Over the past four weeks, I have been writing a series about the equine slaughter/auction pipeline. Each post has taken hours or even days to write. I have spoken to countless people and read innumerable articles. It has been a labor-intensive and emotionally draining series. I will be writing more, and I have many ideas […]
A Healthy Healed Splint Bone Fracture…Time to Start Rehab! Read More »
Out of sight, out of mind? When Russia invaded Ukraine in February, I was glued to my television for days, even weeks. It was incomprehensible to me how one moment, people could be going about their daily lives, and the next moment, they were engulfed in a war. Initially, my thoughts were nearly 100% focused
The Plight of Ukrainian Horses and Companion Animals Read More »
I have been glued to the news all week. I can’t decide if I should limit my exposure to protect my mental health, or continue to soak up every bit of news and education about what’s happening that I can. Thus far, I’m sticking with the latter plan. The Ukrainian people can’t turn off their
Traumatized Ukrainian Animals and People! Read More »
Sometimes, I wish I didn’t have any education in veterinary medicine. That is never more true than when one of my own dogs presents with a problem. I go from A to Z in a heartbeat… but strangely enough, this time I was right. My sweet little Leah has been diagnosed with canine lymphoma. Leah
Little Miss Leah has Canine Lymphoma Read More »
I guess if you have to experience at least part of your life as a shelter animal, there are far worse places to land than the Kauai Humane Society. At least, that is true now in 2022. That was not-so-true as recently as a half-dozen years ago. As I mentioned in last week’s blog, I
The Beautiful Kauai Humane Society Read More »
Owning horses, or animals in general, is not for everyone. Most folks that I know that have horses also have dogs, and of course, the prerequisite barn cats. I have often heard people explain their disinterest in owning animals as an unwillingness to be “tied down”. For me, the blessings my animals add to my
Critter Sitter Solutions… Trusted Housesitters Read More »
Almost exactly a year ago, I wrote A Hole in Her Head, a blog about how our gelding kicked our new mare in the head. We sutured up the skin, but obviously, it was up to Mother Nature to deal with the rest. For the most part, Mother Nature did a great job. However, for
Detour to Purdue University Read More »
First things first… The lost horse has been found! Update at the end of this blog! Also VSV updates! I am all about being as prepared as possible in case something happens to go wrong. There is so much in life that you can’t control… why not hedge your bet and take steps to prevent or
Canine Rattlesnake Aversion Training Read More »
More than once, I have seen a reference in a Facebook group about someone’s “heart horse” or “heart dog”. Have you had a heart horse or dog yourself? I have lived with dogs since I was a baby, and I have many, many incredible memories of incredible dogs. I loved them all fiercely. However, two
That HEART Horse or Dog Read More »
I have written many posts about my animals and friends and the experiences of this past year. I thought perhaps I would provide an update to some of those stories… Kara the Puppy In April, I wrote about the addition of Kara the Border collie to my household. She joined my family when she was
In Part One of this story, I described the late 2017 addition of Bailey the Border collie to my multi-dog household. Although Bailey fit into my active lifestyle quite well in many ways, she challenged the pack hierarchy. In particular, she hassled Leah, my current alpha female. At one point fairly early after she joined
The Bailey 2 By 4 Part Two Read More »
Sometimes God needs to smack me with a 2 by 4… Usually, He does it in relation to my responses (or lack thereof) to a particularly challenging family member. I am to the point where I believe that reaching out to her is an exercise in futility. However, occasionally I will get a “message” that
In my previous two blogs, I discussed some of the logistics associated with evacuating large animals in the face of a natural disaster. Part One discusses having current vaccination and identification information on all of your horses. Additionally, it discusses the need for a working trailer and an effective method of communicating with neighbors and
Emergency Evacuations with Small Animals Read More »
