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SWAP FEED FUND MAKE CREDIT CARD DONATIONS TO THE SWAP FEED FUND... CALL FOSTER FEEDS AT 304-269-1333, TALK TO CHARLIE TO GIVE A DONATION TO THE SECOND WIND ADOPTION PROGRAM FEED FUND, WE GO THROUGH 6 TONS OF FEED A MONTH. YOU CAN ALSO PAY FOR ADOPTIONS AND PURCHASES THIS WAY!!
Award Winning Website from The Pet Directory
Award Winning Rescue and Horse Website from Horse Breeds Info
Stay up with our President/Executive Director, all the directors, volunteers and riders. All the CSS/SWAP supporters and adopters are having a big time sharing stories, pictures, lots of good stuff about their horses. Our President is at her max friends so she is full but we have set up a fan based page so everyone can be added. So sorry to the 2000 + people who have asked for a friendship.... our fan page is now up.
The Wish List of Our Needs: More than anything we need a large donation to help us pay off our farm, we owe 50k. With a farm paid for, we will never worry about the program and schools closing. We are looking for 2 to 3 people to work in the barn in exchange for board for their horse and possibly personal board in exchange for part time or full time work/volunteer. 1. New or used truck and 2 to 6 horse trailer, our equipment has seen its better days, we've been using both for nearly 14 years to pick up horses and move them to their new homes. 2. A Farm in any location for low cost long term lease or donation to expand our program to develop a retirement farm for our now aging horses returned to us from adopters who could not retire our horses. Our highest priority locations initially are Virginia, Kentucky, Ohio, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Maryland, West Virginia or Delaware. 3. New or Used Farm utility vehicle (like a john deere gator or mini truck), farm tractor, & manure spreader 4. Tack and large horse items donated... like carts/buggies, racing bikes, jog carts, harnesses, saddles, horse trailers, blankets/rugs to use or sell on SWAP Shopping. Supplies to use around the barn or office. 5. A bulk feed bin that will hold anywhere from 6 tons to 9 tons of grain donated or at low cost or even a break on the cost of purchase and instillation. 7. Monthly Sponsors for our horse and dogs while they are waiting on their forever homes. 8. Volunteers to commit to doing one fund raiser for SWAP horses at your location during 2011, it can be a golf tournament, a bake sale, book sale, lemonade stand, car wash, setting up an information stand at a horse show. This is a great way to kids to get involved in helping horses. 9 Anyone interested in free high quality top soil (manure already composted) and manure for gardens, you can pick up for free by the truck load at our WV location (bring a loader). If you are a gardener and only need a small amount, pick up in a truck or we'll be selling it by the feed bag full at $2.00 a bag (in a bag that is usually used for 50 lbs of feed). This is beautiful clean top soil. 11. Someone to do dozer work on the farm, level arena/round pen, do terracing on the hill sides to keep water out of the barns and level the top soil and manure pile to increase the level of that land in that bottom so we can put our methane digester in and indoor arena. Volunteer or at a reduced cost.
Reporting Neglect: Please, if you see neglect (ribs and hip bones showing or no food available), its critical to call the sheriff of the county where the horse/animal is located. Have the address where the horse is located or directions to the farm, pictures and the owners name (if possible). If the sheriff does nothing email PETA's cruelty case workers Stephanie or Tori at sbell@peta.org, or ToriP@peta.org Remember horses can not speak for themselves so we must speak for them!! All reports are kept anonymous. Getting Help for Your Horses/animals if you can not care for them: If you can not feed your animals, whether they are horses or other animals, if you are adopters, call SWAP HQ immediately, if not, call your local horse rescue and plead for help, if they are full then call your animal control officer or sheriff to release ownership of your animals so they can get them help Before they are starved to death, do not wait until they are starved, its critical to get help early. Contact us if you do not know what to do. call 304-873-3532 or email secondwindadopt@aol.com. Many counties have pet pantries so you can get feed when times are tough. If things are getting tight with costs, go to a less expensive grain like a simple stock pellet supplemented with corn, according to Ohio State Corn is the leading horse feed in the US according to their research, many large equine schools and large farms feed these all natural feeds because of what they get for the price, a lot of negative stuff has been written about corn but no one can support it with actual proof and research. We feed a simple all stock pellet from southern states and we supplement with cracked corn for those who need more calories, here is the link:
TOP TEN WAYS YOU CAN HELP PROTECT HORSES 1. BE THEIR VOICE - your vote is your greatest weapon against injustice, so register and actively support horse protection and preservation legislation. 2. LEAD BY EXAMPLE - Walk the talk. Don't support or attend cruel horse activities such as Tennessee Walker events using "soring" techniques - painful techniques to make the horse walk a certain way, or events that use drugs to make horses achieve results. High-diving horse acts are cruel, as are rodeo events that don't promote respect for animals and their health. 3. BE AN INFORMED CONSUMER - products made from horses like Premarin (pregnant mare urine pills for estrogen replacement), are created through horses' suffering. Your spending dollar is a weapon. 4. SHARE YOUR KNOWLEDGE - inform people what happens to horses after their short careers are over (slaughter plant bound), or where Premarin comes from, talk to them about over breeding, the hazards of over using young horses or not training a horse. Engage them in discussion. 5. SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL HORSE RESCUE OR SANCTUARY - these organizations make life better for horses. 6. VOLUNTEER - your gift of time is valuable to horse groups and if you have special talents, so much the better. 7. REPORT CRUELTY - if you witness abuse or neglect, report it to local animal control or your county sheriff. Someone cruel to animals is cruel to humans, too. 8. PROTECT THE AMERICAN WILD HORSE - mustangs have a special place in our history and you can support federal and local legislation by writing emails and letters to your government reps. 9. KEEP YOUR HORSE SAFE AND HEALTHY - if you own a horse, maintain its health with regular hoof, medical and dental check-ups. Make sure they are companioned as horses suffer living alone - even a goat makes a good companion. Feed what the horse needs, if you are seeing ribs and hip bones, the horse is not getting enough, if you can't afford to buy more feed, then give the horse to someone who can, just be sure to check the person out and make sure they are not selling the horse to slaughter or just going to turn out and sell the horse to anyone that has the money. . 10. PLAN AHEAD FOR YOUR HORSE'S CARE - your health and finances change so what happens to your horse of you can't care for it anymore? Research your options, including a pet trust. Horses live into their mid 20s and early 30s now - that's a lifetime of commitment.
Crossed Sabers Stable:
Preparing for a Cold Winter: HAY: Get your hay now before the prices become outrageous, get enough for the winter (good planning is 2 bales for every 3 days for one horse or 10 bales per month per horse, so to make it until the middle of June (first cutting), you're looking at 90 bales per horse at the very least (from September to June). If you have good thick grass that has been mowed and fertilized then depending on where you live in the US you might just need 60 to 70 bales. For good grazing its recommended that you have 3 to 5 acres of mowed, seeded, fertilized grass per horse. Remember Grass is dead in WV from Oct/Nov until about April and every state has some months where the grass does not give the horses their calories or nutrients it needs to sustain life (USDA has details of that for each state). They may be grazing in the winter but they are not getting anything from the grass to survive. I know most know that but I say it because we had an adopter last year in WV that thought if they were eating grass that was all they needed and she nearly killed 2 horses. GRAIN: Remember on average horses need 1 lb of concentrated feed (grain) for every 100 lbs of body weight, so on average horses need about 10 lbs of grain a day, more when its very cold or if they are living outside in a run because much of their calories go to keeping them warm. Also older, sick, skinny, stallions, bred mares and young horses take more feed during the winter. Some horses need more so its critical to watch to make sure their ribs and hip bones are staying meaty and covered. If you see ribs, the horse is too thin and needs more calories, not supplements but more calories, which means more grain.. Easy keepers may be round but it does not mean they are healthy, most easy keepers need a certain amount of calories and a multi vitamin to stay healthy. WATER: One of the most critical things needed in winter is clean fresh water all the time, anywhere from 5 to 20 gallons per day per horse and everyone knows what a pain that is when there is ice and snow on the ground but its critical to preventing colic and water helps keep the horses body temperature regulated. Get your electric heaters, defrosters now, heated buckets, what ever it takes to make sure they have good water in front of them all the time and at least 10 gallons (2 flat backed buckets per horse at the very least). Here we keep 100 gallons troughs in the stalls since we have big stalls, its much easier than frozen buckets in winter, all we do is break the ice and remove it most days and put a heater in them on really cold days. We use a sump pump to empty water and scrub troughs each week which keeps water fresh and clean. So look for easy ways to keep water thawed out and clean. This is the biggest reason horses die in winter. SHELTER: Domestic horses need shelter, they are not wild and can not survive outside without shelter or some kind of heavy waterproof rug to keep them warm during snow/ice and freezing temperatures but the best is a closed in shelter that is free from drafts (meaning its closed on all 4 sides with some sort of ventilation). Wild horses first of all don't live very long, living outside in the elements is very hard on them, secondly wild horses move in cold temperatures to keepselves warm and they often times move over thousands of acres to keep warm or to find cover or water. No domestic horse can not do that on 5, 20 or even 100 acres. Just because your horse has learned to survive in bad weather does not mean its good for them, they need shelter in bad weather. CARE: Its important to make kids take care of their horses but they must have adult supervision on a daily basis to make sure horses are getting what they need. Trust me, I usually have 30 year olds working in our barn and I still have to be there daily to make sure things are done, that they have clean water, especially when its cold because our young helpers want to get out of the weather and then the horses are left at risk for colic. Every day check your child's work, do not leave your horses care to a child (completely), if you do you are asking for trouble.
The Woman I will Be
The perfect analogies for why we have the life school tied into SWAP and animal welfare work: "Everyone thought we took this broken down horse and saved him but really he saved us" Jockey Red Pollard from the movie Seabiscuit
I rescued a human today Her eyes met mine as she walked down the corridor peering apprehensively into the kennels. I felt her need instantly and knew I had to help her. I wagged my tail, not too exuberantly, so she wouldn't be afraid. As she stopped at my kennel I blocked her view from a little accident I had in the back of my cage. I didn't want her to know that I hadn't been walked today. Sometimes the shelter keepers get too busy and I didn't want her to think poorly of them. As she read my kennel card I hoped that she wouldn't feel sad about my past. I only have the future to look forward to and want to make a difference in someone's life. She got down on her knees
and made little kissy sounds at me. Gentle fingertips caressed my neck; she was desperate for companionship. A tear fell down her cheek and I raised my paw to assure her that all would be well. Soon my kennel door opened and her smile was so bright that I instantly jumped into her arms. I would promise to keep her safe. I would promise to always be by her side. I would promise to do everything I could to see that radiant smile and sparkle in her eyes. I was so fortunate that she
came down my corridor. I rescued a human today.
Baggage Now that I'm
home, bathed, settled and fed, Hmm, Yes, here
it is, right on the top I loved them,
the others, the ones who left me, Do you have the
time to help me unpack?
A young boy was walking along the beach
"To that seahorse . . . it will".
Some folks said they missed my great goals list for 2010, so here it is back again 1. Spend an hour a day with your horses, not just feeding, training and turning out, but real quality time doing something that is enjoyable for the both of you. Grooming or hand walking is a great way to bond with your horse and good for both you and the horse. 2. Get your loved ones more involved in your horses. Divorce is the biggest reason we see horses coming back to us. Don't just share the work, share the fun too and find something they really enjoy doing with horses. 3. Learn a new discipline, go to a clinic, a horse show, or equine affaire. Come to one of our clinics or watch a training video. If you are an adopter you can check out books and video's from SWAP's Library for just shipping costs. Take a lesson at least once a month or Bring your adoption horse here and we will help you. The better you are, the more fun you will have. 4. Make a plan for your horse after you are gone or if you have a major injury, let your Will Executor know your plans. Make a plan for emergencies or financial bumps along the way for your horse. Have a plan if you or your horse gets injured, even for the tough times of year like winter (or summer down south and for a drought winter when hay prices skyrocket). Ask friends, family and neighbors to be part of your plan, most people that don't have horses or a farm love the idea of getting away and helping. And people can not resist someone when they are asking for help for the welfare of an innocent animal. 5. Get yourself healthy and in better shape to prevent injury, to live a long life and to more enjoy your horses. Eat 1-1-1 (one ounce of dark chocolate, one ounce of fresh walnuts, one glass of red wine daily) and 2-2-2 (2 servings of fresh vegis, 2 of fresh fruit and get 2 sources of fat free calcium). Drink 100 ounces of spring water a day, get a whole house water filter. Change over to Sea-salt. Take one teaspoon of apple cider vinegar every morning to keep your body alkaline (cancer and disease can not grow in an alkaline body). Eat more fish and chicken and less red meat. Get a good air cleaner and do daily deep breathing exercises, get outside in the fresh air and sunshine for at least 1/2 hour every day. Get away from high fat food, processed foods, fast food, can or boxed food, sugar or artificial sweeteners, soda and don't eat anything if you can't read all the ingredients and know exactly what is in it. Clean all vegis and fruits thoroughly, buy organic, buy ocean caught fish, not farm raised, buy fresh meat and raw milk, not packed or processed. Eat only natural carbs (potatoes, rice, oats) bake/broil or steam everything. Get 8 hours of sleep, reduce stress/risk (reduce commuting by car pooling, tight schedules, cell phone use in the car, watch or read the news only once a day or better yet once a week. Do one hour of walking, yoga or weight training every day and it will make you strong, lean, you'll look great and get wonderful complements from friends, coworkers and loved ones and the horse work will be easier and more enjoyable. 6. Stay clear of negative people and those very negative chat rooms and bulletin boards, they seem innocent but every time you go to them you lose a bit of your positive self, they are truly emotional vampires that will leave only a shell of a person. They are not based on the truth, they are based on harassment, complaining, whining and dishonesty. We all become tomorrow what we are around today, every person we come in contact with defines who we are tomorrow so be careful who you choose for friends, even the websites you go to as each of them affect who you are tomorrow. Do you want to be a bitter, miserable, complaining person or do you want to be happy, inspired and honorable, all that is affected by the decisions you make today. Stay away from Toxic people and Toxic websites/forums that are negative or that spend all their time talking bad about people and their horses. What you are around today and what you are doing today is what you will be tomorrow. Stop Complaining and be Thankful for what you have. If you become a target of harassment or anyone saying anything negative about you, if you are doing only good, positive things and not hurting anyone then ignore them, its all based on jealousy and a sick sort of wish to be like you. They have the problem, not you. 7. Read at least one book on training your horse and one on care each year, if for nothing else but just inspiration. SWAP has a great library of books/videos that adopters can check out for just the cost of mailing it. Click here to see our Library 8. Get carrots/apples every time you go to the store, your horses will love you for it and always come running when you call. Don't feed candy or anything sweeter. Carrots are sweet enough. Get rid of the sweet feeds and you'll get rid of the hot horse once and for all. 9. Realize that if you are having a problem with your horse, more likely than not, the problem is you. Learn more, practice more, ask in a different way, be patient, change their environment or daily schedule to better suit them. Taking better care of a horse always brings out the best in that horse. Good feed/hay, time to rest in a quiet stall out of the elements, lots of fresh water, time to be with you and time to just be a horse, time with their buddies, farrier and vet care always done is a good start. The biggest part of this relationship puzzle is you, not the horse. If you are struggling, then you need to learn more and get better. 10. Ride at least once a week, regardless of weather. Use this time as your down time for healing, your therapy, your time to relieve stress and the pressures of daily life. Even if you don't ride, go sit and read a book in the pasture with the horses or sit in the barn and listen to them munch on dinner, away from the crowd and noise of your day. Enjoy the peace and quiet, enjoy hearing happy horses eating dinner or grass in the pasture. 11. Spend time leisurely grooming your horse once a week. Rubber curries are shine makers. You will have a beautiful horse and a very loyal friend who will do anything for you. 12. Come and spend a week at SWAP HQ, volunteering and focusing on helping a horse and giving will change your life plus it will be the best vacation you ever had. Help an animal in need, whether fostering, being one of our state reps that goes out to check on our horses in their homes or helps us approve adopters in their area. Find horses in need and help us find them homes. Buy a horse at a slaughter auction, get it fat and trained and we'll help you place it into a good home. Foster and volunteer for your local small animal adoption program. I promise, the good things you do will come back to you a hundred times over. Every person has a talent they can offer and if you help one horse or one dog or cat find a good home, you have changed their life forever. 13. Know that every goal is obtainable and it starts with a single step. Take that first step today!! No matter what it is or how big, YOU CAN DO IT!! Every goal that is written down will come true (really!). Every famous person, every great or notable scientist, author, trainer/rider, parent or friend started out as just a thought, just a goal. Remember to take one step today to reach your goals. 14. Start every day with thinking about, what is the most important thing I can do today to change my life and make it better. Do that one thing and in 30 days your life will be totally different. Can you imagine what your life would be like if you did that for 60, 90 or even 365 days a year. The opportunities are endless. 15. Want to keep your horse sound for life? (That should be every horse owners number one goal) do a long slow warm up (cold muscle is easy to injure, a warm one is nearly impossible to injure). The very best cool down is hand walking your horse for 1 hour after every work out. Yes, get off the horse and walk with it. Its great exercise for you and a good time for you to bond. Stop riding your horse during cool downs and stop using a hot walker, do something good for you and the horse, hand walking. Its also the best rehab for over work and injuries, the only thing better is hydro therapy and swimming your horse. Allow soft tissue and hard tissue to become more conditioned before going into any training program... that means 3 months of at least 3 days a week for soft tissues and 10 months of work for bones to become strong enough to jump or do any strenuous training program. Don't start any upper level work, jumping or extensive training until the horse is fit and at least between age 4 and 6 and has been conditioned for at least 10 months (especially if the horse has never been jumped/worked or not been jumped or worked in the last year). 16. Appreciate what you have and be thankful. Instead of looking at what you don't have, look at what you do. Thank those people who have helped you and supported you. The more you give, the more that will come back to you. When you give something away or give something to someone/something in need, you make space in your life for something good to come to you. We are all very blessed, if we just take a moment to look around and enjoy those things. 17. Get used to using favorite mantra's and visualizations every day, simple ones that are easy to remember, like 'I can do this, I will do this', 'this isn't going to get the best of me' or even, 'I deserve the best' or 'the gift of love, caring, and support always comes back' and take two minutes every morning as you wake and at night as you go to sleep to visualize the life you want, the you you want to be, Our thoughts become things, what you see is what you get, if you expect the best, the best will happen, change your self-talk from negative to positive and I promise your life will change for the better.. 18. Each person is put on this earth for a reason, each of us has a mission. What is yours? Seek and you shall find, finding is a journey ... in the journey and the search you'll find your life purpose. If you died in your sleep tonight is there something you haven't done that you need to do or want to do? Someone you need to mend fences with, burnt bridges to fix? People you need to tell them how much you love them? Have you fulfilled your purpose in your life? Ask yourself, Why am I here? How can I make this better? Who do I want to be? Who am I suppose to be? What reason was I put on this earth? What is my purpose? 19. Be an inspiration to your family, co workers and friends. We all fall on our face, we all make mistakes, we all get discouraged, most times we all get up and try again.... sometimes we need a nudge. Instead of being negative or doing negative things, be their inspiration. You do believe they can do it, so why not tell them. If their self talk is negative, then you be their positive self talk.... eventually they will start to say it and believe it too. Life is self fulfilling, failure feeds on itself or causes more failure, achieving does as well. So if you or your love ones are in a negative cycle, break the cycle by changing your thoughts, your self talk, achieve something small to get yourself and your family back into the cycle of achievement. 20. We all file a flight plan every single day for our life. Where is your flight going today? Just like a pilot flying, the winds, the gravitational pull will change your flight and take you off course, so you must make small corrections along the way to make sure you make your destination. Have you selected your destination? Have you picked the steps in your flight plan to get there? Every goal is really that easy, pick the goal and figure out how to get there. The easiest way to pick your flight path/plan is find someone who has done it before you, then do what they did. Its all baby steps you know. Just keep an eye on that destination and keep saying...."here is my destination, this is where I'm going, this is where I am now, this is how I'm going to get there.... I will arrive at this time on this day. You can do it..... its just like getting in your car to go to the store, its just deciding where you want to go and how to get there, then take that first step. You can do it!! No matter how big or how outlandish you may think your dream to be... it is obtainable. 21. Laugh every day and try (as hard as it is sometimes) to find the positive and the humor in each situation (and have at least one bite of a truly decadent desert once a week). Life is just too short to not enjoy it thoroughly. 22. We learn the most and do our best work when we have fallen on our face, when we are struggling, when we are worried, scared or frustrated, when we are anguishing over something or troubled by it. It is then that you have true motivation, when you think clearer. The most brilliant ideas come to people when they feel lost, frustrated, or at the bottom, helpless or hopeless. Cherish these times because its when you can come up with your best ideas to your biggest problems and challenges. You see, there is a reason for the rainy days. 23. You can't make everyone happy, its useless to try and wasted energy to think you can. 50% of all people will not agree with you at any given time, don't worry about it and don't let it stop you. 50% becomes a lot of people when you are in the public eye. As long as you are not hurting anyone and you are doing the right thing, then go ahead and do it. If you are wondering what is the right thing to do, its usually the harder thing to do, the toughest path to take. The easy way out is rarely the right thing to do. Instead of worrying over what someone thinks of you or says about you, do something amazing and outstanding to inspire them or at least have them sitting on the side lines being jealous, secretly saying, "wow, she has guts". One person with purpose becomes the majority, one way or another.
1. There are at least two people in this world
That you would die for.
10. When you think the world has Always in hope and admiration, Celeita
YOUR BANK ACCOUNT
A 92-year-old, petite, well-poised and proud man, who is fully
dressed each morning by eight o'clock, with his hair fashionably combed and
shaved perfectly, even though he is legally blind, moved to a nursing home
today. His wife of 70 years recently passed away, making the move necessary.
After many hours of waiting patiently in the lobby of the nursing home, he
smiled sweetly when told his room was ready.
As he maneuvered his walker to the elevator, I provided a
visual description of his tiny room, including the eyelet sheets that had been
hung on his window.
'I love it,' he stated with the enthusiasm of an eight-year-old having just
been presented with a new puppy.
'Mr. Jones, you haven't seen the room; just wait.'
'That doesn't have anything to do with it,' he replied.
'Happiness is something you decide on ahead of time. Whether I like my room or
not doesn't depend on how the furniture is arranged .. it's how I arrange my
mind. I already decided to love it. 'It's a decision I make every morning when
I wake up. I have a choice; I can spend the day in bed recounting the
difficulty I have with the parts of my body that no longer work, or get out of
bed and be thankful for the ones that do.
Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open, I'll focus on the new day and
all the happy memories I've stored away. Just for this time in my life.
Old age is like a bank account. You withdraw from what you've put in.
So, my advice to you would be to deposit a lot of happiness in the bank
account of memories!
Thank you for your part in filling my Memory bank.
I am still depositing.' Remember the five simple rules to be happy:
1. Free your heart from hatred.
2. Free your mind from worries.
3. Live simply.
4. Give more.
5. Expect less.
Our
lives with horses...
HEROES AND HORSES
The question is not: "do you support horse slaughter." The question is: "do you support the cruel, terrifying transport for days without food and water in their journey to death?" The question is: "do you support the torture and abuse of the killer chutes, even for crippled horses, pregnant mares, wild horses, protective mares with foals by their sides?" The question is: “Do you support the horse slaughter factories that lie to their consumers about the many chemicals that taint the horse meat, and call it Organic? The question is: do you support the breeder who breeds hundreds of horses just to pick out the good ones and cash in the rest to the killer buyer? The question is: Do you support the person who uses the horse its whole life and when it gets to an old age sends it to slaughter as a thank you? The question is: “do you support the slaughter workers who cheer a horse on that struggles extra hard for its life? The question is: Do you support the killer buyer who not only buys up the strong, fat and healthy horses and leaves the meek weak and unhealthy for society, but also bids against the good homes and horse rescues? The question is: “Can you see though the lies of the ones who stand to loose a buck with the end of horse slaughter? The question is: Do you support ripping the last of our wild horses away from their families and peaceful lives to be slaughtered? The question is: As a nation, can we allow this to continue and still call ourselves a civilized country? The question is: "Can you look at the footage of innocent horses with their eyes gouged out, hooves ripped off, legs broken, beaten by the workers, faces smashed in from being on the transport trucks, horses stabbed in their spines, horses conscious for the entire killing process and do nothing?
That is the question, so what is YOUR answer?
Resolve to make the world a better place for animals (credit: PETA)
Buyer and Seller Beware!! Update on the Robin Hollingsworth of Blacksburg, SC (she has several alias's and about 10 fake names) fraud case for those of you who have been asking. The SC prosecutor accepted a plea bargain from her and dropped the case if she paid the people she ripped off (the people she took money under false pretenses from when she sold them horses she did not own), she did that so she was let go but the 3 arrests will stay on her record and the record of what she did to all those people is still on the books and will stay there. If she is caught again I'm certain she will go to jail but people who are cheated by her must stand up and testify.. If more people that she ripped off would have not chickened out and backed out because of fear (Quote from them was we are scared of her, she is crazy) she would be in jail right now but beware, she is still loose and still taking free horses or companion horses that have things like ringbone and navicular and drugging them and then selling them as high level jumpers and competition horses on the internet. Her daughter works with her, Amanda or Mandy, she helps her rip people off. Beware, I'm getting calls almost every month where Robin has committed more crimes against people, taking horses, not paying for them, bouncing checks, buying vehicles and horse trailers and not paying for them. BEWARE OF THIS WOMAN!! If you want her history or to check a person's name against our black list (our do not adopt to, do not sell to, do not buy from, do not hire or even rent to list), then contact us.
BEWARE: Do not buy a horse from anyone you do not know, ESPECIALLY ON THE INTERNET, unless they have websites like ours, their names and addresses listed and they show they have a long long history on their website and do not buy unless you go to see the horse and have it vet checked and you have contact with the vet, not the seller or even trainer telling you what the vet said. DO NOT GIVE YOUR HORSE OR SELL YOUR HORSE WITHOUT A WRITTEN AGREEMENT AS TO WHAT IS TO HAPPEN WITH THE HORSE, RESELLING, USE/LIMITATIONS, FACILITIES NEEDED, ETC. It you sell or give away a horse with no agreement, they could go to slaughter the same day you release them or they could be sold and misrepresented, living a life of neglect, abuse, over use and miss use the rest of their lives. We hear stories all the time where a best friend or neighbor, the nice lady you gave the horse to sent the horse to slaughter or is neglecting it and there is not a thing the owner can do now because they no longer own the horse and they made no written agreements signed by both parties. If you need help doing written agreements, back ground checks on buyers and sellers, just contact us, that is part of our 'SAFE SELLING' SERVICES. Your horse's life depends on you being safe and thorough!
BEWARE: People are selling horses on the internet that don't even exist so beware, the horse industry is full is liars, cheaters, and thieves, even we have had to deal with them from potential adopters who were in jail applying to adopt, to employees and former trainers who totally ripped us off by stealing tack and tools, asking for huge advances and then leaving after they get them, people who don't even know us or had any experience with us slandering us on forums, harassing us and our supporters, interfering with company operations and even adopters who don't think twice about breaching their contract or forging their vets signature on applications & annual updates or even selling their adoption horse to programs like ours and even 501c3's public charities selling horses to slaughter auctions or being put in jail for neglect and animal cruelty. We are bringing each person that has wronged our horses to justice one at a time and winning all our cases but that does not protect the general public from these liars, thieves, con-artist and cheaters. Your horses life can easily be ruined forever, they could end up in a fate worse than death so buyer and seller beware, your horses life depends on you keeping them safe and you being thorough with doing things like getting references and making sure the people have stable employment, that they really own the farm they say they do, doing background checks to check for criminal records. The horse world is full of dishonesty which ruins it for honest people that really care and always try to do the right thing, such a shame. Just be very careful and get proof that your horse is going to a good home, get more than a feeling because we promise you about 50% of the time when it comes to horses, your feeling that its a 'nice' person or a 'good' person' is wrong. And even when you pick a good home, they can turn around and sell or give away to a bad home.
HOW TO STAY YOUNG
Every Dream Starts with a Single Step, Take Your Step Today! Women from History Who Dared To Change the World (credit: O Magazine) 600 B.C. TO 200 B.C.: Tribes of statuesque women (and men) roam
the Eurasian steppes. The fearsome Amazons of myth? Not exactly. But
archeological evidence suggests that among these nomads, the women were the
warriors.
1867: Ida Lewis rescues three drowning men from wind-whipped swells
in Newport Harbor. Then she rows back to save their sheep. Ida later
becomes the country's first female lighthouse keeper.
1872: Victoria Claflin Woodhull becomes the first woman to run for president. A colorful candidate, she advocates for free love. 1906: Madam C.J. Walker hawks shampoos and serums door-to-door. The orphaned daughter of former slaves, she becomes one of America's wealthiest businesswomen. 1912: Astronomer Henrietta Swan Leavitt discovers the period-luminosity relationship (later used to calculate the distances between Earth and the stars). 1914: Barnstorming adrenaline junkie Georgia "Tiny" Broadwick makes the first-ever free fall from a plane. 1916: In a tenement neighborhood in Brooklyn, Margaret Sanger opens the doors of the country's first birth control clinic. Outside at least 150 women are waiting. 1916: Movie star Mary Pickford insists on becoming her own producer. America's Sweetheart is no sucker. 1937: Amelia Earhart disappears on the ultimate adventure—her attempt to fly around the globe. In a note to her husband, she explains: "I want to do it because I want to do it." 1938: Anna Mary Robertson Moses sells her first paintings, at age 78. Known as "Grandma" Moses, she continues to paint for 23 years, becoming one of the century's most renowned folk artists. 1941: Protofeminist superhero Wonder Woman first appears in a comic book, fighting off Fascists in star-spangled hot pants. 1946: Super-geekette Dorothy Hodgkin cracks penicillin's chemical makeup with an X-ray crystallographer. (Eighteen years later she'll earn the Nobel Prize.) 1953: Jackie Cochran flies an F-86 Sabre jet through the sound
barrier. She learned to fly so she could travel around selling cosmetics,
but it turns out trashing speed records is a lot more fun. ************************************** The Warmth
of A Horse |
Whatever you do, you need courage. Whatever course you decide upon, there is always someone to tell you you are wrong. There are always difficulties arising which tempt you to believe that your critics are right. To map out a course of action and follow it to the end, requires some of the same courage which a soldier needs. Peace has its victories, but it takes brave men to win them. - -- Emerson
For Email Marketing you can trust
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Best of 2011
-Foster Mom of the Year, Lydia Millner, we didn’t have a lot of horses in foster homes this year but Lydia was so different from most fosters who want a certain horse or a certain capability and only want it for the summer. Lydia called and offered to help by taking any horse for the winter, now that is a foster mom that all programs dream about having. Someone who is more concerned about helping any horse in need than thinking of themselves she even paid to ship him to her place, what selfless devotion to helping a horse that would have never had a chance without us and her. Lydia is fostering Aargon for the winter and is focusing on helping him become an even better horse, he’s not just going there and sitting in a field, she’s handling him every day and this will end up really helping this horse find a great home and help him be success in that home. I would give my right arm to have more fosters like her.
-Adopter Update of the Year, Pony Pastures along with all their students that are our adopters!! What can you say, with all their SWAP horses and many of their students with our horses and all the pictures we get all through the year on facebook… we have no doubt what a great home they are all in. Nothing like constant updates, we love it and the pictures of the kids and horses are priceless. We are so thrilled to have found Pony Pastures, they have become a SWAP East helping us find horses homes and putting the word out about our work. What great adopters, every one of them.
-Best All Around Volunteer, Ellen Mitchell, Esq.…. Anyone who will drive 12 hours one way about every 3 months to spend a weekend to clean stalls and troughs and sit all day helping with inventory in the SWAP store, plus donating funds to the feed fund, donating stuff for the SWAP store, donating her legal expertise on different issues deserves much more than this recognition. Ellen has gone above and beyond the call of duty and asks nothing in return but the chance to help a horse in need. We are so praying to keep her around for a long time and begging for more like her this year!!
-Best Fund Raisers of the Year, Delaware Harness Racing Golf Tournament for SWAP, the Ring Raffle Sponsored by Faye York and The Donor Challenge by Sherry Galt and all the donors that accepted her challenge. We can thank these three fund raisers for our continued existence. The golf tournament paid for all of our hay, the Ring Raffle paid the farm mortgage for 10 months and the Challenge continues to help us pay for feed, farrier, vet and monthly expenses. Shew, what do you say to people that saved your life and the lives of so many animals that we helped this year and the years to come. Reminds us all to have the faith of a child that there are good people out there that really care and when help is so badly needed, help comes when you’re heart and work is in the right place.
-Best All Around Supporters: We had so many that helped this year that its hard to pick out of handful but Dale Ames, David Ferrell, Jim Gerchow, Chip Copper, George & Tina Dennis along with so many from Delaware Harness Racing, Faye York, Sherry Galt, Carole and Clint Wade, Peggy Breakiron, Gene Swansey, Sara Gauer, Kaitlyn Snodgrass, Diana Greenhalgh, Donna Moore, McKinzi Straub, the Swisher Family that brings us all our hay, Foster Feeds, all those transporters that kept our horses safe on the road …..these folks have made all the difference in the world in the programs operation...
-Donor of the Year, Quang Hua and Vietopia Restaurant of Houston bought $5000. worth of raffle tickets for the ring raffle… no matter how hard I wished they would have won, they didn’t and I was heartbroken but they made the ring raffle a success and kept the farm running for another year. Wishing we could do something special for so many that have given so much in money and time.
-Presidents Award, Diana Greenhalgh, Years of working at Second Wind, doing whatever needed to be done for over 11 years now but this year with Celeitas injury Diana was at the farm every day to make sure the horses were cared for, she was the one that came daily to pack and wrap Sonny’s feet, cleaning up after dogs and doing all the things that Celeita could not do for over 3 months, she was the one that covered the operation when Celeita had to have surgery or be gone all day at the VA hospital. There is no way we could have ever paid her for her time, gas money and for all the work she did this year. It was a hard year on everyone, the volunteers were tired and worn out with Celeita’s injury it put a strain on the whole operation, many just stopped coming to help. Diana was the only one coming to help consistently even when Celeita was begging for help from anyone. The program and the critters owe her so much, so much more than we’ve ever been able to give her for her devotion and dedication to the animals in our care.
-Life Time Achievement, Rhonda Ross was a longtime friend, adopter and supporter of Second Wind. She spent a lifetime of loving horses but her life was shortened from diabetes, which first took her sight, then took her kidney of which she got a transplant. She always talked about SWAP to her family and friends, she had dreams of being a professional horse woman and dreams of showing and competing, even dreams of doing what we do here at SWAP. Unfortunately all those things had to be put aside for Rhonda to fight for her life, which she did for many years and then her poor heart could not handle all the stress any more. Rhonda was really an inspiration because she took great care of 2 SWAP horses, riding both as well, proving a good relationship with a horse and respect will compensate for strength in the rider. I saw her ride the first time, already legally blind and had already had the transplant. It was one of those times when you think, I have no excuses, if she can ride that well, I should be able to do anything. She was riding horses that many able bodied riders could not, she showed us anything is possible, it just depends on how badly you want it and she wanted to ride badly. Rhonda lost her battle this year and sent all her horses to SWAP plus told her family she wanted all her horse stuff to come to us. Even in her death she was thinking about helping horses. She was a precious delicate gift to horses and to us, she is so desperately missed by all who knew her.
-Most Dedicated Vet, Dr. Shannon Loomis along with Marla, her vet tech.. this year was such a tough year for Second Wind, we had to put down more animals in one year than all the past 15 years total. Dr Loomis and Marla helped us make good decisions about animals in pain and about our toughest welfare decisions because we never got into horse/dog adoption to put animals down. When you have feet and legs falling apart, illness so bad that the horse is hurting itself, legs breaking down so badly that it takes 4 people to trim the horse, horses sloughing their hooves from poor care, excessive seizures that we could not stop, then we are forced to consider what is humane. We expect people to dump horses here when they don’t want to put them down, and when they are old and lame, when they have not been fed or cared for but its never easy when we can’t fix the problem or help them. We’ve realized that ending the pain, pain we never caused is the most humane thing we can do. To be there for them, to put them down where they were loved and cared for, to do it humanely with lethal injection and bury on the farm is the best answer. Shannon, Marla and Audubon always handled these animals with care and compassion and they were there for the SWAP staff, knowing how painful those decisions are to us. Many of them we had had in the program for many years, following them through years of homes and then allowing some of them to live out any good life they had left in the Old Timers Sanctuary until they were in so much pain and could barely walk or barely get up. We hate the whole thing but as a rescue we have to find a way to give horses relief, relief from past injuries, from serious illness, from damage done from past owners. We are always attacked for all our decisions, regardless, attacked by people who think we should put the horse down at the first sign of an issue and also attacked by those who feel that you never put any horse down regardless, that they should always die on their own from natural causes so the attacks and outside opinions make things even worse and its already a very painful situation because we love the animal. Dr. Loomis made this so much easier, reminding us that quality of life is a major consideration, as is the horses safety and survival. I know I will think of these animals for the rest of my life, but I know we made the right decisions for each with the knowledge and experience of our veterinary team.
-Directors Award, Michael Asthalter, Michael has been a long time friend to SWAP as an adopter, donor, foster, transporter, advisor and even checking out new homes when he delivered horses to their home but this year he returned to Germany because of the limited opportunities in the horse industry in the US. The decision all started with the death of his beloved wife Zorana Ristic, a veterinarian that always gave us free advice and supported our operation completely for many years. We miss Michael and it was a huge loss to SWAP, he was a meticulous transporter and worker, his knowledge of horses is unmatched and being German he was always kind but always honest, even when it was something we didn’t want to hear. We hope that his home land will give him all the opportunities for great work that he longs for.
-Vice Presidents Award, Alan Macy in Indiana, We all lost a great animal advocate when we lost Alan Macy to cancer. He and Angie have been adopters, volunteers, fosters, rescue assistance and emergency transport for Second Wind since the late 1990’s while helping Angie care for their 20 + equine, dog and cat family and two kids. Alan was what most horse women would call a loveable puppy dog, he was always ready to do whatever was needed to be done and had the patience of a saint. He was a good man, husband, father and animal lover. This is a small tribute to his years of selfless work to help animals and care for animals. Sorely missed does not describe the huge loss to the animals and to his family.
-Most Dedicated Riders, McKinzi Staub and Donna Moore, what a year we had, seems like every horse came to us untrained, unhandled, crazy from mishandling, uncastrated, completely herd bound. At times I was starting to think I was getting too old to take the really hard rescues. None were completely starved but all of them needed training. McKinzi and Donna were ready to take on any problem they had, from mounting issues to just never being trained or handled. They were becoming old pros at putting new horses under saddle and most of the horses we found homes for this year was because we had these two ladies and their gentling talents to bring horses along so they could be adopted and be successful in the home. Donna brought McKinzi on board and McKinzi brought her college church group to volunteer as well so they are much more than a couple of riders/trainers… they are two caring young ladies who really want to help animals. Kudos!
-8 years of Service, Aldine Hart... Wow!! What a work history. For many years Aldine was the barn and farm manger, then he retired but has continued to help us with farm maintenance, building, fixing, mowing, weed eating, fence repairs and walking the miles of fence lines, helping us stay up on stalls and even horse care on occasion. He’s been a trooper for so many years and such a great dedicated, honest worker that always does his best work.
-Adopter of the Year, Dr. Sherry Galt of TX, at first we thought Sherry was going to be just another great adopter, keeping her horse beautiful, good about doing her updates, then she was given a professional award and she could either take a donation to a program of her choice or take an extended vacation in the Bahamas. She had her award sent to us. She always got our newsletter and stayed in touch when we started struggling because of the economy Sherry’s challenge kicked in, getting several others donating monthly to the mission to match her donation, she also put $3500. Into our feed fund this winter, nearly paying our winter feed bill for the horses. How do you ever pay someone back for that kind of support and how do you thank them? We have no clue but she is certainly adopter and donor of the year all in one. She deserves so much more. We’ve seen some real heroes step forward this year and make a big difference in the horses lives and we have all been sleeping much better, not having a fret over feed and care for the horses. Outstanding dedication to helping the ones who cannot help themselves. Bravo!!
-Groom of the Year, Sara Gouer, Our bathing, clipping, grooming, spit shining geru... she goes all day taking horses to the wash stall making them all looking marvelous! We’ve not found anyone who enjoys this more and does quite the job she does when it comes to spit shining up a dog or horse. The animals love her for it too.
-Animals Best Friend, Jean Kruse of WV Jean runs our county Spay Neuter Program, of which all the SWAP small animals went to but she has been instrumental in helping dogs and cats that need help…. even horses too, does transports, pick ups, placements, tracking down abandoned/stranded animals and dogs that have landed in shelters by mistake, takes in animals and finds them homes, helps us get our dogs placed into homes too, she is an animal’s best friend for sure and its so nice to finally see someone in our own county step up and do something for animals besides us and Donna Francisco!
-Adopters with the Best Horse Pictures: Amanda Rockower with Fior in PA, The Stouts with Ebony in WV, The Riehl’s with Banner in Indiana, Betsy Bailey and the Bailey family with Classy and Mistral in VA, Marissa St. Clair with Melody and LilBit in Maryland, Morgan Crabbs with Ren and several SWAP horses in Maryland, Alexandra with Zahara in Florida, Kim Stark with Country Lane in Oklahoma, Wendal and his human family in Arkansas and Pat Pape in Texas. This is always a hard choice, all these folks send the best pictures of them and their horses, when things are hard here and we’re really struggling, we turn to these pictures as a critical reminder as to why we work so hard for no money, why we struggle, why we continue even though we have sleepless nights worrying over horses, why we ignore the BS on the forums being written by people we helped put in jail for horrific neglect or people that abused their horses and even the ones we didn’t approve their applications for dishonesty or extreme selfishness… these pictures serve such an important purpose to us, not only in fulfilling the adoption contract and letting us now the horse is safe but also that all important reminder that some people do really care and it’s so badly needed.
-Biggest Transformation in Horses: You expect rescues to go through a huge transformation, certainly Aargon comes to mind, going from a dangerous jerk to a sweet easy going confident pony in training but also watching Morgan Crabbs and Ren go from a well cared for TB with a wonderful beginning to a big beefy competitor jumping big in big shows was a sight to see. Also Cortez has turned into a fit, capable lesson and dressage horse in the hands of Andra Constantin and Carol Popp in CT, Rocky is another in CT that is looking wonderful and coming along so well with Lynda Morhardt. All very dedicated people who take pride in how their horses look, knowing that your horse is a reflection of you as a person.
-Best All Around Adopters: Carole and Clint, The Wade Family of WV adopted yet another horse this year, all are always fat and shining, they have donated to the mission, worked at the SWAP store building tables for us, bought a ton of stuff from the SWAP store, volunteered, bought calendars, offered transport help to volunteers and to Celeita when she fractured her arm… the list goes on and on as they are always looking for a way to help, this couple is a dream come true to any program trying to get things done with very little money.
-Adopters with the biggest hearts: Nancy Trotter of GA, Micki Ollman of NC and Dana Limpert of Maryland. Nancy and Micki for adopting completely blind horses just because they needed a home and they could give them that home, this is the second year we’ve selected them for this honor. Nancy has gone through a major injury with Amber, a family move and even found a Donkey to be Ambers buddy. Micki now runs a blind horse sanctuary in NC and we’ve recommended several blind horses to her that she’s accepted into her program. She even had our beloved 41 year old Kochese a birthday party with local kids attending and walked him in the local Christmas parade, she even went out of her way to meet Kochese’s original owner who had him for many many years but lost her home to foreclosure after a major family illness. When a blind horse comes to you as a rescue, it’s the biggest worry wondering if anyone will ever adopt or if they will ever have a family of their own and then you worry about them being neglected or abused… most rescues just turn them away and many times It’s their last chance. When such a needy horse finds a great home it is really a gift from god. They will both tell you there is nothing better than having an animal that needs you so much and they realize what a gift to them that it really is to have such horses in their lives. Dana Limpert adopted Klack and is working to get his OCD removed as promised, it took us 2 years to find someone that cared enough about the horse to accept the challenge, amazing how many people want something great for nothing, not Dana, she has no expectations except to get him healthy and give him a chance. You just do not find people with the spiritual and personal strength and faith, courage and selflessness to take on horses like this every day. It is truly commendable.
-Adopter that has learned the most since adopting: Katharine Owens and Arab mare Melody of VA, she adopted unhandled 10 month old SA Melody who came to us from a breeder that was over breeding many years and then would send us 10 to 15 unhandled youngsters each year. Melody was lovely but needed so much training…. Fast forward 11 years and they are showing, competing and winning in halter, dressage and stock seat show classes and Katharine is not a professional, she paid a trainer, went to lessons, she got trained and got Melody trained, it really shows that with the investment of time and money and many years of dedication, everyone can raise the horse of their dreams, no matter what their start has been but it does not happen in a month and many times it does not even happen in a year, slow and steady always wins the race.
-SWAP horse that has lived the most interesting life: Mikado and Revue, Mikado was born in Ireland, competed in eventing there, then imported to the US and competed around NY and the east coast, then was adopted into a home in Fairbanks, Alaska. That boy’s been around and his personality is bigger than life. Revue was born in Australia, competed there, went to Europe and was owned by the FEI President, competed there, imported into the US and competed here. Came to us as too much horse for an amateur and not enough for a professional to win but to the surprise of many we placed her with Rhonda Ross, a legally blind rider who built a relationship with her and Revue would ride her anywhere, we sadly lost Rhonda this year and Revue is back with us looking for another home that will give her the time she needs to establish a relationship with in order to see the best of her abilities.
Thank you all for a super year. Without you, SWAP today would just be a memory of the past.
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"Saving the life of one horse may not change the world, but the world will surely change for that one horse”
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15 Years Serving Horses, the Horse Industry and Horse
Owners
