Hunks & Horses Calendar online (at www.swingingsaddlebabes.com), if you live in the Tucson area, or will be visiting here soon, there are a number of stores and locations where the calendar is for sale. We appreciate these businesses for their commitment to helping horses in need, and specifically helping raise funds for our partner rescue, HEART of Tucson.

Marana Feed and Supply

9643 N. Casa Grande Hwy

Marana, AZ

520-744-6147

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Rancher’s Supply

15771 N. Oracle Rd.

Catalina, AZ

520-825-2969 

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Rawhide Feed and Supply

3302 E. Edwin Rd.

Catalina, AZ

520-825-6985 

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Arizona Feeds

4719 N. Highway Dr.

Tucson, AZ

520-887-2202 

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Vail Feed Store

13105 E. Colossal Cave Rd.

Vail, AZ

520-762-5301

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Catalina Ranch House Limited

15920 N. Oracle Rd.

Catalina, AZ

520-818-2599 

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Picture Rocks Miniature Horse Ranch

6611 N. Taylor Lane

Tucson, AZ

520-682-8009 

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Powell’s Feed and Supply

505 West Main Avenue

Casa Grande, Arizona

520-836-7013

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OK Feed and Supply

3701 E. Fort Lowell

Tucson, AZ

520-325-0122

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Busy Bee Printers

231 W Esperanza Blvd

Green Valley, AZ

(520) 625-9696 

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More locations to come!

2010 Hunks & Horses Calendar Launched

Farriers Don Miller, Mike Gorczyca, Mark Glore, Manny Madrid, John Hall, and Joseph Garnett at Boot Barn to sign calendars.

We got happily through the calendar launch at Boot Barn in Tucson on October 10. We had an incredible turnout of farriers and people who came specifically to purchase the calendar. Boot Barn did such good business that they invited us to return on the day after Thanksgiving–the biggest shopping day of the year! So cool!

We really did have a great day. Several of the farriers showed up to sign their calendar pictures–John Hall, Joseph Garnett, Manny Madrid, Mike Gorczyca, Don Miller, David Landreville, and Mark Glore. Karl Rossi had signed a handful of calendars ahead of time, so we did a fine business with the autographs.

Our rescue, HEART of Tucson, was there and they actually arranged, while they were there, for the rescue and adoption of a race horse from Phoenix’s Paradise Turf raceway who was destined to be euthanized the next day because of a minor injury. The owners had chosen euthanization because they didn’t want to feed a horse for a few months if she couldn’t race for them. Don’t you just hate these folks who see horses only in terms of dollar signs?!

Photographer Tanya Sova was there also and received many comments about the professional job she had done with the pictures. In fact, on the Saturday before the launch, Linda and Sharon appeared on the Clay Harper Horsemanship radio show on a local Tucson station. Clay is a highly regarded horse trainer who lives in the Tucson area. He was very impressed by the calendar and commented (on the air) that Tanya’s work was highly professional and extremely well executed. We thought so, too, but it was nice to have Clay’s endorsement.

Don’t hesitate to visit our website (www.swinginsaddlebabes.com) and purchase your 2010 Hunks & Horses calendar. Also, take a gander at Clay Harper’s website (www.clayharperhorsemanship.com) and enter the raffle for a brand new Circle-Y all around trail saddle. It’s a great opportunity to get an excellent saddle for a mere $10 investment.

Pay attention to these pages for announcements about the calendar and about the upcoming Southern Arizona Horse Expo in January which is organized by Clay Harper and which we will all be involved with. It’s going to be a great expo and we’ll be selling whatever inventory of calendars we have left after the first of the year.

Don’t wait to get yours, though. They are going fast!

 

The Calendar is READY!

The 2010 Hunks & Horses Calendar

Just picked up the calendars from the printer yesterday. I’m blown away. They are gorgeous! (Even if I say so myself.)

Seriously, they are so much better than last year’s inaugural calendar. There was so much we didn’t really know as we began to put the first calendar together. For one thing, we thought of it as just a calendar and we didn’t put enough focus on the rescue who would benefit from the sales. I think we figured that out whenever we were at a venue and we had to verbally tell people the calendar was raising money for a horse rescue–it simply wasn’t obvious in the calendar–this, in spite of our generic “horse rescue calendar” sign.

This year, we put a strong focus on the rescue and the one we chose is a DOOZY! It is a wonderful rescue on the east side of Tucson which is performing miracles on a daily basis for the horses they rescue. We have a page and a half devoted to the rescue and telling the stories of some of the horses they have saved from certain death.

For example, there is Streakin’ Kitty:

Streakin' Kitty, after she was brought in from the desert

Streakin’ Kitty is a six-year-old California bred mare out of the Bold Ruler- Secretariat line who was abandoned on the Southwest side of Tucson in the desert. She had a tattooed ID number through which HEART learned her identity and age. She had been racing since she was three, winning over $28,000.  Her last race was in Sonoita, Arizona, sometime in 2008 where she took third place. She was picked up in the desert and brought to HEART.

When Streakin’ Kitty arrived at HEART, x-rays were taken of her  legs because it was obvious there were serious problems. Her left knee had a small fracture and lots of damage; the coffin bone in her front right hoof was rotated. This probably occurred after she left the track when repeated injections of cortisone into her knee kept her running in illegal match races out in the desert. When she couldn’t do that anymore, they simply dumped her in the desert.

 

You can go to the HEART website, www.heartoftucson.org, click on their Blog and navigate to the August 2 and 10 entries, for pictures and an update on her progress at that time. The work they are doing for horses like Kitty is amazing.

 

In the pictures of Kitty, the farrier is Mark Glore, husband of Judy Glore, who is the president of HEART of Tucson. He is, himself, a miracle worker. Just browsing their blog will show you some of his remarkable work, especially with horses whose hooves have been neglected terribly. Mark is one of our calendar farriers–shown in June with his own horse, clowning around, and in December with one of the Thoroughbred rescues who is featured prominently in the beginning of the calendar. The changes in Dante are obvious, so there is no doubt that the people at HEART are doing the job for our wonderful, four-hooved friends.

 

Go to our website (www.swinginsaddlebabes.com or www.hunksandhorses.com to get more information. The calendars will be available on October 10, 2009. Help us help these beautiful animals.