Forever Home Equine Sanctuary

06/14/2024

Celebrate our great country and honor horses that helped build it! And help our horses. Each sale provides a bale of fresh cut new hay. ForeverHorses.org

06/12/2024

It was veterinary day today at the sanctuary. Vaccinations, tests and checkups.
The horses were excellent and took the shots like troopers.

Haylo was a blast….she was perfect for the vet, didn’t even flinch. Then she wanted to climb right in Dr. Cat’s pocket! We both had to laugh at what a curious little girl who did not hold any grudge for being poked with needles.
Dr. Cat was very pleased with how she looks and her over all health. Haylo passed her vet exam with flying colors!

Heaven suddenly became lame last week. I had been conferring with Dr. Cat and following her recommendations on treatment until she could get here today.
Heaven improved greatly over the week but Dr. Cat has diagnosed her as having DSLD. (Degenerative suspensory ligament desmitis). This is a progressive condition that is not curable. All we can do is keep her comfortable as long as possible. Keeping her on soft footing helps which I’ve always done anyway.
We plan to put on her on a mild painkiller when the weather turns cold but she’s doing good enough now to not need it.
We will do everything possible to give this girl quality of life as long as we can.

Angel, who has cushings, is doing very good on just 1/4 prascend pill per day. She has shed out beautifully, stayed sound and still has good muscle tone. So we are keeping her at that dosage.

Ladybug who we all know is a chubby wubby, is on a very strict diet and exercise program and has been for many years. But that has not been affective weight wise.
We have tried many things including putting her on thyroid-L but even a low dose gave her uncontrollable tremors.
The good thing is she has stayed sound. (Knock knock on wood, don’t want to jinx her). Dr. Cat is very happy about this and says she’s got another 20 years!
This year she is not shedding out like she should so Dr. Cat took a sample of blood to test for cushings. We will have the results next week. If she has it, it’s early so that’s good.

Freedom’s legs and feet have stayed the same with no further rotation of her coffin bone. (When she was a baby her bones outgrew her tendons which caused rotation, making her walk on her toes.) She was lame when she first came here but with special care from vet, farrier and us, she has been doing excellent.

Sundy who is metabolically challenged is doing great on her diet and exercise program. Some horses just cannot tolerate starch and sugar even when they are at a normal weight. Which means she can’t have grass, grain or any treat with sugar or starch in it. And her hay has to be tested and then soaked if necessary.

So this was a good day with great check ups.
I appreciate our hard working vet more than words can say.

Sorry for the poor quality video. I didn’t get any with my phone and had to take this from the barn camera.

06/10/2024

Our little Haylo is turning quite the unique color….shiny black with white speckles on her back and rump, topped off with all over dapples.
Her color is as unique as her personality.
She is our shining light ✨

06/10/2024

Our little Haylo is turning quite the unique color….shiny black with white speckles on her back and rump, topped off with all over dapples.
Her color is as unique as her personality.
She is our shining light ✨

06/05/2024

I use 120 qt coolers to soak hay for the horses.
I fill the coolers with water, then hay.
I let the hay soak 30 min then flip the flakes of hay over and let it soak another 30 min.
Then I remove the wet hay and place it in our homemade draining tubs. Hay right from the coolers is overflowing with water and is very heavy. So I have to remove one flake at a time. Not a big deal but it does add more time to the procedure.
I let the soaked hay drain for 15 min. Then I put it in the slow feed hay nets and take it to the horses.
I do this every morning and evening.
This is in addition to steaming hay which is a different procedure. I do have a hay steamer which makes that job much easier. I recently made a reel showing how the steaming is done.
I plan to make another reel showing the soaking hay as soon as I get a chance.

They do make hay soakers which would save me so much time, like the hay steamer does.
The only thing is, I’d need 2 for every horse, one for inside and one for outside. So it will be awhile before I can reach that goal. But mountains are climbed one step at a time.

Here’s a link to them if you’d like to see how they work;

Haycube makes soaking hay and slow feeding for you horse so easy! Haycube is the perfect way to soak your hay, and offer trickle feeding to help manage laminitis and other common equine issues. Make hay nets and water buckets a thing of the past, check out Haycube USA LLC at www.haycubeusa.com

06/03/2024

I let the Littles out into the pasture yesterday morning. They had a blast, grazing, running and kicking up their heels.

Their grazing time has to be limited so I was concerned not knowing how difficult it would be to bring Haylo back in.

I knew Angel would be easy. Just call her name and she comes running. Which she did.
But Haylo stayed way out in the pasture.

I stood in the stall doorway thinking…
‘Do I go out, try get ahold of her and lead her back?’
‘Do I go out and try to drive her in instead?’
‘Oh wait, I’ll try calling to her first’

“Hayloooooo, Haylooooo….time to come in”

The little girl whirled around and came running as fast as she could, through the open gate to her paddock, then to the barn, right up to me!!
I couldn’t believe my eyes!! I wasn’t sure she had really gotten used to her name yet and she’s such an independent feisty girl, I didn’t think she’d ever come by just asking.

Ha, she’s even smarter than I realized!!

Haylo is an AMAZING little horse. Her personality, demeanor and wisdom is far greater than her size!!

05/29/2024

Ready for summer.

05/23/2024

Oh yes, that’s the spot.

05/20/2024

I walk by this area each time I go to and from the barn. I see the green grass growing like crazy. It’s only the month of May and it’s already been mowed 3 times.
My eyes well up with tears….memories rush through my mind like a tidal wave.
This was Rainbow’s special pasture.
I feel her presence, I feel her joy…..her neck stretching out, head tilting sideways, lips smiling showing those teeth, baby blue eyes sparkling….
This was her favorite place to be.
If only I could wrap my arms around her just one more time….💔

05/19/2024

‘Ma, are there any flies out ?

05/16/2024

What do you do when it’s pouring out?
Take a nap! 💜

05/16/2024

Sundy and Ladybug enjoyed being outside while the sun was shining today.
The weather turns fast….its pouring out now. 😳

05/14/2024

She’s small but mighty! Once a horse feels safe and realizes they have freedom of choice here, their true personality comes out.
Little Haylo, the smallest horse we’ve ever had, has decided she is the boss.
No worries, this is just what Angel needed. Angel is soft spoken and likes to stay out of the spotlight. She is happy to have Haylo as her leader.
Heels flew but no one was hurt. It’s all good. Haylo has spoken and the friendship has reached a deeper bond. 💜

05/10/2024

If you love horses and the USA, this tee is for you! www.ForeverHorses.org

05/08/2024

It’s raining hard now but I’m thankful it held off today for the farrier. Even though he most often trims the horses feet inside the barn, it seems nicer when the sun is shining.

05/07/2024

“Just say the word, Mom, and I’ll smash it”

05/07/2024

Usually Angel and Haylo share a hay bag until it’s gone then go share the other one until that is gone.
Tonight they decided to each stay at thier own hay bag.
Sometimes a girl needs her independence. 💜

05/03/2024

We have a new shirt design in the Forever Horses shop!
It features our very own ‘Miss Freedom’ !
I plan to keep adding new shirt designs.
It’s a way for all of us who truly love horses to be their voice.
www.ForeverHorses.org

05/01/2024

It’s strange, I started the day feeling discouraged. I do my best to always focus on the good but sometimes the challenges feel like a heavy load.
Then suddenly out of nowhere I received this photo with the message;

“We’re supporting you from Tennessee!”

And just like that my strength, determination and joy returned.

THANK YOU Beautiful Ladies!!!
💜 There are angels all around us. 💜

04/30/2024

Gooooooood Moooooorning!!! Kisses to you all from Haylo 💜