Blog

Everything that is on this page is my own personal opinion, if you like what I have to say GREAT, if not then don't read it! Thank You and have a great and wonderful day!!-Nadine

I am going to try to keep a blog of what is happening, what's new, etc. I am putting this on here as I think it is very important for people to hear. We get a lot of calls and e-mails from people and from other rescue groups asking if we can help because they are full and they are trying to reach out to whoever they can to see if anyone can help. The thing that is getting me upset is that a person will contact us or another group by stating that either we or them take their horse (usually immediately) or it is going to be shipped to slaughter! We are, (and most other rescue groups) are small farms but we take in as many as we can without jeopardizing our ability to care for the one's that we already have. We are willing to help find a home for your animal if you are unable to care for it any longer, but please do not threaten us by making that kind of comment. We believe that these animals have given us more joy and love and that they deserve to have the time put in to find them a loving-caring home. We wont judge anyone by their decision to have us help them find a home for their animal so give us a chance! If you have an animal that you just cannot care for, PLEASE! DO NOT starve the animal, contact us and we will try to help in whatever way we can.

November 12, 2008

A little over a week ago a member came home from vacation to find a little dog come around the corner of her shed shaking and trembling. The little thing had a man's belt around her neck but no tags of any kind to identify her or who to contact for her. This isn't the first time something like this has happened to Debbie, this summer she came home to find 6 kittens in a box in her garage! Needless to say, I am just at awe at some of the stuff that people do, although nothing should surprise me, but for some reason it still does and never gets any easier. There is no clue as to how this little dog (mixed breed) got to her place, but suspicion is that she was dumped off at her place. Debbie is a great person and has so much love for animals, but people come on! This woman is on her own, and the animals that are left at her place are not spayed or neutered, so probably don't have any shots- either. This leaves Debbie to pay for all the expenses of taking care of these animals. She has named the little dog Mocha and has had her to the vet to get her shots and is scheduled to get her boosters. If anyone is interested in adopting Mocha you can contact Debbie at 608-981-2448. I just wish people would have the courtesy of asking for help instead of just dumping their pets. A little bit more about Mocha is that she is around 2 years of age, very smart, and gets along great with other dogs and cats. She is brindle color that is how Debbie came up with her name for her.

October 13, 2008

Sorry, my computer was not working so I wasn't able to do anything on the site for awhile. Anyway, we are trying to raise money for a beautiful horse named Sundog. He is a 6-year-old leopard Appaloosa gelding. He has an uncommon infection that only surgery can cure. He developed a bloody nasal discharge in September and the vet recommended flushing, then scoped and x-rayed him which revealed he has a lot of chondroides (sp?) in his guttural pouch. If left untreated they will cause paralysis and swelling in his bottom lip and swelling of his wind-pipe, which will ultimately lead to his death. The owners have recently had surgery themselves this summer and the lady is just getting back to work. They love this horse VERY, VERY much but the surgery will cost $2,500 and the vet will not take payments or set up a payment plan (these people have excellent credit and have lots of references), but the vet will not except any kind payment plan and wants the money upfront. So they contacted us to see if we could help, and we are trying to do as much as we can to try and help Sundog. The vet assured us that if he is able to have the surgery it is 100% successful! Sundog needs the surgery before December 1, 2008 so we don't have much time and we would really appreciate any amount you could spare. Remember=all donations are tax-deductible and any amount will be greatly appreciated!!! Below is a picture of Sundog.

To send donations for Sundog you may mail them to:

SUNDOG

C/O CWSTAG

W8433 Dumke Road

Portage, WI 53901

Again, THANK YOU VERY MUCH!!!

I will also be putting on here the amount of how much has been raised as soon as I get the information. Amount raised as of 10-20-08 is $350.00. We still need to raise $2,150.00 for Sundog to have his surgery to save his life. The vet has guaranteed Sundog a 100% percent recovery from the surgery, but only if he has it by this December. UPDATE: November 12, 2008. Sundog's surgery has been upped to $3,500! He has Chondroids in both sides. We have raised $2,800 so far but need $700 more! We are so close and we truly appreciate and Thank everyone who has donated to help save him especially his owners! They cannot even begin to Thank everyone enough for their donations.

September 10, 2008

I don't know if anyone else has heard of the website fuglyhorseoftheday.com? I was sent the address and have gone on it and actually enjoy reading what the woman has to say (I forgot her name). Anyway, she just says what's on her mind about people and how they treat (don't treat), breed, have children on horses without helmets, etc. Sometimes I laugh my butt off! I don't know how she gets the stuff she does, I'm assuming people send it to her and stuff but man, she just hits everything on the head! I sure wish more people would take her advice!

I am going to put a few statutes on here as it is very important to know about horses road rights.

Wisconsin State Statues 346.01, 346.02, 346.11, 346.21

346.01 WORDS AND PHRASES DEFINED. "Words and phrases defined in a 340.01 are used in the same sense in this chapter unless a different definition is specifically provided."

346.02 APPLICABILITY OF CHAPTER. "... Every person riding an animal or driving any animal-drawn vehicle... upon a roadway is granted all the rights and is subject to all the duties which this chapter grants or applies to the operator of a vehicle, except those provisions of this chapter which by their very nature would have no application...."

346.11 PASSING OR MEETING FRIGHTENED ANIMAL.. "Whenever a person riding, driving or leading an animal which is frightened gives a signal of distress to the operator of a motor vehicle by a raising of the hand or otherwise, the operator of the motor vehicle shall promptly stop his vehicle unless a movement forward is necessary to avoid an accident or injury and shall, upon request, stop all motive power until such animal is under control."

346.21 RIGHT OF WAY OF LIVESTOCK. "The operator of a motor vehicle shall yield the right of way to livestock being driven over or along any highway but any person in charge of such livestock shall use reasonable care and diligence to open the roadway for vehicular traffic."

One of the main reasons for me putting this on here is a few months back Shirley and I were on the radio expressing the importance of vehicles slowing down when passing a person riding a horse and not honking, etc. Well, when I had gotten home my daughter told me some guy called and very abruptly made remarks about how the signals on the horse are the same as a bike and stuff and that I needed to get my facts straight. Well, that may be so, but if someone is on a horse and they are putting their arm out and waiving it up and down it means that person wants you to please stop, their horse has spooked and they want to get the horse under control before the car tries to pass or else there could be a really big problem. It's not to upset the motorist it's just to get a situation under control. Anyone who has ridden a horse knows that you can ride the most calm, dead-broke horse and for some reason a leaf can fall out of a tree and spook the horse, even though the horse has seen leaves fall from trees zillions of times. Things happen, we never know when or why, it's the same thing with people driving automobiles, you can drive the same highway for years and who's to say that one day something might happen that you wouldn't expect?

None of us are asking for motorist to bow down to people riding horses, just be courteous is all. We just want everyone to be able to make it home safe. People ride horses as it just helps relieve stress, it lets you enjoy the weather, the bond you have with your horse, etc.

We had our meeting last Saturday evening and we were informed that Tommie Turvey is going to be the main speaker at Antiguqa Bay in November! OMG, I absolutely love watching him and his horses! His horses won't be there, but he'll be giving speeches. I cannot wait to see and hear him! Last spring I was kind of at a stand still with my horse, I was tired of doing the same 'ole same 'ole type of ground work (you know what I mean, circles!). Well, I saw him at Midwest Horse Fair in Madison and I was in total awe! His liberty work that he does with his paints are truly amazing! I was so excited and motivated again I couldn't wait to get home and start working with my horse. I use his liberty method all the time, and I absolutely love it!! After I saw him I went to every clinic he had at the Midwest Horse Fair to watch and learn as much as I could (plus, he's not bad to look at either LOL). It was just nice to be inspired again, so whenever I feel like I've reached a standstill I'll pop in a training dvd of his or of Clinton Anderson's and it helps get me pumped up again to do stuff with my horse. He and Clinton Anderson make learning easy for the average person (even hard-to-learn person), so if you can't tell by now, I really like these guys they're amazing clinicians. Another clinician I want to see is Karen Scholl, I got to see a little bit of a video of hers and a short clinic at this years Midwest Horse Fair in Madison and found her quite entertaining and enjoyable to watch. I just hope that I get the opportunity to see her again but with a little more time. I like to try and learn as much as I can and see as many clinicians as possible, because I always learn more and more and eventually get the answer to a question that I have as to why something isn't working for me the way it should with my horse. I've seen Clinton Anderson 3 times and every time I've seen him I see things clearer as to what I was doing wrong or steps that I'd missed. I could go on and on but I won't, I'll spare everyone the trauma of having to hear all my hype of them!

So if anyone is planning on coming to Antigua Bay in the Dells in November stop in and see us too, we'd love to meet and talk to you!!! ☺

August 25, 2008

Boy, guess it's been a while since I've been on here! I guess it's because it's been fairly quiet for quite some time so not a whole lot to share with everyone. The rescues that we have in are doing great! A girl actually was able to get on Sugar, she'd also done some ground work with her. Her comment was that she doesn't think Sugar's ever been ridden or had much work done, but would make a great horse for someone as she is so laid back and sweet. I'm planning on going out to the farm tomorrow and taking newer pictures and spending some time with the horses (at least that's the plan right now).

Other than that the summer is going by way to fast! I'm not ready or looking forward to Winter at all!! The only thing that's nice is that the mosquito's won't be around to bother us or the horses! Well, hopefully next time I blog I'll have more to say so until then have a great day!

July 30, 2008

Alright, so tonight Shirley receives a call from a chairman from the town board asking if we had put a note in a person's mailbox telling them to take care of their dogs. Let me start by saying this-If we think you need to care for an animal I can pretty much guarantee we'd just tell you to your face, not in a letter tucked in a mailbox! His remark when asked who would've told him that we do that kind of stuff was just "Well, it was a rumor." So let's just put an end to that rumor right now, NO, we did not nor do we put notes, letters, whatever else you might think in peoples mailboxes!

Maybe, the person complaining about getting the complaint should think that maybe someone drove by or maybe a neighbor? Ummm, let's see, you know sometimes family members can also do something to that extent as to not want to upset the family member but do it anonymously and act like they don't know who or why someone would do that? Look, I'm not saying that's what happened, but there are other people out there that see things besides us rescue groups.

Our group is not here to try to make waves with anyone, we are just here to try and help with whatever we can. We are way to busy with our daily jobs, life, our own animals to go around looking and putting notes in people's mailboxes, so hopefully whoever made the remark that we do this can now rest easily knowing that they have nothing to worry about=at least from us. Let's remember also, if everyone did take care of their animals the way they should we wouldn't need rescue groups in the first place and the world would be a much nicer place-don't you agree? Just one last thing on this, if the person who wrote the note and put it in the mailbox reads this=THANK YOU! It means you care and are bringing attention to someone who obviously needs attention brought to.

July 28, 2008

The other night I received a call and had some questions that I found to be important to share. If a person is concerned about an animal (s) they should contact the local Sheriff's Department and ask for the Humane Officer in charge and let them know what you concern is. Even though we are a rescue group we do not have the legality to just go and take an animal even if it is in need of care. We are usually contacted by people who cannot take care of their horses any longer and need to find a loving and caring home for them or we are contacted by the Sheriff's Department about taking in horses that have been seized. Another way of us receiving horses is by the Humane Societies.

Another thing that I really want to stress is the importance of having your cats and dogs spayed and neutered!!! Plus, for Pete's sake have your horses gelded!!! The abundance of these animals are just unnecessary! The economy is not the greatest as everyone knows and to just keep populating and then abandoning these animals is senseless! One of our members came home from vacation to find six kittens in a box left in her garage, now what gets me is the person who just won't have their cat spayed! Come on people lets start getting responsible here! Our shelters cannot keep up, and we do not have the facilities to accommodate smaller animals. One way to look at things before even considering getting a kitten or a cute little puppy that you oooh and ahhh about is to think about your income, do you have enough to get this animals spayed or neutered right away along with the shots. What happens if it gets sick? Do you have the money to take it in to get medication so it can get well? Do you have anyone to take care of it if you go out of town or on vacation for a while? With dogs think about the time that needs to be vested-walking, potty-training (if not already trained), everyday exercise. With cats sure they aren't as much work but they still require their little box changed on a daily basis. Make sure you're financially secure and know that you are going to do right by this animal.

Now, for anyone even considering adopting a horse! These are an expensive commitment!!! Every year they need to have their shots, teeth-floated (sometimes more often depending on the horse), their hooves need to be trimmed every 6 to 8 weeks. Here's a break down roughly of what it may cost monthly for 1 horse:

1. Teeth Float-$100-$175 Horses need this done, if they don't their teeth get sharp points and start creating sores and ulcers in their mouths. It also is a big reason for horses as to why they cannot gain or keep weight on.

2. Vaccines-Rabies, East and West Nile, Strangles, and if they leave your property THEY NEED A COGGINS!!! done-$100

3. Hooves trimmed- $25-$50 even $60 every 6 to 8 weeks, (if every 8 weeks) 6 x $25 - $50 = $150.00 to $300. Again, this is necessary for a horse to have done or else their hooves start to grow out and it can be very painful for the horse and even cause the horse to be lame.

4. Hay-1 bale per horse per day-$2.75 x 30 days per month = $82.50. There are 12 months per year so 12 x $82.50 = $990.00. Well, today hay is now at the price of $3.00 to $3.25 per bale of hay so that just upped the expense even more.

So for an average of ONE horse for ONE year (IF nothing goes wrong, and you do not have any emergencies) TOTAL is $1,240.00 to $1,390.00.

Depending upon the horse also, sometimes they need grain, glucosamine, etc. All should be wormed and have vitamins. They also need a salt block and a mineral block at all times to give them the salt a minerals that they need to help absorb the water, and to help prevent them from eating sand. Horses also drink approximately 8-14 gallons of water per day. The myth about a horse being able to eat snow in the winter for it's water is NOT so!! They cannot eat enough snow that they need to help them keep warm during the cold winter months. Another myth is that they can paw at a frozen creek or pond and drink from that, well see that can be a big problem also as most horses aren't going to walk out on ice afraid of falling in, and if they aren't used to it they are automatically afraid that it's going to eat them! Another myth is that in the winter they paw through the snow and find food to eat, as that's what they do in the wild. Well, our's are not in the wild, they are fenced in and do not have hundreds of miles to go in search of food. We have domesticated these animals so it is up to us to care for them, and if not, find them a home where they will be cared for.

Alright, I think I've said what I wanted to say for the moment, hopefully people who read this and are thinking about getting any of these animals think long and hard about if they are able to care for these animals and not get any if they can't. Look, if you aren't able to afford the animals today the world isn't going to stop revolving! Wait for awhile, a day will come when maybe you'll be able to get an animal and if you're really lucky maybe 2 or more? The point is don't rush into something like this. Animals get very attached and it is very hard on them when they get tossed home from home, it can be very traumatic, so let's do them and ourselves a favor, be sure about your decision and do what's right!