In The News

Angelito Comes Home by Karen Reyer Ohhhhmygosh! We are so excited! As you know we lost our Orejas (“Ears”) last winter at age 27. Her loss has left a hole in our hearts. Tonight Girls Ranch called and offered us “Angelito” the donkey from their herd. Wonder of wonders! Many years ago I received a late evening phone call from “Alice” (false name due to privacy) – she had been coming home from working the NM state legislature finance meeting representing 4-H as a 4-H Ambassador. She had found a scraggly little beast on the Girls Ranch entrance road and had stopped to rescue it. Well by golly, it truly did need rescuing. This wee being was sucking/nursing the lower corner of her 4-H blazer as Alice stood there in her high heels and suit talking on the cell phone to me. She and her Resident Supervisor waited until Eldon and I arrived and hooked up the 4-horse trailer to put the smelly beast in for the night. It became obvious this poor little burro had been badly injured on both sides of the neck and had abscesses as a result. We, as a group, took the little burrito back to Girls Ranch and made the decision to put 5 gal. of water, hay and Equine Senior in the trailer for him to eat – that is all we had to offer. We gave him 4 SMZ tablets and left him in the trailer to isolate him – we were worried about mingling him with the herd due to his infectious (smelly) status. The smell was really gagging. Ohhhhhh! We attempted to shave the wounds, in very bad light, to get a better look but the poor little thing was just too overwhelmed. Day 2 First thing the next morning we called the local veterinarians to let them know we were bringing in a waif. He had consumed the 5 gal of water and all the Equine Senior. When we picked him up the next evening both abscesses on either side of the neck had been shaved, lanced and drained and you could almost see through his lower neck from one side to the other. Cantaloupe sized lumps still remained on each side. We were instructed to hose the neck holes out for at least 10 minutes two times daily and give him antibiotics twice daily by mouth. Eldon did the AM shift and Alice took over the afternoon shift of treatment. Eldon built a small paddock and a small lean-too barn which he filled with straw to keep the babe warm. After school Alice ran to the paddock and took the wee one into her arms while seated in the straw. He actually snuggled into her and went to sleep. Later she would treat him and blanket him with her favorite quilt and leave him for the night after feeding. The next morning Eldon would find him cuddled into the quilt at 6 AM. He and Alice fed the donkey and made certain all treatments were completed. I was worried, as horse thieving in NM is still a hanging offence. What to do? The wee beast certainly had a home somewhere. Day 3 Somewhere in the third day the girls got together and named him Angelito, Little Angel Boy. They truly believed that he had been brought to Girls Ranch to heal the body and soul, just as they had come there to heal. We put out advertisements about Angelito all over Lamy and south 285 from Eldorado. When Eldon went home to lunch one day later, there were 14 calls on our answering machine – all about Angelito. Thirteen of the calls pleaded that we not return the donkey to his Lamy home. The 14th call was someone who said the owner had given the donkey to him if he could find him. After a bit of prying I finally got the name of the owner as we refused to release the donkey to anyone other than to owner. It took the owner a full day to return call requests. It seems that the jennet and the colt had walked through the owners fence and gone grazing along the AMTRAK tracks just north of Lamy. The jennet was hit and killed by a train. The owner went and retrieved the colt and brought him home. The colt was medicated and corralled for the night. Next morning the colt was gone. In retrospect the colt had to cross no less then 7 barbed wire fences to arrive on the Girls Ranch entry road. Was this destined? By golly the girls sure thought so! And so did we! Anyway the owner said he would be right over to pick up the babe but I mentioned there was a vet bill of $120.00 outstanding and if he would be willing to pay it he could have Angelito. Is this blackmail – I think not. After dickering with the owner we offered to put up $50.00 so the owner donated Angelito to the Girls Ranch. The Santa Fe Mule and Donkey group dropped off feed for Angelito and he grew into a wonderful representative of The Ranches. Recently when the Ranches coalesced in Bernardo, Angelito was one thing the girls did not want to leave behind. They knew his story and felt it in their souls. Well now, it’s time for financial reality. It costs money, even to feed a donkey, no matter his value. So Angelito has moved to our house. What better home could he have? Eldon and I know his story and how he helped to heal so many lives. We also know how many lives he touched during petting zoos – probably 50,000 folks have touched him and read his story. Isn’t this wonderful? So now we will be real donkey owners and members of the NM Mule and Donkey Assn. Whoopee!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Art Grunig Clinic Review by Mary Ann Menetrey Renowned horse trainer Art Grunig returned to the Santa Fe area during November for two days of cow working clinics as well as three days of private sessions. The cow clinics were held one day near El Dorado and one day at the Plumed Serpent Ranch south of Espanola. Art has been coming to the Santa Fe area conducting horsemanship and cow working clinics, as well as private sessions and equine bodywork, for the past 9 years. This was his second trip in 2009, and approximately 20 people and horses participated in either the cow clinics or private sessions. Art has trained horses professionally for over 40 years and is currently based out of Northern California. He has numerous reining, cutting, and working cow horse championships under his belt, and this year proved no exception as the horse he competed on, Wyammy Matt Boon, won the Pacific Coast Quarter Horse Association Junior Cutting Championship. Art is incredibly versatile in that he has also trained horses for western pleasure, trail, jumping, dressage, jousting, vaulting, driving, and racing. No matter what the discipline, the key of Art’s training philosophy is fairness, which he defines as the horse having a good opportunity to find a way to be happy, comfortable and healthy. All of his training techniques, methods and procedures are based on this philosophy. Participants in the November cow working clinics ranged from people and horses with lots of cow savvy to those with no experience and horses that appeared quite alarmed at their first glimpse of a cow. The clinics were generally 3-hour sessions limited to 4 riders to ensure that everyone got considerable individual attention. Art is really excellent at introducing horses and riders with no prior cow experience. Inexperienced horses are also able to watch the more experienced to gain confidence. By the end of each session, many horses that were initially very insecure were pushing and cutting out cows and clearly enjoyed having a “job” to do. Art believes in building a good foundation for cattle work, where you teach the horse to work “without resistance to the rider, the job, and its own body.” The goal is a horse that is calm, willing, and functional, and by the end of each clinic the difference in most of the horses and riders was amazing. Everyone I interacted with seemed quite pleased with the results in their horses, plus it is loads of fun to participate in. Several private sessions were also conducted around the Santa Fe area while Art was here. Some of the private sessions were for horsemanship skills, however many participants elected to have equine bodywork for their horses. Art developed a neurologically based equine bodywork method he calls Reflex Balancing. He is also trained in massage, cranio-sacral therapy, lymphatic drainage, visceral manipulation, watsu and tantsu. He has worked on my horses several times and the results have been incredible, not to mention that they seem to love the work. Overall, it was a very successful and great 5 days of clinics and private sessions. I would recommend attending one of Art’s clinics or scheduling a private session to anyone who wishes to improve their horsemanship skills. Art plans on returning to Santa Fe next Spring. A notice for this event will be posted in the Paddock Paper and other places, and I would definitely check it out next time he comes around!
New ACTHA list on Yahoo Groups! A great way to meet other riders, chat about ACTHA rides, post ride photos, ride information and just plain chat horses! It’s a free and easy to use list! http://sports.groups.yahoo.com/group/ACTHA/ ACTHA’s Mission To provide an enjoyable venue showcasing the wonderful attributes of the great American trail horse, granting them the recognition they so richly deserve To maintain a registry open to all breeds and a point designation system which will stay with each horse for its lifetime, thereby adding to their value and distinction. To enable the humane treatment of horses in need. AHC Seeks to Document Equestrian Access Issues on Public Land July 24, 2009 — The American Horse Council has launched a new effort to collect information on access issues equestrians are experiencing on federal lands. The center piece of this effort is an online form equestrians can use to report their personal experiences regarding trails and federal lands that have been closed to them or other access issues. Americans who use horses and pack stock enjoy a unique experience when they ride on trails and public lands. It is an experience that ties them to the “pioneer” era and provides not only a way to connect with America ’s vast and unique natural resources but a link with America ’s history and traditions. It is an experience that cannot be enjoyed without a trail system, trailhead access and areas for camping. It is an experience that Americans enjoyed even before there was a national park system and an experience they want to continue. Unfortunately, equestrians are seeing an increasing loss of access through trail restrictions, trail closures, and use restrictions. Riders and stock users are being excluded from areas that they have historically traveled through and indeed first opened up. It is a loss of opportunities for riders, families, persons with disabilities, school groups and others. There seems to be a management environment less open to these traditional forms of use. Sometimes restrictions on equestrian use are done intentionally through management plans that reduce, restrict or eliminate horses, horse facilities, camping or grazing restrictions, cross-country travel restrictions or closures. Sometimes the restrictions are indirect though a lack of trail maintenance, or over regulation, or lack of services to the public like facilities that provide saddle and pack animals or parking for horse trailers. In order to better combat this disturbing trend the AHC is asking equestrians to document examples of trails or entire areas that have been closed to equestrians on federal land (National Forest Service, National Parks Service, and Bureau of Land Management, etc). The AHC is seeking all relevant information concerning these closures such as the reason for the loss of access, details concerning any public process that was involved and the history of equestrian use on the closed trail or area. The AHC is also interested in examples of attempts to bar equestrian access that have been defeated. “The reduction of trails, trail heads and the closure of public lands to horses and pack animals is a continuing problem for equestrians. However, there is no centralized, comprehensive database that documents any loss of access and even fewer specific examples,” said AHC President Jay Hickey. “We hope by giving equestrians a place to report their experiences we can get a better picture of the problem and use that information to fix it.” The AHC is asking all recreational riders to visit the AHC website and report any access issues they have had using this electronic form www.horsecouncil.org/survey.php. This will be a permanent feature of the AHC website. State Equine Transport Requirements Available Online Edited Press Release for US Rider December 21 2009 — Since equine transportation regulations vary from state to state, USRider is providing up-to-date information regarding equine transportation on a state-by-state basis at www.usrider.org/EquestrianMotorPlan.html. The site provides the details on all the states' equine transportation regulations, including Certificate of Veterinary Inspection, EIA and vesicular stomatitis requirements, as well as contact information for each state veterinarian. The site is available to anyone traveling with horses, both USRider members and nonmembers. It includes safety bulletins, equine trailer safety tips, a pre-trip checklist, and more. Designed for those who travel with horses, USRider provides emergency roadside assistance and towing services, along with other travel-related benefits geared especially toward horse owners. Not pleasant, but sometimes necessary Humane Society of the United States Releases List of Humane Options for Disposal of Equines Posted: Monday, August 17, 2009 The Humane Society of the United States released a national list of humane resources for horse owners making end-of-life arrangements for their equine companions. "Providing a humane, dignified death for your horse is simply responsible horse ownership," said Keith Dane, The Humane Society of the United States' director of equine protection. "No one likes to think about the death of a beloved companion, but planning ahead is key to understanding your options. This resource list gives horse owners the information they need to plan effectively." The list at http://www.hsus.org/horses_equines/resources/ (Clicking NM in the state list doesn't work; use the scroll bar) includes state-by-state information on low-cost euthanasia programs, equine crematories, horse cemeteries, rendering facilities and landfills. State agriculture and veterinary contacts and state regulations are also included. Below is the New Mexico information. A recent survey of equine veterinarians and carcass disposal service providers indicated it costs about $300 for humane euthanasia and carcass disposal. In most parts of the country, this cost is equal to or less than the cost of one month's care. With proper care, horses can live well into their 20s and 30s. The latest available data shows there are more than 9 million horses in the United States, making this resource a valuable tool for the millions of Americans involved with horses. New Mexico State Veterinarian: Dr. David E. Fly, dave.fly@state.nm.us  USDA Cooperative Extension Service: www.csrees.usda.gov/Extension/ State Regulations: Deceased Animal Disposal Laws: N.M. Stat. Ann. § 77-3-4. Dead animals; disposal The bodies of all dead animals shall be buried, burned or disposed of by the owners as provided by regulations of the board. Euthanasia Programs: New Mexico Veterinary Diagnostics Services   700 Camino De Salud NE   Albuquerque, NM 87106   505-841-2576 http://128.123.206.6/animal-and-plant-protection/veterinary-diagnostic-services Equine Crematory Services: Ashes to Ashes Pet Cremation (serves the Continental U.S.)   22331 590th Street   Pomeroy, IA 50575   712-358-2600  www.ncn.net/~scottdev Memorial Pet Care (serves the Continental U.S.) 654 E. King Street Meridian, ID 83642 208-887-7669 www.memorialpetcare.com Rendering/Carcass Disposal: New Mexico Services 4124 Broadway Boulevard SE Albuquerque, NM 08710-5420 505-877-6789 Landfills that Accept Equine Carcasses: * Waste Management® accepts equine carcasses at some but not all locations. To find out if your local Waste Management location will take horses, please contact them: www.wm.com; 800-963-4776