On the Boarder fundraiser!

Please print this out and bring it with you to the fundraiser!!  March 25th you can eat at On The Boarder in Hicksville and 10% of your bill gets donated to us!  All you need to do is print the below picture and present it when you go!

Little Lady Sally

Last Monday while attending the New Holland Horse Auction we spotted a very skinny small grey mare.  I squeezed in past a few horses to get a closer look at her but she was just too scared of me.  She pulled at her head tie and went sideways trying to get away from my touch.  She had obviously been badly abused.  I wrote her number on my list, even though I could barely touch her.

I saw them dragging the grey mare to the auction ring.  One person pulling her head, one person near her hind end rushing her along.  The terror in her eyes was peircing, my heart broke for her.  When they finally got her through the ring I began bidding on her, she started at the low price of $25.  Thirty seconds later she was mine.  They dragged her back to where she would be tied until we were ready to go.  At the end of the auction we sent the grey mare home with a friend as our trailer was full with other needy horses.  We would pick her up the next day and bring her back to our farm.

Our photographer, Cadie, who was present at the auction sponsored the grey mare after her grandmother who passed away.  She was no longer a number, she was now Sally.  Sally arrived at our farm just a few short days ago.  Her arrival made my heart hurt.  When I opened the trailer door she was shaking so hard she was sweating.  You could smell her fear from a mile away.  We slowly lowered the trailer door and tried to not make a sound.  Every noise sent Sally backing away from me.  After a few minutes we were able to unload her and safely get her to her paddock.

After a few hours Sally was munching hay from a net but everytime I walked up the hill she would run to the back to be as far from me as possible.  It was lightly drizzling and I wanted so badly to get a sheet on her.  Myself and Andria slowly walked into the paddock and poor Sally started to shiver in fear.  After about 20 minutes we caught her and we able to very slowly get a sheet on her.  Something I did not think was possible.  After all the abuse this sweet girl has endured she never once tried to kick me or bite Andria.  She just stood there fearfully waiting for something bad to happen.  We unclipped the lead line and Sally stood there for a few seconds before she slowly walked away to stand in the back far away from us.

Day 2 for Sally was was bit more productive.  I sat in the middle of her paddock with a small bucket of treats and grain.  I was able to get her to approach me and take a mouthful of grain.  She wants to trust so badly.  You can't be near her without having tears in your eyes.  I've seen a lot of abused horses in the past few years but never one as kind as Sally.  Even through all her abuse she still wants to trust humans.  Andria was able to feed her a few treats by the end of the day yesterday.  It was nice to see her taking a few steps closer.  Sally is a wonderful horse, she has the heart of ten horses.  I can only imagine how gorgeous she is going to be after 200 lbs and when she learns that no one is going to hurt her anymore. 

Sally will be available for adoption.  She is a registered Paso fino mare with a gorgeous face.  Obviously she will need someone with experience to help her learn to trust again.  She is a special horse, just by working with her for two days I can tell she will make a wonderful riding horse in the future.  At just 5 years old she has faced more abuse then most of us could imagine.  I'm glad to be able to have changed her future because I'm sure her past was very ugly.

Please check back on my blog for updates on Sally, I'm sure I will have many more pictures to share!

New fundraiser!!!

Check out this fundraiser that Project Sage is doing this week!  They sell some REALLY cute stuff!!!  Please go on this website and order something, 20% of sales are donated to us!!

https://www.mythirtyone.com/shop/catalog.aspx?eventId=E2867452&from=DIRECTLINK&verify=true

a horse named Rex

First off I want to say that everything in this blog is MY PERSONAL OPINION and I have the right to write what ever the heck I please on my blog...

On Monday I attended the New Holland Horse Auction in PA to rescue a few needy horses.  While I was at the auction I was very drawn to two OTTB's that both seemed very sweet.  The first one ran through and we were able to purchase him through the ring.  The second one, a large dark bay gelding, ran through but we missed him.  He sold to Jesse Austin.  The Seattle Times included him in an article stating "Jesse Austin, a horse dealer whose business includes selling to a Canadian slaughterhouse, views it as responsible recycling.
"I go to maybe four sales a week," Austin said in Front Royal, about one hour west of Washington, D.C. Austin bought four horses for $1,865; he figured two probably would end up at the slaughterhouse".  You can make your own conclusions at to what type of person Jesse is.

Let me add in that Billy Bang Bang, a Long Island dealer, bought both these horses to the sale, he spoke about the big bay as he went through the ring stating "he was from the Thomas School on Long Island and did best with a bute in the morning".  I later had my hauler talk to Billy to find out more information and he did indeed state he picked the horse up from Thomas'.  The chestnut he was unwilling to provide information on.

I had my hauler and his daughter track down Jesse and offer cash for the horse, he added on $100 to the price he bought him for just 30 minutes before and sold us the horse.  Thankfully we were able to successfully purchase the big bay.  Within minutes I posted pictures to my facebook to figure out exactly who this horse was and how he ended up at New Holland.  Many students from TSH quickly e-mailed me pictues of a horse named Rex that was a school horse for over a year at Thomas School of Horsemanship.  We compared pictures and indeed the horse in our trailer was Rex, a TB gelding that had worked hard being a school horse.

Now Thomas School of Horsemanship is claiming he was sold through the sale to someone who was going to put him on a big grass pasture.  You can do your own research on Jesse Austin and quickly learn that he is pro slaughter for horses.  Jesse is quoted saying "I see crippled horses at two or three different auctions a week, the same ones jockeying around. A lot of them are drugged and doctored up so they look good in the ring, then someone who bought them thinking they got a nice riding horse gets home and discovers that the horse is lame, or 30 years old, not 15".  Well, Rex would have been one of those horses that was sent from auction to auction if not for Project Sage.  Jesse would have brought him back to his farm and in a short time Rex probably would have found himself back at another auction or worse, at a slaughter house with a captive bolt through his skull.  During further investigation you can easily find that Jesse is involved with Brian Moore and AC4H, a rescue that scams people on a weekly basis selling them "broker owned horses" that are sick are misrepresented.  This is the man that bought Rex when he was sold at New Holland, a low life broker who makes a living buying and selling horses.

So believe who you want to believe but this is my story and I will stick to it for Rex who has no voice.  I'm sure if he could talk he would tell you he wonders why he was given to a Billy, a low end dealer, to be disposed of in a cruel way.  Sadly Rex's story is not uncommon, every week Billy brings horses to New Holland from Long Island barns that are lame or old.  This is the easiest way for our local barns to dispose of their unwanted horses.  Why are these horses not retired?  Why is this the ending that they get?  These are questions for the people who own these barns that send their horses to the sales.  The owners of the barns might not be driving the horses to the horse auctions themselves but they certainly know where they are going when they give their horses to Billy.

In my opinion when you give a horse to a man named "Billy Bang Bang" you damn well know it will not end up in the hands of a good person.  It's an out that many barns take and it needs to come to and end, the lesson and camp horses need a voice and people need to wake up and stop covering up for people like Nancy Thomas, the owner of Thomas School of Horsemanship.  Is this what we want to teach our children?  That its okay to dispose of a horse that has worked hard just because its banged up a little?  Our children are the future and teaching them that this is okay is just not acceptable.  I was raised with the morals that all living things need to be treated with respect.  Why was not Rex treated with respect? 

So now you have the story, from the mouth of the person that saw it all first hand, from the mouth of someone who gets up everyday and cares for 30 rescue horses and donkeys that have no one else to turn to.  I don't get anything out of sharing this story, I feel it needs to shared to EDUCATE the people on Long Island and all over the United States.  Please share Rex's story so we can change the way things are done for other school horses.

I will continue to stand up for the horses and let my voice be heard that this is unacceptable.

From lessons to an auction...

Presidents Day Two Years Ago

In honor of Presidents Day this coming Monday I would like to share a story of a small bay horse that stole the heart of a women with just a few whinnies.

On Presidents Day two years ago we headed to New Holland Horse Auction to rescue a few horses.  My fundraising Coordinator, Donna, came with us for the first time to see the auction.  We had a big group of people with us, all wanting to get the "auction experience".  I went off alone to start looking at horses and jotting down numbers of horses that I would attempt to help.  My list was long that day, 10-15 horses that pulled on my heart strings.  Everyone always asks how I "pick" the horses I rescue.  I wouldnt say I pick them, most of them pick me.  They speak to me in some way, whether through their eyes or their soul. 

That day Donna learned just what I mean when I say a horse speaks to me, she never got to pick the horse of her dreams, he picked her.  She came running over to me that I just had to see this horse, he was so cute and he kept calling to her when she walked away.  I rolled my eyes at her and kept looking at the small paint I was going over.  She finally talked me into looking at the horse.  We walked down the aisle and the little horse was dancing in place and pulling on his head tie.  I took a look at him, he was cute, built nice, and generally seemed to be a happy horse.  I wrote his number on my pad just to please Donna and kept on looking through the horses.

The auction started and within minutes the small horse was in line to be ran through.  Donna pointed him out with a huge grin on her face.  At that moment I realized that he had spoken to her, part of me thinks he knew she was a sucker and would make sure he went to a nice place.  The bidding started low and I put in the third bid and his price quickly started to go up.  Next thing I know his rider stands on his back and the little horse just stood there, looking super calm.  Within seconds the bidding stopped, the small bay horse was now ours.  Donna looked like a kid in a candy shop.  She quickly walked away to check on the horse.  That day we rescued 6 other horses, Donna named the small horse Quincy, and the group headed to PA for the month.

During the first few days after Quincy's rescue e-mails started to pour in inquiring about him, he was the one that people wanted.  I told Donna that her small horse would probably be adopted and never make it to our farm in Northport.  She started to question me about him.  I only spent a few brief moments with him at the auction so when she asked me how tall he was I blurted out 15.2 hh, the best guess I could think while I was trying to remember him.  I did know he was special little horse that would be a good first for her to learn with.  A few days later she decided to adopt him.  A little out of the norm for people adopting, she had never ridden him, only spent a few hours with him at the auction, but she knew he was to be hers.  He had spoken to her in the way every one of the rescue horses have spoken to me over the years.

The day Quincy was to arrive at our farm Donna and her daughters stood near the gate with excitement.  The trailer pulled in and Quincy was unloaded.  After two years I still can remember the exact thought that ran through my head..."damn thats a small horse".  Donna and her daughters groomed their new horse, all with smiles on their faces.  It was so nice to see the little horse and his new family.

After a few weeks of Donna owning Quincy I found him having some sort of problem, his whole body was literally thumping.  I quickly got Donna on the phone and told her to come and wait for the vet, I had to run out and pick up a few horses but she would be fine with out me.  I've never seen someone look so nervous but Donna pulled it off.  We found out Quincy had a low calcium count and would need a special supplement.  The beauty of horse ownership, and the vet bills that come along with it! 

It's been two years since that little horse found Donna.  In those two years I've never lived down the fact that Quincy is only 14.1 hh and I said he was 15.2 hh.  Donna even invested in a horse measuring stick for me so I no longer had to guess.  I will swear to this day that at the auction he looked bigger!

Sometimes the best horses come in little packages, Quincy is one of those horses.  No matter how much I joke about his napolean complex I can say Quincy is one of the nicest horses I've had the pleasure of rescuing, he's got a heart of gold and has taught Donna so much in the past two years.

I hope Quincy's story inspires people out there that are considering adopting.  There are a million horses just like him that need a happy ending, maybe you could be it?

Two bay mares

Last year I was delivering a newly adopted horse to their forever home in PA and decided to stop in at New Holland Horse Auction.  I was on the search for a belgian for a client who had always wanted one, it was the best home a horse could get so I figured why not stop in at New Holland and take a look at the old plow horses.  Right when I pulled in I could tell it was a packed auction, horses tied every where, more then I had ever seen go through the auction.  I browsed the aisles of horses and found a row of about 20 old belgians, all beaten up, worked to the point of exhaustion, all with their heads hanging low.  I found a nice big mare that was friendly and could use some TLC, with her number written down on my pad I ventured out to look at the other horses consigned to the sale. 

Some weeks at New Holland it seems to be all nice broke western horses but this week seemed to be all skinny, neglected, and scared horses.  As the auction started I grabbed a spot set off the rail and watched as horses started running through.  Most sold for cheap, under $100, all to kill buyers.  A few nice horses went through and sold for nothing over $400.  It seemed to be a bad week at New Holland, not a huge attendance and few bidders other then the kill buyers buying for meat. 

My big belgian mare ran through and I quickly put in the second bid, after a few back and forths with a kill buyer that big mare was mine.  A new home was in her near future, she had hit the jackpot.  I went over and saw where they tied her and gave her a quick reassuring pat on the shoulder and went back to the auction. 

Back near the auction ring I stood near the wall watching horses run through.  I felt a horse blowing through the bars on the other side of the wall.  I peaked through at her and saw a small dark bay mare.  She stretched has far as she could and I pet her nose.  I quickly went around to take a look at her.  She had some serious wounds on her legs that needed treatment but was so sweet and curious.  She seemed young and was very intersted in me.  Of course I had a two horse trailer, and had only bought one horse, so I jotted down her number.  She would be a nice prospect for someone, she had a lovely build and a nice head, she deserved a shot.

An hour later the auction started to slow down, there were about 20 horses left.  Another bay mare next to the one I had my eyes on was untied and walked towards the ring.  Within seconds the little mare that I was waiting on started to panic, she ripped her tie free and ran towards her friend.  They had a bond I had not noticed while I was standing near them.  They were both in bad shape, obviously came from the same awful owner.  This is the point when I realize that I have a two horse trailer and can only purchase one.  They ran through the ring and I bid on the little mare.  Her friend sold to Brian Moore, a known kill buyer who had just purchased the horse for meat.  My heart sank, but a two horse trailer would not stop me.  I pulled out my phone and called a local friend and begged for her to board the two mares together until I could come back for them.  She agreed and I went down to track down the kill buyer who now owned her.  With $100 added onto the price he just paid minutes before she was now mine.  I happily went over to tell the mares the news.  They would be together for now, I went way out of my budget for the day but heck the two mares seemed please about it! 

After a short ride to the farm they would be staying at I unloaded them and watched them slowly walk out onto a field and start to graze together.  If you didnt know better you would have thought they had been there forever, both so relaxed and at peace together, the memory of the auction quickly leaving their minds.  That day the small bay mare who saved her best friends life was given the name Kiwi.  I wondered if she knew what she had done for her friend, and older mare whos life would have ended if not for the heroic actions she displayed that day.  We named the older mare Georgina, but she quickly became Gigi. 

After a month the mares came back to Long Island and went into a training program.  They both were lovely horses, very nice to ride and deal with.  I was happy I had found them, or they had found me, I'm still not sure about how it all went down.  I guess Kiwi only knows.

After a year and a half of rescuing the belgian and the two TBs they are all in wonderful homes right here on Long Island.  The belgian lives happily at a barn as a pet, she gained close to 300 lbs and is treated like a queen.  Kiwi was adopted by a lovely women and is a pleasure horse now.  I often see pictures of her on facebook and remember that day at the auction when I saw her face looking through the bars at me.  Gigi was adopted by a wonderful women and now enjoys going out on trail rides and being a pleasure mount. 

Consider making a donation to Project Sage today to help horses like the onces highlighted in this story.  You won't regret it!

The girl from the ad

Here's a story to warm your heart about two girls who have bonded through their love of horses...enjoy!

Last year I was browsing the internet and came across an ad for someone looking for a barn to take lessons at, they wanted an indoor but I e-mailed them anyway and went on to tell them how great how facility was and what an awesome group of people we had riding at our farm.  After a few hours my e-mail was anwsered by a girl named Andria.  She would come out and meet with our intructor for a lesson.  I talk to a ton of people everyday so this e-mail conversation left my mind within a day or two.

A few weeks later I was standing in our barn chatting with a boarder about how to put together her new bridle when I saw a blonde girl walking around with a saddle, she looked kind of confused, but our intructor at the time told me she was one of her new students and we were introduced.  I assigned her to ride Anna, a TB with some serious trust issues that needed someone to love her and help her enjoy riding.  Every few days I would see the girl tacking up Anna and schooling her around the ring.  Eventually we got to talking and started to ride together, we laughed as I got run away with by a big grey horse that was new the to rescue and quickly became friendly with each other.  I soon learned that the blonde girl was Andria, the girl I had found in the ad online, I guess e-mailing people finally paid off for me, I found a nice girl to help ride some of the rescue horses!

After a few weeks I invited Andria to be my team mate for the annual hunter pace.  She rode one of my boarders horses and I rode one of our school horses.  For a few days before we rode together and tried to prepare for the pace.  The morning of the pace we wrapped our horses legs and loaded them on the trailer.  After a few hours we were mounted and at the start line, we made a joint decision that we would start off at a trot and once our horses were comfortable in the woods we would take it up a notch.  Next thing I know Andria's horse is galloping full speed away from the starting line with her hysterical laughing.  This was the beginning of a beautiful friendship!  Although we came in dead last, and I'm serious we were so awful they stopped timing us, we had a great time.  We stopped by the ocean to smell the sea air and we lapped a field twice because it was so gorgeous.  As we crossed the last jump and finish line (my horse jumped, hers walked over it) we both had a smile from ear to ear (and very sore legs!). 

It's been about a year and a half since that hunter pace day and since then almost everyone who comes to the rescue knows Andria, many call her my sidekick.  She's been there for me through some of the worst moments of my life.  She was my first phone call when one of my personal horses passed away in October.  I couldnt even get the words out on the phone but sometimes best friends don't need words, Andria was at the barn in 15 minutes flat and we grieved my loss together.  I couldnt imagine going through it myself, having Andria by my side helped ease the blow. 

In the past year we said goodbye to Rosie and Apache together.  We cut off peices of their tails and gave them their final kisses and hugs and gave them a dignified end.  But the sad times don't amount to the good times we've had together in the past year and a half.  Since our hunter pace adventure we've been back to Caumsett State Park many times.  We both took an OTTB and figured "how bad could they be?".  We galloped across fields and took pictures near the water.  I guess you can say we are both lucky to have someone equally as passionate about horses and riding.

When my truck broke down on the expressway with Andria in the passanger seat and a donkey in the trailer we looked at each other and the light bulbs went on in our heads.  We got the truck running and crawled it back to the barn.  An hour later we had the donkey in the back seat of Andria's Escape and we were on our way!  (no donkeys harmed during this trip!)

I guess I should also give credit where credit is due.  When we get a horse into the rescue Andria is usually the first to sit on it.  I always stand on the mounting block yelling "don't worry, it looks quiet as a lamb!".  She's gotten tossed, bitten, and kicked and (usually) never complains about it.  She adopted a lovely TB mare, Margarita, and they've been an awesome team.  I guess you can't be my best friend without adopting one of my horses! 

I'm blessed to have a best friend that can deal with the everyday stuff that goes on at the horse rescue.  On her birthday the hoses froze and we spent hours filling buckets from the bathroom sink, during the hurricane we slept in my office and checked the horses every 2 hours all night long, and when I have a sick horse at the barn she is always there to lend a helping hand.  So I guess I have to thank Andria for all she has done for me in the past year and a half.  I don't think she realizes how lost I would be without her constant help and support.

So now everyone knows how we met, the blonde and the brunette, one day we will have a reality television show!

This blog post is in memory of Piligrim, an amazing horse with a huge heart, we love and miss you Pilly, rest easy big guy, you are forever in our hearts.

Horses, Horses, and more Horses!

Hey everyone!  As you can see we have some updates on our site, lots of new horses for adoption and new pictures of the horses that have been here for a few months!  Let me tell you what makes the Project Sage horses different...

Our horses are in training programs with professional trainers, every horse you see on our site (that is rideable!) is in a training program.  We have some wonderful trainers that donate their time to our rescue.  Riders that have successfully shown all over from english to western!  Currently Novel, Selina, Rascal, and Paris are all in programs to keep moving forward with their training.  When you come out on a weekend you can meet with Erin, one of our amazing trainers, and she can tell you all she does with our horses.  It's fabulous that our horses have the opportunity to learn and become more adoptable.  When you adopt one of our horses you are adopting a horse that we have all put our heart and soul into.  Every horse has the "Project Sage stamp of approval"!

We also have a fabulous farrier that we work with.  In the past few months I've learned so much about the hoof and the pro's and con's of shoes vs no shoes and when pads are appropriate and so on and so forth!  I'm always excited to get up close and personal and learn everything I can.  From an unbalanced hoof to a huge abccess that needs to be cut out!  Our rescue horses are lucky to have a great farrier on our team.

Next is our vet who lives just a few blocks from our barn.  We are lucky to have him so close by whether there is a small colic or a lameness exam he is always on hand for our rescue. 

So as you can see it takes an army to run a horse rescue.  We have a bunch of volunteers that work day in and day out to keep our barn clean and our horses groomed!  We always need more volunteers that are not afraid to get their hands dirty!  We need people who can get in a paddock and scoop manure, something that I find very calming!  It's that little things that make Project Sage run the way it does and the most important thing is a clean place for the horses to rehabilitate with loving people all around!

So check out our current fundraisers on the calender page and order some flowers or a sweat shirt, it's for a good cause! :)

Thanks guys, stay warm! 

Check out two pictures of Novel taken over the weekend..could he be your future horse?

New fundraiser!!!

Project Sage is selling these adorable sweatshirts as a fundraiser! They are unisex and come in sizes S-XL! Please contact me if you are interested in ordering one, they are $50 each (we can ship them to you for the cost of shipping!)  Contact Amcmaugh23@gmail.com if you would like to order one!

Hearts for Horses

Valentine's Day Hearts for Horses!

Please join us in celebrating our second annual Valentine's Day Hay Drive. Your $10 donation will purchase a bale of hay and a sweet treat for a Project Sage horse on Valentine's Day. We will also place a heart cutout on a stall door, with your name on it, to represent the kindness behind your donation.

We would like to fill the barn with love for the horses! A picture will be posted on Valentine's Day of all of the hearts and hopefully we will have lots of needed hay too! Please join us if you can!! We want to fill the hay loft!!! Let's beat last years sale of 160 hearts!! We have one month to do it!!!

Thank you!!
Brittany

Paypal address is projectsagehorserescue@gmail.com

Mail:
Project Sage Horse Rescue
63 South Waldinger St.
Valley Stream NY 11580