Left in the desert to die

There is so much need for local horse rescues. Equine Voices & Sanctuary located near Green Valley saves PMU horses (used to make premarin from pregnant mare urine) as well as horses from other abusive situations.

April 26 fundraiser – Chico’s at the Park Place Mall location is giving 10% of all sales made between 9 am – 1 pm to Equine Voices. Coffee and donuts will also be served. Chico’s has fabulous fashions and good sales.

Diamond Rio (pictured) is a sweet, handsome 10-year-old who was used as a drug smuggling horse and was left to die in the desert when his job was done. He was found by livestock officers and came to Equine Voices in January 2009. The smugglers left Diamond Rio permanently injured; he will be lame for the rest of his life. He cannot be ridden, but this wonderful horse would make a great addition to a special family. View these page if you would like to adopt or sponsor Diamond Rio (or many other horses).

For only $10/month, you can help “Gulliver” (everyone’s favorite Clydesdale) spread the word about the plight of the foals bred for the PMU industry by joining the “Gulliver Fan Club.”

Check out Gulliver’s Wishlist on Amazon.

Stay in the loop with the Equine Voices blog.

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Now for the gruesome topic of horse slaughter. The Valley Meat Company in Roswell, New Mexico has been USDA approved to do just that. Previously there was a U.S. ban on horse slaughter but that was lifted in 2011. Robert Redford is speaking out against horse slaughter. What do you think? Horse meat is perceived as gourmet in parts of Europe and Asia.

Disturbing alert: Lastly, Tucson Tails viewed this video about a month ago and cannot get this image out of my mind where a crazy spiteful man shoots his trusting horse in the face, his way of saying @#!% you to animal activists. Shocking! Sign the petition to demand that NM Governor Susana Martinez take action against him. (has link to video)

This is an unbelievably demented and inhumane practice.

I don’t know how effective these petitions are but it cannot hurt. One thing a petition like this does is exposes animal cruelty to a wider audience and that is always a positive step.

Petitioning Mayor, Town of Omak, Washington, 2 N. Ash St., Omak, WA 98841

This dangerous race puts the horses who are forced to sprint down a 210-foot-long 62-degree slope and then jump into the water, at risk of injury and death (23 have died since 1983 including one this year, who broke his leg during a qualifiying race). Veterinarian Dr. Heather Evergreen witnessed the race in 2006 and said that the race has obvious risks: running full speed down a steep hill, jumping off the top of the hill, and drowning in the water at the bottom. A Wall Street Journal reporter witnessed a horse break its back and be euthanized in 2007.

What about the rider? Why are horses put through this extreme potential for risk and entertainment?  People at least have choices as to whether or not to participate.

Please consider signing the petition.

Pass it on and urge your friends to sign. Share this on Facebook and Twitter.

According to Wikipedia: The Suicide Race, also promoted as the World Famous Suicide Race, is a horse race held every year, during the second week of August, in Omak, Washington as a part of the Omak Stampede, a rodeo. Held for more than 70 years, the race is known for the portion of the race where horses and riders run down Suicide Hill, a 62-degree slope that runs for 225 feet to the Okanogan River. The race has provoked serious concerns among animal welfare and animals rights groups.

In the previous 25 years, for example, at least 21 horses have died, including three in 2004 and one in 2012.

Notice the burns on Nick

The seventh annual Fundraiser to benefit Equine Voices Rescue & Sanctuary “A Very Special Horse Event; Building a Community of Compassion” will take place on Saturday April 9, 2011 from 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Brandi Fenton Memorial Park, 3482 E. River Rd in Tucson, AZ.

Here’s the story of Nick, a courageous horse whose medical expenses cost $500 a month!

Between 4 and 5 years ago, Nick was the sole survivor of a horrific fire, so horrific that he was the only horse to make it out of the barn alive, but not without severe injury. His entire back was scorched, leaving all the skin to resemble white barnacles on the underside of a boat. His back looked like what you have left the morning after you have a roaring fire in the fireplace, white ash-colored bubbles. For just one moment — imagine the PAIN!

Imagine the pain!

Nick was meant to survive, and he did, well, sort of…it seems that his subsequent owners, which apparently included a “rescue”, did little to help him recover, and for 4 years Nick suffered without treatment for his burns. He ultimately ended up among 11 other horses owned by a couple that soon divorced leaving the horses in a lurch. Still nothing was done to heal or ease his pain, and he was left in Phoenix with no shelter from the hot 110-degree summer weather.

Nick is one of the sweetest residents at Equine Voices Rescue & Sanctuary. Horses seem to have the unique ability to forgive and forget and hold the next owner harmless. Nick was ignored as far as the rehabilitation process; nothing was done apparently to remedy his badly scorched back. Can you imagine the pain?

For over 4 years he has endured what most of us would rather succumb to, but he didn’t, and Equine Voices is now lucky to have him.

This 9-year old sorrel gelding has a lot of life in him, and everyone at Equine Voices Rescue & Sanctuary is dedicated to giving him the life he deserves. Today, Nick is still recovering, the barnacles on his back are almost gone and his hair continues to grow back. Nick came to Equine Voices in October 2009. Since no one treated his burns for years, he has severe scars which need to be treated on a daily basis. He is much better now, but still has a long way to go before his back is completely healed. He receives so much love and special care, which is truly making a difference in his healing process.

Nick gets another chance to thrive.

There has been a marked increase in the number of requests for assistance. All money raised goes directly to the rescue, rehabilitation and recovery of horses in desperate need. Equine Voices’ monthly expenses average $15,000 not including any special cases such as Nick. This is why monetary donations are critical to the survival of Equine Voices and in making a difference for the horses at the sanctuary.

Equine Voices Rescue & Sanctuary™ was founded in 2004 and is a 501 (c) 3 tax-exempt organization dedicated to saving Premarin (PMU) mares and foals from slaughter. This organization also works with law enforcement agencies to provide services to horses suffering from abuse, abandonment, starvation, and cruelty experienced when used to transport illegal contraband across the border.

In addition, Equine Voices is the first and only horse rescue in the state of Arizona and the third in the country to have achieved the highly sought after accreditation through the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries. This achievement has raised the standards for all animal sanctuaries around the globe.

(Photos and story submitted by Equine Voices.)

Despicable condition

The Miracle of Survival
On October 14, 2000, a 3-year-old colt was making his debut at Santa Anita in a maiden special weight race. As for any first time starter, the sky was the limit and the possibilities endless. He came in sixth on that day, and he would continue to race at Santa Anita, Hollywood Park, and Del Mar for the next 15 months.

In that time, he won one race in 13 starts, a $20,000 maiden claiming race at Del Mar on July 30, 2001, for his owners, the Firmamento Corporation.

This colt would continue to race for over five more years, with his last race on February 10, 2007 at Rillito Park race track in Tucson, Arizona.

On that day, he was entered for a claiming price of $1,500, finishing last in the field of six. With that race, he had just finished his career on the track at the age of 10. He had raced for over six years, having 56 starts, 8 wins, 6 seconds, and 6 thirds with earnings of $34,113.

In that span, he was owned by three separate owners and raced at Santa Anita, Hollywood Park, Del Mar, Rillito, Turf Paradise, Yavapai Downs, Graham Fair, Cochise Fair, Santa Cruz, Flagstaff, and Gila Fair. From there, the story is more or less lost, as this colt struggled to stay alive.

In mid December 2010, just before Christmas, this colt was found wandering about in someone’s yard in the southeast corner of the Arizona desert, emaciated, and barely able to move. His condition was so deplorable that he wasn’t even a possibility for the state auction.

At this point in his life, euthanasia would most likely be his fate. A last second phone call was made to a local horse rescue, Heart of Tucson, who agreed to take this brave colt under their wings and do all that they could to heal him or at least restore the dignity he so deserved. He arrived at Heart of Tucson in a very weak condition. He is malnourished, has horrific teeth, sores, and has severely rotten smelling abscesses in all of his feet.

Volunteers at Heart of Tucson are doing all that they can to bring him back to being a healthy colt once again. They say he is a sweetheart and has a strong will to live. In the spirit of the holiday season, with no prior knowledge of his racing name, the good people at Heart of Tucson named this colt “Gifted.”

Two days after “Gifted” was given his name, the people at Heart of Tucson ran his tattoo. His racing name was no longer a mystery. His name is Dyna King, sired by Dynaformer out of the mare Rekindled, foaled in 1997.

By racing standards, he is not a half brother to Barbaro, Nicanor, Lentenor, or Margano, but they are still all connected by their father, Dynaformer. The sire of Gifted aka Dyna King being the same as Barbaro and his brothers, means that his story needs to be told, and the people responsible for his condition should be found and held accountable down the road.

What Dyna King has had to endure in the last four years must have been a living hell for him. He has a long recovery ahead of him. This is indeed a story about the the will to live and the miracle of survival. A horse near death found in the cruel barren desert is a miracle to begin with. His cries of suffering and anguish and pain sent from his heart as he wandered lost and alone, most likely just discarded by whomever was supposed to be caring for him, were heard, and he was rescued by…. HEART of Tucson.

(The photo is courtesy of Mia Larocque and the story was written by Greg Jones and Erica Reid.)

Heart of Tucson will be at Arizona Animal Fair on March 5. You can learn more about the horses they help.